Untitled

When is the Department of Ecology going to do something about LRI's illegal water use? (360)407-6300

Drought already taking a toll

WATER: Cities, utilities express concern about shortages, say many resources are running dry

March 25, 01

Rob Tucker; The News Tribune

It's early in Washington's worst drought in a quarter century, but impacts of the dry spell are showing already.

Three local water systems - Fort Lewis, Fruitland Mutual Water Co. on South Hill, and the City of Kent - have reported early shortages, said Tim Church, spokesman for the state Department of Health.

State health officials have started a survey of the 200 largest public water systems in the state to determine if any are in trouble or anticipate shortages. The systems provide water to a large majority of the state's users - 4.3 million people - and include Seattle, Tacoma and Spokane, he said.

"This is a pretty unique situation," he said. "We were going to survey anyway, but now we're really focusing on seeing if people need help."

Gov. Gary Locke authorized the state Department of Ecology to declare a drought emergency on March 14, allowing for emergency transfer or purchase of water rights. Locke said 30 rivers in Western Washington alone recorded record low flows for mid-March. And, he said, the snowpack in various river basins in the state ranges from 50 percent to 62 percent of normal, which will dramatically reduce the amount of snow-melt runoff. The runoff helps recharge ground water for area wells and bolsters streams that supply drinking water.

The Department of Ecology has begun moving against unpermitted water users and is developing a list of permitted users in 18 drainage basins with interruptible water rights. Those users may see their flows cut off or reduced if the drought becomes severe. Some of the users are in King, Pierce and Thurston counties.

Some local water systems already have told state health officials they have problems. Fort Lewis said its spring-fed system that serves barracks and 3,700 homes on the Army base has dropped to about 30 percent below normal levels.

Newell Flood, utilities division chief, said normal activities at the fort will continue, but restrictions on lawn watering and other conservation measures could occur if things get worse.

If the spring-fed system drops to about 70 percent below normal, the fort will rely on its deep wells, which operate in the summer anyway to supplement flows when water use is heavier. Flood said the fort successfully used this strategy in the early 1990s during a dry year. The eight deep wells produce a total of 8 million gallons daily, as much as the spring-fed system normally produces, he said.

Fruitland Mutual Water Co. on South Hill, south of Puyallup, has reported that its system, serving 3,000 residential and commercial customers, is experiencing low well-water levels. The company is urging users to conserve.

Fruitland has five wells. The water level seems to be 20 feet below normal levels, but the company is still studying the situation.

"I'm concerned," said Roger Nottage, water company general manager. "It may never happen, but I want to be prepared."

He said it's too early to tell if the low levels now will lead to water shortages later. The company is urging users to repair leaks and to use water carefully.

Nottage said the company has emergency pipe connections with two other water companies in the area. If the others have enough water, they could help if Fruitland needs it, he said.

A small well water system next to Alder Lake went dry in January, leaving 22 homes without water, Church said. They brought in water by truck and worked with state authorities until a well could be dug deeper to replenish the normal water supply, he said.

The City of Kent is looking at a 25 percent to 30 percent shortfall in drinking water. The rapidly growing city is purchasing water from Renton through an emergency pipeline and is looking to purchase more water from Tacoma, Auburn, Seattle or other nearby utilities, said water superintendent Brad Lake.

Seattle's supply comes from rivers, where flows have dropped dramatically because of the drought. The city is urging its users to conserve.

The City of Tacoma's water supply is in better shape. Tacoma Water serves about 300,000 people in Tacoma and University Place, and Pierce and King counties. Its primary source is the Green River, which has only 62 percent of normal snowpack this year, according to David Sherman, water supply manager.

However, the city has wells in South Tacoma that tap a deep aquifer system. They can supply 62 million gallons per day, slightly less than the 72 million gallons piped daily from the Green River. The wells are used during late spring and summer when water use is heavier and are expected to make up for shortages in the river supply. However, if spring rainfall is below normal, Tacoma could experience summer shortages, Sherman said.

The state Health Department survey of the largest systems won't be completed until April 1 or later, Church said. The department also plans to work with smaller public water systems that need help in leak detection and conservation education. He said there are 16,000 public water systems documented statewide. About 12,000 of those have 15 water connections or less, he said.

Mary Getchell, spokeswoman for the state Department of Ecology, said there are tens of thousands of wells in the state that supply water to only one home. These users are exempt from water rights requirements. She said if users of a one-home well see a drop in water pressure, they should conserve. If they live in Western Washington, she said, they should consider contacting a well driller and digging the well deeper.

In these early stages of the drought, the state Department of Ecology is checking on a couple of water users in the Puyallup-White river basins and four others in Dungeness-Elwha river basins. The department suspects this handful of users may not have water-use permits, she said.

If any of 18 streams drop to state-established minimum flow levels, the department will stop or reduce water flowing to people with interruptible water rights issued by the department in those river basins, Getchell said. The river basins include the Nisqually, Green, White, Puyallup, Deschutes, Cedar and Chehalis rivers, Chambers and Clover creeks, and some creeks on the Kitsap Peninsula.

The Ecology Department is compiling, but hasn't completed, the list of users with interruptible rights.

Getchell said water flowing to homes won't be reduced or stopped. Only farms, industrial or recreational facilities with interruptible water rights may lose all or some of their water. The Puyallup-White River basin has 666 issued water rights; more than 500 are longstanding and cannot be interrupted.

Sumner Meadows Golf Links probably is one of the users with interruptible rights, city officials said. Loss of irrigating water this summer could be a devastating blow to the 18-hole golf course, which is struggling from declining use. The city had to spend about $490,000 to bail out the course last year. City officials plan to improve the course to draw new users. A water reduction or cutoff could hurt the effort.

- - -

* Staff writer Rob Tucker can be reached at 253-597-8374 or at rob.tucker@mail.tribnet.com.