A Flood of Water Studies
The Big Wood River and its underlying aquifer are the life blood of the Wood River Valley. How are we treating this water resource? With increased curiosity and respect, studying it in greater depth than ever before.
A few facts. Idaho is #1 among states in residential water usage at 168 gallons/day/capita, twice what the average U.S. citizen uses. A recently released USGS survey reports a drop of between roughly three feet in the south valley's unconfined aquifer and seven feet in its confined aquifer between 2006 and 2012. Drops in the confined aquifer draw water from the unconfined aquifer as part of the interplay in the system. Climate change adds another variable to predicting water supplies.
New knowledge. Recognition of limits to what once seemed like an infinite resource has stimulated a fresh look at how we manage water usage throughout the valley. Further, the old view that ground and surface water flows were independent has given way to proof that they are, in fact, inter-reliant. In the future, water supplies will be subject to a "conjunctive management" strategy being developed by Idaho's Department of Water Resources (IDWR). The strategy will be implemented in 2016 for District 37 from Magic Reservoir up through the Wood River Valley.
Studies underway. At least three major studies are underway looking at the health and functioning of Blaine County's water system directly and indirectly. Other small groups, both formal and ad hoc, are looking at climate change, forest management, and power generation - all of which impact water supplies. The Wood River Land Trust, Trout Unlimited, and the Nature Conservancy are often participants in these various studies.
The intense focus is encouraging. But, for maximum results and cost-effectiveness, all research-involved stakeholders need to communicate more actively to avoid redundancy, share findings, save research money, and collaborate on solutions. Each is looking at parts of a vast and complex natural system, yet there is strikingly little coordination among them; in fact, some are not even aware of what others are doing. It seems that a coordinator role might be filled by one of the non-profit stakeholders or by forming a local Watershed Advisory Council as has happened in other communities.
Here are the major studies:
1. Conjunctive management. The U. S. Geological Survey is building a groundwater flow model for Wood River Valley aquifers. Due December 2015, the model will be used by IDWR for the ensuing conjunctive management of ground and surface waters in the region.
2. River health. The BLM postponed a decision on the Environmental Assessment for a River Park at Hulen Meadows in order to study the health of the 40 mile river reach from Magic Reservoir to the Sawtooth National Recreation Area. How this study, due October 15, differs from the USGS study is not clear.
3. Climate change. "Envision Big Wood Basin" is a three-year study by a scientific consortium interested in the potential effects of climate change on water supplies in the Pacific Northwest. Various stakeholders are involved to explore "the interactions between land use practices, population growth, and water resources in the Big Wood Basin and how these could change in the future due to human and natural drivers of change." The study's findings are due out next month.
By the end of 2015, all results should be available. We hope that conservation-minded citizens and groups, formal or ad hoc, will track these studies both to glean information and to coordinate their findings.
