Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
QCS Staff
If the county reaches full growth potential over the next 40 years, Logan and San Jon may find they are short of water if they continue to use their current underground water sources, according to the county’s new 40-year water plan.
Using maximum growth rates from the past 20 years, HDR Engineering projected Logan to lead the county in potential growth over the next 40 years in its highest growth scenario. That growth could raise demand for water to double the capacity of Logan’s current underground water sources, which also serve San Jon, Grady Reed, an HDR engineer, said Monday in a public hearing on the 40-year plan.
Tucumcari, meanwhile, would still be using only about half the capacity of its underground water sources, Reed said.
According to the water plan, demand in Logan and San Jon could nearly triple from its current 523 acre-foot-per year rate to about 1,468 acre-feet a year by 2060, including San Jon. San Jon uses Logan’s wells exclusively since it stopped using its own wells in 2004 due to their high fluoride and nitrate content.
Logan’s current groundwater sources are expected to provide 1,008 acre-feet per year. If the highest projected use level is reached, the demand would outpace available supplies from both groundwater and a 400 acre-foot allocation from Ute Lake by 2060, Reed said. Current pipelines, however, can deliver the amounts required.
Logan’s population is expected to grow to 1,776 by 2060 in the highest-growth scenario. Its population was 1,094 in the 2010 census.
The plan also lists alternative ways to increase water supplies, including wastewater re-use for non-potable applications, such as crop and lawn watering, using more Ute Lake water, including construction of a ogan to Tucumcari pipeline, improvements in water loss controls on current water systems, encouraging purchases of water-saving clothes washers and rainwater harvesting and water conservation measures, such as toilet retrofits to use less water, low-flow showerheads and aerators on faucets.