[Vision2020] So, Is Moscow ready for a reservoir?

[Mark Solomon]

Jerry,

That's more than a "couple" but I'll try to 
answer where I can. A reservoir would ideally be 
sited where it is a gravity flow from the site to 
town to minimize energy needs. That would screen 
to the  S. Fk or Paradise Creek sub-watersheds. 
The S. Fk has a lot more upland area for 
watershed collection so that would be my first 
glance cut. Again, ideally, there would then be a 
landowner who is willing to sell their land to 
the city for a just price. Eminent domain could 
be used and would not be affected by Prop 2. 
Public/private partnerships are certainly 
possible although development of homes is 
probably not a good idea for water quality 
reasons. No idea on grants although as I said 
during the Critical Groundwater Management Area 
petition times, designation as a CGMA would give 
a solid basis for grant proposal applications. 
I've suggested for the last year that there could 
be a partnership with Pullman for reservoir 
development. Pumping from the Snake is very 
costly without even thinking of the ESA hurdles 
that would be encountered.

Mark

At 10:06 PM -0700 10/10/06, Jerry Weitz wrote:
>Mark, a couple of questions: Where do you think 
>the "ideal" location of a reservoir would be? 
>If Proposition 2 succeeds, how would this bode 
>out for the reservoir?  Is there a possibility 
>of having a public/private partnership where the 
>public owns the reservoir and the shoreline 
>would have homes to help mitigate the costs? 
>Are there grants available and would Moscow 
>qualify?  Could Moscow and Pullman be partners? 
>Can the Palouse river or Snake river be used? 
>Thanks Jerry
>
>At 12:59 PM 10/10/06, Mark Solomon wrote:
>>  >From today's Daily News. Please note there is a
>>significant reporter error in the statement
>>attributed to me re the Grande Ronde going dry in
>>10-20 years. I specifically referred in my
>>presentation to the Wanapum and the time frame I
>>forecast was 15-25 years based on historical well
>>levels when Moscow relied entirely on the Wanapum
>>aquifers. We now pull 30% of total demand from
>>the Wanapum, an amount very close to the volume
>>pumped in Moscow during the 40's and 50's with
>>its then smaller population.
>>
>>Mark
>>
>>********
>>
>>MCA panelists: Moscow reservoir may make sense
>>
>>Group of five agrees that feasibility study needed before further discussion
>>
>>By Ryan Bentley, Daily News staff writer
>>Tuesday, October 10, 2006 - Page Updated at 12:07:07 PM
>>
>>Moscow resident Kit Craine believes elected
>>officials must push forward and find a secure
>>source of water for the area.
>>
>>She said people won't seriously push for an
>>alternative source of water until they wake up
>>one morning and don't have any water to take a
>>shower.
>>
>>Mark Solomon, coordinator of the Latah County
>>Hydrogeologic Project and an area water advocate,
>>said if people in Moscow wake up with dry pipes,
>>it's too late.
>>
>>Solomon was one of five panelists at a Moscow
>>Civic Association forum on an alternate community
>>water source Monday night at the 1912 Center.
>>
>>The panelists agreed at the end of the meeting
>>that before anyone started digging a reservoir, a
>>feasibility study must be completed and reviewed.
>>
>>Gary Riedner, Moscow city supervisor, said a way
>>to pay for a new reservoir has to be identified.
>>State and federal grants need to be sought before
>>bonds or rate hikes are floated toward residents.
>>
>>He said Moscow has $50,000 specifically budgeted
>>to identify additional water sources, and that
>>money could potentially be used to help pay for a
>>feasibility study.
>>
>>None of the panelists had any firm idea of how much a reservoir would cost.
>>
>>Jerry Fairley, a University of Idaho assistant
>>professor of hydrogeology, said a reservoir must
>>be looked at as a long-term investment to keep
>>the area alive.
>>
>>Solomon pointed to Troy as an example. Its water
>>supply comes from a reservoir and it is looking
