Legislative help sought to save ground water

Friday, Jan. 22, 1999 | 11:48 a.m.

The Southern Nevada Water Authority will ask the Legislature to help protect Las Vegas Valley ground water, which is being overdrawn.

The SNWA Board unanimously approved a plan on Thursday drafted by the Advisory Committee for Groundwater Management.

The legislative recommendation was developed over the past two years. The SNWA Board created the advisory committee in 1997. John Hiatt, who represents domestic well owners, chaired the committee.

The water authority discovered at least 4,800 domestic wells in the valley, said Kay Brothers, SNWA resources director.

The committee expressed concerns about replacing ground water drawn out by residents during hot summer months and said the water authority should continue to replace 5,000 acre-feet a year into the aquifer to protect well owners.

During the winter months, when demand for water is less, the Water Authority has been recharging ground water with water piped in from Lake Mead.

The advisory committee's suggestion would dedicate a specific amount for well users. Well owners fear that rapidly dropping ground water levels will cause soils to collapse, damaging their homes.

The committee's key recommendations include permanent artificial recharge to benefit well users, particularly those who live in the northwest part of the valley, and ways to help well users finance the cost of connecting to a municipal water supply.

Current local regulations require well owners to hook into city or county lines when the pipes are 400 feet or less from the well owner's property.

To pay for artificial recharge, the committee recommended an annual assessment fee increase on each well owner from $10 to $27. The figure was determined after a cost-benefit analysis was conducted.

Other recommendations request that the Legislature require the state engineer's office to restrict transferring water rights in Las Vegas and lower the cost of capping a well, now estimated at $10,000 per well. If the state agrees, an owner could close down a well for $2,000.