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Aquifer Storage and Recovery Presentation
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Beginning later this month, the Water Authority will begin storing water in the aquifer beneath Bear Canyon Arroyo under Permit No USR-2 from the Office of the State Engineer. Water will be released into the arroyo and allowed to infiltrate to the aquifer. The project will operate during the winter months when water demand and evaporation are lowest. Plans are to infiltrate 400 acre-feet from October - December 2014 and another 400 acre-feet from January - February 2015 for a total of 800 acre-feet this winter. This is the first project of this type to receive a permit for full-scale operations in New Mexico.
Design of a second aquifer storage and recovery project at the San Juan - Chama Drinking Water Plant is being completed and an application for a demonstration permit with the Office of the State Engineer will be submitted. This project will inject water into the ground through two types of wells, one which penetrates all the way to the water table so the water is injected directly into the aquifer and the second which releases water above the water table and allows it to percolate down to the water table. The Authority will be monitoring how both types of wells perform to determine how best to infiltrate water at this location.
These types of projects are critical to future water resources management in our service area. These projects are already called for in the approved Water Resources Management Strategy under Policy C. They will help build and maintain a drought reserve, reduce our impacts on the river, reduce evaporative losses, allow for storage of water in an account that is not subject to appropriation and will not require water rights offsets when recovered, allow for full utilization of the drinking water project, reduce ground water pumping impacts during the summer months and reduce our need for additional above-ground reservoirs.
FISCAL IMPACT:
None at this time.
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