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Borrego Spring’s aquifer is drying up; residents ponder their dry future

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on April 4, 2008 at 6:24 am

borrego-springs-by-kbaird.jpgFrom the San Diego Union-Tribune:

The desert oasis of Borrego Springs has long seemed immune to Southern California’s periodic water shortages, thanks to an aquifer that keeps the town’s groves, yards and golf greens lush even in the searing summer heat.

Borrego Springs residents use about twice as much water on average as homeowners elsewhere in San Diego County, according to the Borrego Water District. The agency has some of the lowest residential rates in Southern California, giving its customers little financial reason to cut back.

The search for a stable water supply has pitted farmers, homeowners and developers against each another. Each year, water users in the Borrego valley remove roughly five times more water from the aquifer than it collects. “People have taken the idea that there is plenty of water here pretty seriously,” said Richard Williamson, the district’s new general manager.

But Borrego Springs’ mentality about water is changing as the volume of its aquifer – the town’s sole source of water – is shrinking rapidly. In recent months, the push for conservation and the search for ways to secure a stable water supply have sometimes pitted farmers, homeowners and developers against one another.

The community’s water officials have held several public meetings to discuss possible solutions for the water crisis. They’re looking at raising water rates and tapping water from the Colorado River, which would require spending about $60 million to install a major pipeline.

“Borrego is a microcosm of what’s happening through the Southwest,” said William Mills of Yorba Linda, a consultant for the Borrego Water District. “There is just a conflict over water being used for the environment, water being used for agriculture and water being used for the growing population.”

Read the rest of this article from the San Diego Union-Tribune by clicking here.  For more on the Borrego Springs water situation, visit The Borrego Water Underground.

Picture of Borrego Springs by flickr photographer kbaird.

April 4, 2008 · Filed Under Groundwater

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