Page 16 - Flathead Beacon // 4.13.16

NEWS
IN DEPTH
Worries Run Deep as Creston Water Bottling Plant Seeks Approval
As concerns center on Flathead Valley’s deep aquifer, state o cials are reviewing a water rights request for a new industrial plant
TBY DILLON TABISH OF THE BEACON
HE FLATHEAD VALLEY DEEP AQUIFER IS A waterlogged mass of sand and gravel stretching thousands of feet beneath the entire local land-
scape. Primarily fed by snowmelt from the surrounding mountain ranges and precipitation, the massive aquifer is the main source of water in the valley as it ows south toward Flathead Lake, providing a vital resource to a growing collective of urban and rural communities and playing a critical role in the region’s environmental and ecological balance.
For as far-reaching and abundant as the local aqui- fer exists, worries are running just as deep in the agri- cultural community of Creston and beyond following a proposed water bottling plant on a slough along the Flathead River.
Lew Weaver, the owner of Montana Artesian Water Co., is seeking a water right permit from the state to pump 710 acre-feet of water annually from the under- ground aquifer, the equivalent of 1.2 billion 20-ounce water bottles.
Weaver’s request, and his goal to produce 140,000 water bottles per hour, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year at a facility on his farmland, has drummed up a consider- able amount of attention and is fueling concerns among neighbors and residents across the valley.
Weaver has defended his plans, saying he has fol- lowed the proper regulatory steps and studied the potential environmental consequences. He said the rinse water from the bottles would not contain contam- ination and that the company would generate jobs for the local economy.
“There will be a positive economic impact to Montana and the Flathead Valley. We will be employing Montan- ans. We will utilize Montana people and employ Mon- tana trucking companies, and a Montana-made product will be promoted across the state,” he told the Beacon previously.
Hydrogeologists with Applied Water Consulting, the rm in charge of the permitting process for the pro- posed facility, have said their modeling of the deep aqui- fer shows that it would naturally recharge and neighbor- ing wells would not be a ected.
Last week nearly 300 people gathered at Flathead Valley Community College for a presentation that was unrelated but coincidentally about the valley’s deep aquifer. Scientists from the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology, the agency that researches geologic, groundwater and mineral resources across the state, presented the initial ndings of a two-year study of the valley’s key water source. The event, scheduled months before news of the water bottling plant surfaced, was intended as an educational presentation about the crit- ical role the aquifer plays in the region and was not in any way connected to the water bottling controversy, according to organizers.
“The deep aquifer is a phenomenal resource that can both be used and conserved,” said John Wheaton, senior research hydrogeologist with the MBMG.
Wheaton did not go into the potential implications of the water bottling plant, but he did shed light on the vast characteristics of the deep aquifer, which “has an amazing capacity.”
On an annual basis, roughly 200,000 acre feet of water ows through the valley’s deep aquifer, Whea- ton said. One acre foot is the equivalent to more than 325,000 gallons of water.
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APRIL 13, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM
Sandy Perry, chair of the newly formed organization Water for Flathead’s Future, a group of concerned citizens who are seeking the delay of a proposed water bottling plant in Creston, speaks during a community meeting on April 7. GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON
Local cities, irrigators and other water users have the rights for a total of approximately 50,000 to 55,000 acre feet of water per year from the deep aquifer, Wheaton’s research shows.
By Wheaton’s estimates, the amount of water actu- ally pumped from the deep aquifer is closer to 17,000 to 35,000 acre feet annually with the mean average being 20,000. This reduced number is because most claim holders do not actually use their total allowable amount, he said.
Wheaton said the local aquifer is naturally and reg- ularly recharged by Mother Nature, although there are three isolated areas that show a trend of dropping water levels where the aquifer is noticeably stressed. These areas are along the northern end of Kalispell, in a sec- tion of West Valley and near Columbia Falls.
“It’s not major but there is a downward trend (in those locations),” Wheaton said.
In areas where there is a large user who is drawing a signi cant amount of water, drawdown on adjacent wells can occur, Wheaton said.
Concerns have been raised in Creston that the water bottling plant could negatively impact surrounding wells. According to the plant’s water right permit appli- cation, some nearby wells could be drawn down by sev- eral feet. There is also concern that the plant’s well would only tap into the shallow aquifer, which is much smaller than the deep aquifer and could create even more drawdown.
James Rose, a hydrogeologist with MBMG, con rmed that Weaver’s well is in fact tapped into the deep aquifer; the well dives 220 feet into the ground.
“I’m pretty con dent that well is in the deep aquifer,” Rose said last week. “It goes through clay into the deep system.”
The day after the FVCC presentation, another 50 people gathered inside The Church at Creston o Mon- tana Highway 35 to ask Wheaton and Rose questions speci cally about the plant and its potential impacts.
Wheaton, sticking to the science and declining to wade into any opinions, explained the scienti c char- acteristics of the deep aquifer and how its massive iden- tity is both impressive and important.
He said removing water from the aquifer and shipping it away in water bottles would not be signi cantly di er- ent than irrigating agricultural lands in terms of replen- ishing the water source, according to his research. Only 10 percent of water sprayed from pivot irrigation sys- tems, and 20 percent from general sprinklers, returns to the shallow aquifer. None of the water taken from the deep aquifer in the valley oor returns to its orig- inal depths, Wheaton said.
He agreed that there are unknown challenges that could stem from climate change and emphasized the importance of creating a local monitoring program that could track the aquifer to ensure it remains abundant and balanced.
Most audience members, including all who spoke out in Creston, remained unmoved in their opposition to the plant. Several people raised concerns that other plants in the future would pop up and similarly tap into the local water supply, further impacting the vital resource. Others pointed out that much of the West is currently plagued by drought and states such as California and Texas are running dry.
“We’re concerned about the threat to our values. Our values are the quality of life in the Flathead Val- ley, clean and beautiful water and the nature that sur- rounds us,” said Sandy Perry, who lives down the road from Weaver’s property and is the chair of a new group