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Future aquifer water supplies could be in jeopardy
Jul 20, 5:39 PM EDT
By MARIA SUDEKUM FISHER
Associated Press Writer
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/M/MO_HIGH_PLAINS_AQUIFER_USGS_NMOL-?SIT

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Future water supplies from the High Plains aquifer
could be in jeopardy if large amounts of water are pumped out of it and if
farmers continue using chemicals on land above the vast underground
reservoir, the U.S. Geological Survey said in a report.

While the aquifer's water quality is good, there will have to be "some
substantial changes" in how the aquifer is used "if we want to extend the
life of it," said Jason Gurdak, lead author of the study.

Gurdak said Monday that prolonged irrigation pumping of the aquifer, also
known as the Ogallala, and use of fertilizers on crops in the region could
lead to higher contaminant concentrations.

The aquifer is the most heavily used groundwater resource in the United
States, supplying water to Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico,
Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming. Most of the water is used for
irrigation, but about 2 million people also depend on it for drinking
water.

"There is a concern over the ongoing sustainability of this resource,"
Gurdak said. "People around the world know about the Ogallala; they know
it's the poster child for water resources that are being challenged because
of use."

For the study, which was presented last week at the summer meeting of the
Western States Water Council in Park City, Utah, the USGS analyzed water
samples taken between 1999 and 2004 from private wells, public supply
wells, irrigation wells and shallow monitoring wells for more than 180
chemical compounds and physical properties.

The report said more than 85 percent of the 370 wells used for drinking met
federal drinking-water standards.

But the contaminant nitrate was greater than the federal drinking-water
standard of 10 parts per million in about 6 percent of the drinking-water
wells, the report said. Nitrate can naturally occur, but it is also a
byproduct of fertilizer and manure.

Most of the contaminants that exceeded drinking-water standards were
naturally occurring, like arsenic, dissolved solids, fluoride, iron and
manganese, the report said. None of the pesticides detected exceeded
drinking-water standards.

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USGS Report: http://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/1337/