U.S. Water News Online
DENVER -- Denver Water's board is considering a $65 million proposal that would allow the utility to tap aquifers for emergency water supplies.
The utility's board is expected to consider the proposal in September.
``This system would act as an insurance policy in case of some catastrophic failure of our system,'' said David Little, a Denver Water planner. ``The water would only be used in a dire emergency.''
If the board approves the plan, it could take up to 30 years to develop, Little said.
Wells would be hidden from sight in underground vaults. Early estimates indicate the wells could provide about 29,000 acre feet per year, enough to serve as many as 60,000 families for a year.
Denver Water, the state's largest water utility, provides about 285,000 acre feet to its 1.2 million customers each year.
Estimates of how much water lies in aquifers beneath Denver and other Front Range cities vary widely. Denver Water officials believe aquifer supplies are sharply limited and would require extensive treatment to make it potable.
And unlike the utility's standard supply, from mountain snowmelt that is renewed each year, underground supplies are considered difficult if not impossible to replenish.
``Everyone who is on groundwater now is trying to get off,'' Little said. ``And there's a growing recognition that the more straws that go into the aquifer, the more quickly water levels are going to drop, and the more quickly everyone's going to have problems.''
Denver Water has talked about tapping aquifers for more than a decade, but decided to move forward with initial work on the proposal during the peak of the drought last summer.
In April, it filed a formal water court application staking claim to the water. Under state law, cities can claim groundwater lying under land within their boundaries.
Several metro-area cities including Aurora, Englewood, Highlands Ranch and Lakewood are monitoring Denver's plans to make sure that any new wells do not degrade production of existing wells.
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