At their March 8 regular meeting, the High Plains Underground Water Conservation District (HPWD) Board of Directors unanimously approved a request by the City of Lubbock for cost-share funding to assist with a brackish groundwater evaluation project.
The Dockum Aquifer lies beneath the Ogallala Formation in the Panhandle-South Plains region. Groundwater in the Dockum Aquifer is generally brackish. However, some communities are able to use it for drinking water purposes after blending it with water stored in the Ogallala Aquifer.
In 2015, the HPWD Board of Directors approved a study to gain a better understanding of this deep aquifer. Since then, District staff have devoted a great deal of time on the study, including geophysical logging of Dockum wells, establishment of a Dockum water level observation well network, use of pressure transducers to monitor depth-to-water levels in selected Dockum wells, and providing cost-share assistance to communities wanting to drill test wells into the Dockum Aquifer.
Aubrey Spear, director of the City of Lubbock Water Utilities, told the HPWD Board that there are four components to the brackish groundwater evaluation project.
- Evaluation of the hydrogeology of the study area.
- Construct a test well located on the City of Lubbock’s South Water Treatment plant property on FM 1585 between Highway 87 and Slaton. The test well would be completed at an approximate depth of 1,500 feet into the Santa Rosa portion of the Dockum Aquifer. After drilling and casing of the test well, groundwater samples will be collected from the on-site detention basins and sent to a laboratory for water quality analysis.
- Evaluate the field data collected to determine the feasibility of using the brackish groundwater as a potable water supply after appropriate treatment.
- Prepare a report of the findings.
“The City of Lubbock was interested in obtaining cost-share funding to assist with this brackish groundwater project. This planned project is expected to cost approximately $300,000. A capital improvement budget of $200.000 was approved by the Lubbock City Council. We would not be able to complete the planned scope of work without the $100,000 in cost-share funding from the High Plains Water District,” Spear said.
During the past few years–and especially with the recent drought, there has been a great deal of interest in use of the Dockum Aquifer as an alternative water supply.
“The HPWD Board of Directors believes it is the district’s obligation to assist communities in their efforts to learn more about the Dockum Aquifer. Together, we will obtain valuable data and learn more about this water resource,” said HPWD Board President Lynn Tate of Amarillo.
Last year, the HPWD Board of Directors approved a similar project by the City of Abernathy to drill a test well into the Dockum Aquifer. The well was recently completed and water quality tests are underway to determine the salinity of the groundwater in that area.
(Press release from HPWD)