In Drought Prep Effort, Denver Expands Underground Storage
By Sara Jerome,
@sarmje
The biggest water utility in Colorado is looking for new places to store water as a way to prepare for future droughts.
Starting in late September, “on a hot, dusty plain northeast of Denver, utility contractors drilled a super-deep borehole, looking for the geologic equivalent of a bank vault where the city could stash water for dry times,” The Denver Post reported.
The effort represents some early steps toward drought preparation in Colorado, where water storage is expected to play a significant role in fending off shortages. Low rainfall along with economic and population growth in the region have sparked concerns about running out of water.
Denver Water engineer Bob Peters explained the planning that has gone into this project.
"We need to figure out how many wells it would take to get an acre-foot of water in there," he said, per the Post. "It might take us many, many wells."
Shortages may not be far off. “Denver Water says the city will be facing a drought at some point in the future and we need to be ready,” The Denver Channel reported. “Denver Water is using the rig to drill into what is known as the Denver basin, a collection of sand, gravel and rock — known as aquifers — where water storage is possible. The basin is roughly as large the state of Connecticut — stretching from Greeley to Colorado Springs and from Golden to Limon.”
More data is needed before the utility can decide how to move ahead. “Denver Water says collecting data from the drilling sites is critical to see if the system will work in Denver. Results of the tests are expected by the end of 2015,” KUSA reported.
Governor John Hickenlooper unveiled the first draft of a sweeping water plan for his state last year, charting out a path for water management in Colorado, where shortfalls are expected to hit by 2050.
"The gap between municipal water supply and demand is growing, and conservation and the completion of proposed water projects are likely insufficient to address projected 2050 shortfalls that could total more than 500,000 acrefeet statewide," the draft said.
For more drought coverage, visit Water Online’s Water Scarcity Solutions Center.