Utah Geological Survey

BOARD EXPLORES WATER RESOURCES

thespectrum.com

While the Central Iron County Water Conservancy District was embroiled in a June controversy over the degree of land subsidence reported in the Cedar Valley, no one has said it does not exist.

Bill Lund, senior geologist for the Utah Geological Survey, had submitted a report on land subsidence to the water district, which was placed on its website. The study the report was based on originally measured subsidence at four feet, but that measurement was later corrected to two feet after benchmarks were found to be inaccurate. The report was removed from the website after a heated June meeting in which Cedar City Surveyor Curt Neilson and Engineer Kit Wareham demanded the report be removed because the measurements reported in the study were still wrong and had not been performed by a licensed surveyor.

Although Lund is working on amending the report with the findings of a licensed surveyor, he stands rm that there is evidence of subsidence in the valley, including the fissures appearing in Enoch. They point to the Cedar Valley aquifer being overdrawn, Lund said.

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Utah Geological Survey

BLM GIVES MORE TIME FOR INPUT ON VEGAS PIPELINE

deseretnews.com

Public land managers weighing the environmental impacts of a controversial pipeline that would tap groundwater from the Snake Valley aquifer have extended the comment deadline by a month.

Those who want to weigh in on the draft environmental impact statement analyzing the Las Vegas pipeline plan now have until Oct. 11, rather than Sept. 9, to give input.

Pressure from critics opposed to the plan or by those who simply wanted more time to read the voluminous document led to the extension.

“We appreciate the BLM being responsive to the many requests they received from organizations, elected officials and concerned citizens,” said Rob Mrowka, spokesman for the Great Basin Water Network, one of the lead critics.

Among those who urged an extension were 22 members of the Utah Senate and 50 members of the House of Representatives after lobbying by the Great Basin network during last week’s special session of the Utah Legislature.

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Utah Geological Survey

WATER MORATORIUM TO END SOON IN MORGAN COUNTY

standard.net

Depending on public reaction to a recently completed water study, a water moratorium in Morgan County could end in as few as 30 days. The study revealed sources of nitrates in drinking water and could affect the administration of water rights in Morgan County.

In 2004, the state Division of Water Rights, the Utah Geological Survey and the Weber Basin Water Conservancy District teamed up to begin a groundwater study of Morgan County. Since 2008 and in conjunction with the study, officials enacted a moratorium on all water leasing in the area. That moratorium will be lifted after a 30-day public comment period.

Because the groups anticipated the study would be completed in 2010, Morgan residents were left waiting a year for the results. The county council chambers were packed to standing room only at a recent public meeting discussing the water study.

The study could affect how future water rights are administered in a county that has experienced much residential growth since 2007 and is expected to experience more once the housing market improves.

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