>>at expanding its existing supply to meet demand
>>and plan for future growth. Troy has pursued
>>applications and permits over the last four
>>years, and it has started to seriously look at
>>payment options in the last year.
>>
>>Solomon said a reservoir that would meet Moscow's
>>needs would have to hold about 300 million
>>gallons of water, roughly double the size of
>>Spring Valley Reservoir.
>>
>>Solomon said if something is not done within the
>>next 10 to 20 years, Moscow could see water
>>levels plummet and wells begin to run dry in the
>>Grande Ronde aquifer the same way it witnessed
>>levels drop in the Wanupum aquifer in the 1950s
>>and '60s.
>>
>>Steve Robischon, executive manager of the Palouse
>>Basin Aquifer Committee, said PBAC is an advisory
>>committee and does not have an opinion on the
>>matter. He said the idea of building a reservoir
>>that would retain runoff isn't new.
>>
>>The only current source of water for Moscow and
>>Pullman is the two aquifer systems. The Wanupum
>>is a shallow aquifer, while the Grande Ronde is a
>>deep aquifer that provides most of the cities'
>>municipal water.
>>
>>Robischon said groundwater levels have continued
>>to fall since the first recording in 1897. The
>>reservoir idea has popped up several times since,
>>but each time the discussion has died down before
>>any serious research was done.
>>
>>Aside from the obvious problem of how to pay for
>>a reservoir, there is the question of where it
>>would be located.
>>
>>Fairley said the most logical place would be
>>somewhere on the western slopes of Moscow
>>Mountain, where engineers could use the
>>granitic-rock base as a type of liner.
>>
>>Moscow would experience an immediate positive
>>impact, and Pullman and other well owners in the
>>Palouse Basin would benefit from Moscow pulling
>>less water from the aquifer systems.
>>
>>For a potential reservoir to be successful, the
>>panelists agreed that Moscow and Latah County
>>have to work with the rest of the region.
>>
>>Dianne French, board member of the Palouse Water
>>Conservation Network, said people must conserve
>>in the interim. That doesn't necessarily mean
>>turning off the faucet.
>>
>>She said sincere conservation could cause
>>stabilization in the aquifers. As an example, she
>>pointed to Seattle, where the city uses the same
>>amount of water it did in the 1970s despite the
>>fact its population has doubled.
>>
>>French said simple things like faucet aerators
>>and more-complicated systems that use effluent
>>water for lawns and gardens can save communities
>>millions of gallons a year.
>>
>>"There are no more water sources in the ground,"
>>Solomon said. "All that's left is what falls from
>>the sky, and we need to figure out a way to keep
>>some of that."
>>
>>Ryan Bentley can be reached at (208) 882-5561,
>>ext. 237, or by e-mail at rbentley at dnews.com.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>This electronic edition of the Daily News is
>>protected by copyright. © 2006 Daily News
>>
>>
>>At 7:35 AM -0700 10/10/06, Joe Campbell wrote:
>>>It was a wonderful meeting, Nils! I want to
>>>thank the panelists: Jerry Fairley, Dianne
>>>French, Gary Riedner, Steve Robischon, and Mark
>>>Solomon. They all did a wonderful job and I
>>>learned a lot!
>>>
>>>Hopefully Mark or someone else who attended the
>>>meeting can note some of the highlights. Water
>>>is not exactly my area of specialization!
>>>
>>>--
>>>Joe Campbell
>>>
>>>---- Nils Peterson <nils_peterson at wsu.edu> wrote:
>>>
>>>=============
>>>I was sorry to miss the meeting last night. Of the major agenda items facing
>>>the city, starting to develop a long range plan for water is about the top
>>>of my list.
>>>
>>>I'd like to hear some of the thinking that got presented. I've heard that
>>>there might be a candidate location on the Mountain, which was identified a
>>>few years ago.
>>>
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>>
>>
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