Water_Resource_Sustainment_Plan

Water Resource Plan Arthur Robertson Sci/275 05.02.10 Ronald Montgomery Water Resource Plan: Aquifer Depletion Imagine living on a farm where the only source of fresh water is a well and one morning that well has run dry. This may be the future for several people who rely on aquifers. An aquifer is an underground rock formation composed of such materials as sand, soil, or gravel that can store ground water and supply it to wells and springs. The Floridian Aquifer, in Southwest Florida, is one of the main sources of portable water and irrigation for agricultural products as well as the source of springs and rivers that provide for several habitats and communities. This is the case with several other aquifers around the world. Large phosphate mining operations utilize these aquifers on a regular basis. Long-term aquifer declines began with farmers utilizing aquifers more so than they could replenish themselves. The acceleration of saltwater intrusions, ceased flow of springs, reduction of flows in the surrounding rivers, and the lowering of lake levels in the surrounding area were results of the declining aquifers. With drought making this bad situation worse management of aquifers has became critical. From this crisis, the Southern Water Use Caution Area (SWUCA) and the SWUCA Recovery Plan were developed by the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Only time will tell if the recovery plan can restore the Florida Aquifer. In 1975, areas dominated by phosphate mining were the center of the aquifer level declines. At that time mining operations drastically reduced their dependence on the Floridian Aquifer by beginning to practice conservation measures (SWFWMD, 2006). At the same time the demands on the aquifer were being reduced by the phosphate industry, while an increase in demand was being felt due to large scale agricultural endeavors. In addition to the irrigation needed to sustain crops during the dry season in Florida, large quantities of water are often pumped during the winter months to prevent freezing when the temperature drops really low. With the agricultural demands for irrigation increasing, the center of the aquifer declines seemed to only be shifted to the agricultural areas from the mining areas. In the 1970s, Pinellas County as well as others experienced a huge increase in population growth, but were having a shortage when it came to providing potable water to its residents. To remedy this problem the counties started developing well fields on the land to the north in Pasco and other counties that they had began purchasing. Wetlands and cypress swamps across the two counties were being drained when water was withdrawn from the aquifer in this new area. Trees fell over, private wells went dry, and lakes and ponds began to shrink. The Water Wars were on as citizens began to sue Pinellas County and the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) (Dedekorkut, 2003). By the early 1990s, more residents were being impacted by the groundwater withdrawals as sinkholes began to open up in the northern parts of the SWFWMD. Water officials tried to reassure residents that drought was the cause of the sinkholes, dry wells, and shrinking lakes. When rains returned to average (and above average), the officials shifted the blame to development, then to agriculture (Glennon, 2002). It was very hard to distinguish the devastating effects caused by water being pumped from underground and effects caused by drought. With that being said, the connection between what was being seen at the surface and underground water pumping was hard for communities to make. By 1996, a SWFWMD study concluded that there was a “significant” connection to the underground water pumping and the effects they were seeing on the surface. Water officials came up with a plan to effectively hide the effects of the groundwater pumping before the study made the connection between two. Officials decided to pump groundwater to supplement the lakes that had gone dry, still claiming that the cause of the problems was drought. To no surprise most of the water was lost to evaporation and the rest drained back into the aquifer, but for a short time, the official’s created the illusion that there were no problems caused by underground pumping. The next step in dealing with the aquifer depletion was to decide what to do about all the groundwater withdrawals. With water demand for drinking water and irrigation for crops being reasonable and beneficial for surrounding communities, the Floridan Aquifer is being for other recreational or aesthetic uses that should be contained or eliminated. The water used for filling and maintaining swimming pools, filling decorative fountains, and keeping golf courses as well as personal lawns green all comes from the Floridian Aquifer. The water needed for irrigation during the dry months and seasons could add up to an additional 1 or 2 million gallons per day of demand onto a system that is already under a lot of stress. The SWFWMD has taken steps to quicken conservation with the restricting watering of lawns to once per week and ensuring the enforcement of these watering restrictions, however further action may be required to reduce the demands on the Floridian Aquifer even more. I would propose that the installation of new sod and landscape be prohibited during dry seasons and any droughts. Apparently, new sod and landscape is exempt from the once per week lawn watering restriction and is allowed to be watered every day, this would have to be approved by the SWFWMD in advance of installation. New subdivisions require vast quantities of water when being built, to ensure the new homes will have lush green lawns when purchased. This will also have to be approved by the SWFWMD in advance. Another component of the management of the Floridian Aquifer, more so than what has already been accomplished, is based on respect for the hydrology of the Peace River. The Peace River was once known in history as a gaining stream, translated means that water from the Floridian Aquifer supplied the base flow for the river. With the increase demand on the aquifer it is now listed as a “losing” stream, because of the water escaping into the aquifer through sinkholes in the riverbed. With water going into the aquifer, it is greatly reducing the amount of water reaching the estuary of Charlotte Harbor as well as the water treatment plants that supply water to communities downstream. Part of my management strategy would be to fill in the sinkholes within the streambed of the Peace River to prevent water from entering the aquifer from the river, thus fixing the flow. This part of the management of the system may be counterintuitive: why not let the water enter the aquifer as a way to recharge' There are greater implications for the Peace River water entering the aquifer rather than completing its journey down to Charlotte Harbor. Habitats along the river bed are dependent upon certain flows during the different seasons. The estuary at Charlotte Harbor, which serves as a nursery for many types of sport fish, depends on the freshwater inputs from the Peace River to provide the proper mix of fresh and salt water. Again, this is an example showing the connection between the withdrawal of water resources from underground impacting surface systems, as well as important ecosystems that support tourist and fishery industries. With more people immigrating to the Sunshine State, water demands will only increase causing more stress on the aquifer. Prioritizing the water supply seems to be the first step to sustainability. What is a reasonable and beneficial use' The next step is identifying alternative sources of water such as desalination to reduce the impacts from the current groundwater withdrawals. Finally, conservation and education will be essential to the success of any sustainability program. The benefits of the sustainability program will be reducing impacts to surface systems such as lakes, ponds, streams, springs and wetlands, return flows in the Peace River to near normal, reduce the rate of saltwater intrusion, and to preserve the groundwater supplies for future generations. References Dedekorkut, Asyin, November 2003. Chapter II: Tampa Bay Water Wars: From Crisis To Collaboration. Florida State University. Adaptive Governance of Florida’s Water Conflicts. Glennon, Robert. 2002. Water Follies: Groundwater Pumping and the Fate of America's Fresh Water. Washington, DC: Island Press. Southwest Florida Water Management District. March 2006. Southern Water Use Caution Area Recovery Strategy. Retrieved February 8, 2009 from http://www.watermatters.org White, Nicola. May 30, 2008. Ambitious Project Aims to Get Peace River Flowing Again. The Tampa Tribune. Voutchkov, Nikolay. June 1, 2004. “A new resource for drinking water”, Public Works.