Some Question Need for Reservoirs

By MARSHA SHULER

The need for more water has become the main selling point for building reservoirs in the state.

But some water specialists question that argument, noting that demand for water is actually declining in some areas earmarked for reservoirs.

They also cite alternatives to building man-made lakes, such as conservation and tapping available lakes and rivers.

Lawmakers and others who champion reservoirs acknowledge a major goal is to stimulate the economy in their areas with recreation, lakeside homes and related development. But they also insist their communities face future water shortages that, if reservoirs aren’t built, could stymie development.

State Sen. Ben Nevers, D-Bogalusa, bristles at the suggestion that a water problem doesn’t exist in Washington Parish, where he is backing a 3,400-acre reservoir proposal. He points to post- Hurricane Katrina population increases in the area and the heavy use of underground water.

Nevers said a lot of the underground water used in his area comes from nearby Mississippi. Louisiana has no control over that water, he pointed out.

“We need a pool of water we can control,” Nevers said.

Water resources are dwindling in Allen Parish, said Philip Beard, chairman of the Allen Parish Reservoir Commission.

“In our grandchildren’s lifetime, it will be a problem,” Beard said. “We are one of the few parishes that don’t have a natural lake or reservoir . All the parishes around us do.”

Results from monitoring the Chicot and Southern Hills aquifer systems in south Louisiana do not indicate water demand is exceeding what’s available, according to data collected by the U.S. Geological Survey’s Louisiana Water Science Center.

The amount of water pumped from the underground aquifers has actually declined in Allen Parish and is stable in Washington Parish, according to new yet-to-be-published center data.

Total water usage from underground aquifers and surface sources declined in both areas, the data reveals.

And Allen Parish has two other aquifers, said Charles Demas, the center’s director. Demas said the water supplies are adequate for today’s situation.

“The question they have to answer is, ‘What is the growth projection, and is it realistic?’” Demas said. “If there’s no projected growth, then what is the justification for the reservoir?”

Denmon Engineering, hired by local officials to do site assessments for reservoirs, has provided documents to justify the Allen and Washington projects. Denmon cites population growth and high water usage from aquifers. The reports note major use by agriculture and the timber industry.

The reservoir projects must get U.S. Army Corps of Engineers approval under the federal Clean Water Act.

The Corps judges the projects based on the need for water supplies and whether that need offsets environmental or other damage a reservoir might do, said Ronnie Duke with the agency’s New Orleans office.

In some areas, potential water shortages are clear.

The state has issued a water emergency order for the Sparta Aquifer, an underground water supply for 19 northeast and central Louisiana parishes.

The order requires conservation steps and a priority on water for human use, said Anthony Duplechin, director of the Ground Water Resources Division of the state Office of Conservation.

Part of the plan is to encourage recycling discharged water for industry, which some companies are beginning to do, he said.

“Overall, the Sparta is stressed,” he said. “There is a need for an alternate source of water to be found.”

But the answer doesn’t have to be reservoirs, he said.

And Duplechin said “no one has raised the issue of the water level going down” in the Chicot aquifer system, which supplies southwest Louisiana, and the Southern Hills system in the southeastern part of the state.

Ben McGee, a U.S. Geological Survey hydrologist, said reservoirs are not the only solution to water needs.

“We have several lakes in north Louisiana not being utilized as water supplies,” said McGee, who oversees water levels in the Sparta aquifer. “We should utilize what we have there first and then look to see if there are additional needs.”

McGee said that approach would provide a water source in far less time than building a man-made lake, which could take a decade to be of any use.

“As far as water for economic development and recreation, that’s another issue,” McGee said.

(c) 2007 Advocate; Baton Rouge, La.. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.