Good afternoon,
A developer is proposing the creation of a 1000 home subdivision that would sit directly over the recharge zone of an aquifer which provides 60% of our city's water supply. A group of citizens are attempting to create community awareness around the need to protect the aquifer. We would also like to create an educational brochure for community-wide distribution. Is there a list of talking points available on this subject somewhere?
Thank you
Mike Vercauteren
417 Fremont St.
Laramie, Wy 82072
307-742-3676
Looking for Aquifer Protection Talking Points
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Mike,
In southwest Florida, some counties have adopted "Watershed Protection Overlay Districts" in their Land Development Codes to protect watersheds used for potable water supply - granted, they're generally geared towards surface water protection, but this is essentially what you need in a groundwater recharge area. Preventing development of these areas is not the goal of these overlay districts, as this would be difficult to do. But they do establish restrictions and protective measures such as enhanced septic system/leachfield designs, larger wetland setbacks and minimum upland acreage/open space requirements. I'm assuming, however, that it may be too late to try to adopt these type of protections for your groundwater recharge area. In lieu of that, I would pursue the general guidance provided by the EPA's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program with regard to control and minimization of stormwater/non-point source pollution. There are a number of good publications regarding this subject available on the EPA's website: http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/index.cfm.
Good luck,
Scott Browning
Senior Environmental Specialist
Manatee County Environmental Mgmt. Dept.
Ph: 941.742.5980 ext. 1703
Fax: 941.742.5996
Email: [email protected]
Check out this website for information about development, impervious surfaces and corresponding impacts on water quality. http://nemo.uconn.edu/tools/impervious_surfaces/index.htm
Rich Miller
Director, Environmental Policy
University of Connecticut
ph: 860-486-8741
fx: 860-486-5477
www.ecohusky.uconn.edu/
Our region has a sole source designated aquifer for 500,000 people. A group of water purveyors has joined efforts for wellhead protection on the Rathdrum Prairie-Spokane Aquifer. They have a website full of information and tools for aquifer protection. www.spokaneaquifer.org Some highlights include the virtual field trips on the "kids" page and the aquifer atlas, which you can download, from the "aquifer" page.
Brook Beeler
Washington Department of Ecology
509-329-3478
One of the things I think all of us need to be concerned about is changing aquifer recharge patterns because of global warming. In southeastern Minnesota (USA), we are getting about the same amount of precipitation, but it is coming increasingly as torrential downpours that run off the land and snowfall, which runs off in the spring when it melts. Thus, our aquifers aren't being recharged with the precipitation we are receiving the way they used to be; and strategies desperately need to be developed to capture and store rainwater and snow meltdown so that it can replenish our aquifers and be available through the lot hot dry summers and droughts we have also been experiencing. I've been having a very difficult time finding good information about quantities of water withdrawals from our aquifers, which are increasing dramatically from ethanol and soydiesel plants being built in the region, development, and increased irrigation for agriculture due to a hotter and dryer climate. I'm also having trouble finding out information about the amounts of water going back into our aquifers. Having this information is key to any good discussion about our aquifers. Most people in the Midwestern US know about the Ogallala Aquifer and respond with a gasp at the news scientists believe it will be depleted in the next 25 years at current withdrawals. In SW Minnesota developers haven't received permits to develop new ethanol plants because there isn't enough groundwater to support them and supply domestic and other needs. Water has definitely become a limiting factor; and we need to know how to talk about it in terms of waters going into and out of our aquifers. I appreciate Mike raising this topic for discussion and the ideas being presented.
Thank you!
Nancy Adams
Re Nancy Adam's post I was interested in her comments on the aquifers in the US mid west. In Melbourne Australia we don't have that immediate problem as we are still relying on dam water and looking at savings in water use as the means to preserve water rather than turning to aquifers. However, the weather patterns you mention are similar to ours in that the downpours are more intense, last for shorter periods and may be more localised in their drop rather than what used to be known as the Melbourne (Australia) drizzle over large areas allowing for more soaking, hence groundwater take-up. Country areas further out however have been feeling the eight year drought more intensely, and rely more on irrigating from bores, and river entitlements. Working for local government I have found that the bores we sunk for Council are no longer getting the recharge rates we had during more abundant times of rain, and they have become marginal as a backup for when the water restrictions on piped dam water are applied during summer. It will be an interesting exercise in our coming summer (Dec 06-Feb 07) to see if they have deteriorated even more with our worst dam storage recharge for the last eight years and probably similar result in our aquifers.
Peeter Kallista
Environmental Project Coordinator
Glen Eira City Council
Ph. 03 9524 3281
Mob 0407 869 176
Here are some Wisconsin resources. Though seemingly rich in groundwater resources, our state's situation is becoming critical as natural pollutants show up (arsenic, etc.) while total demand grows. Here's a newspaper article from today's (8/28/06) Wisconsin State Journal that covers many of the issues: http://tinyurl.com/qxx89 You'll find many resources at the Central Wisconsin Groundwater Center: http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/gndwater/ Center for Land Use Education has a recent three-part series on groundwater recharge protection; scroll through the recent issues listed here: http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/landcenter/newsletters.html WI DNR Fact sheet on recharge protection: http://tinyurl.com/kvjra
Hope this helps.
Eric Olson
UWEX Center for Land Use Education
I would look to the US geologic survey service as i knew someone that was a hydrologist they did a lot on acid rain measuring at one time and wastewater wetlands to remove pathogens frm waste water sources.
good luck
Lawrence
Hi Mike -
The issue you wish to address may be very important. But it is also quite complex as there are so many aspects to grounwater protection and preventing longterm watertable decline. A good understanding of the nature of the local subsoil conditions is primary. This leads on to an understanding of how the system recharges and discharges, the water balance and the vulnerability of the system to contaminants. You can do a lot tho by simply getting the right questions into the public arena and placing the developer in the postion where he must convince your local authority that they are not an issue. So while you may be able to glean some general info from public sources if the initiative is to have any teeth, you will probably need to get some expert help from a groundwater specialist at some stage. There is plenty of info on the net if you have the time to just search. Here are a couple of good sites to start you off - they have other links. http://www.epa.gov/safewater/protect/citguide.html http://www.groundwateruk.org/ For more specific info you could post on a groundwater discussion list. If you need more assitance contact me directly.
Iain (Geohydrologist)
Hi Eric,
Thanks for these resources. I work on a source water protection program and am always looking for additional information, insights and resources, and the links you provided today have been a great help. Again - thanks!
Tari Stork
Communications Specialist
Source Water Protection Planning
Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority
120 Bayview Parkway, Box 282
Newmarket, ON L3Y 4X1
Phone: (905) 895-1281, ext. 320
Fax: (905) 853-5881
[email protected]
Wellhead Protection Program http://www.wrds.uwyo.edu/wrds/deq/whp/whpintro.html
Sue [email protected]
office 502-540-6955
cell 502-396-5080
Mike,
The Cities of Austin and San Antonio, Texas overly the Edwards Aquifer, a rechargable aquifer, and it is their main or only drinking water source. These are large, fast growing cities where aquifer protection and management programs are aggressive. Here are two links I found to get you started, I hope they help. http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/nav/util_water/protectaquifers.html http://www.sanantonio.gov/edwards/index.asp
Shirlene Sitton
Recycling Manager
City of Denton Solid Waste Dept.
(940) 349-8054