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~ l `" r ~;~ i'u" r~4 .'~~1 - ~--; . ` . < d Coiitintiied from gage 1 agree whether Minnesota's ground water Withdrawal Assessment Tool" aimed and relatively recent drainage of many pumping is sustainable. at estimating the impact of new high- farm fields is affecting aquifer recharge? And, in part, the seminar stemmed capacity wells on nearby streams and How much leakage occurs through the from a debate last spring at another uni- fish populations. rock or clay layers separating confined versity ti~ater conference where some of Reeves gave a generally favorable aquifers? What are the water require- those water experts differed on the very review of the Michigan process. "Our inents of ecosystems that compete with basic question of whether aquifers are experience suggests that the collaborative humans for water? How will population being pumped faster than they are being process is an essential, effective piece in growth, climate change and the produc- recharged by rain and snow. the overall process of developing water tion of bio-fuels affect ground water use Deb Swackhamer, co-director of the management policy," he said. and availability? Water Resources Center, told participants Kenneth Bradbury, a research In the final stage of the seminar, par- at the beginning of the seminar the ques- hydrologist with the Wisconsin Geo- ticipants reported their answers to those tion they faced Haas: "Do we know if logical and Natural History Survey who questions and brainstormed suggestions our state's ground water is being used served on a technical advisory commit- for future seminars to continue the sustainably?" tee appointed to help evaluate a 2003 exploration of sustainability. But Swackhamer urged the par- Wisconsin law strengthening the state's Many of the participants called for ticipants to sidestep the thorny issue of authority to regulate high-capacity wells. the collection of more data-completing trying to define sustainability, to avoid Bradbury said the law lacked specif- geologic atlases for the state, inventory- talking about government water policy ics, and a 14-member advisory commit- ing springs as Bradbury said tisconsin and to leave discussion of water quality tee that was supposed to recommend has done, continuous real-time monitor- issues for another day. "We're not going improvements could not reach consen- ing of precipitation and stream flow to talk policy, politics, implementation sus on a number of major issues that volumes-and for centralizing and issues," she said. "We're going to talk included: enacting a statewide water improving access to data that already technical stuff." conservation program, defining what is a are available. The seminar began with presentations spring and expanding ground water pro- Pricesa Vanburen, a water planner by five water specialists: tections around springs; and evaluating with the Minnesota Environmental Bruce Wilson, a University of Min- the effectiveness of existing regulations Quality Board, said the small group nesota professor in the Department of on ground water use. she took part in wanted improvements Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering. Virginia McGuire, United States in the reporting of how much ground He gave an overview of the hydrological Geological Survey hydrologist from water is pumped, new computer mod- cycle and a summary of water use, by Nebraska who has led a study of water els that allow water availability to be category, in Minnesota. levels in the High Plains Aquifer that plotted against changing land uses Ray Wuolo, a Barr Engineering stretches across eight states, from Texas and more and better modeling that can hydrogeologist who recently helped the to South Dakota. evaluate worst-case scenarios for water Metropolitan Council develop a com- McGuire said the 97 percent of the demand and water availability. puter model predicting ground water water pumped from the aquifer is used Michael Osterholm, the director of and surface water responses to popula- for irrigation, and she said current and the University of Minnesota Center for tion increases and water use prejections past levels of pumping are not sustain- Infectious Disease Research and Policy, extending to 2050. able. In 100 years of pumping, half the called for study of the potential for Wuolo said all attempts to model water-saturated thickness of the aquifer aquifers to be contaminated by leakage ground water sustainability involve: Try- has been lost, she said. "Where there from geo-thermal heating and cooling ing to predict how water tables will be are large withdrawals, there are large systems. Osterholm, who took part in changed by pumping; predicting how- declines," she said. the seminar because of his participa- not if-surface waters will be affected; After those presentations, the seminar tion in the Freshwater Society study of predicting whether currently permitted participants were assigned to smaller sustainability, also urged that a future pumping levels can be maintained; and, groups in which they discussed technical seminar focus on the demands he said finally, making decisions in the face of aspects of ground water modeling and Minnesota eventually will face to export substantial uncertainty. other means of measuring aquifers. its water to drier regions of the country. Howard Reeves, United States The questions they considered "We are one of the richest, ripest Geological Survey hydrogeologist from included: What data need to be collected Saudi Arabias of water," Osterholm Lansing, Mich., who was part of a task that are not being gathered? Do we said. "We better start talking about that, force that inventoried ground water in know whether aquifer levels are declin- anal realize some day we're going to be Michigan and set up a v,%eb-based "Water ing or rising? Do we know if extensive up for buying and selling." FACETS December 2008 ~~