Proposed well restrictions will hamper land sales
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Editor,
The Water Compact approach to domestic wells has not received much public attention. On the positive side, all existing wells will be protected once they are registered. My concern is a “one size fits all” approach to new wells.
Under state law, automatic approval for a water permit is allowed for a new domestic well subject to the following limits: a 35-gpm pump and 10 acre feet per year. To go beyond those limits, approval must be sought from DNRC.
Under the current compact draft, new well permits will be approved if within the following limits: 35 gpm, 2.4 acre feet per year and .7 acres of irrigation around a home. To go beyond those limits, a landowner will need to seek approval from the Unitary Water Management Board that will administer water rights under a compact agreement.
Compared to the state limit of 10 acre feet of water per year, the 2.4 acre feet limit will reduce the risk that existing water users will be squeezed out by a new well. This makes sense for high-density areas with many homes located on relatively small parcels of land. But imposing that limit on a rural area with low-density development doesn’t make much sense.
As we observe around this reservation, families who buy larger parcels — for example, parcels of five or more acres — often use their domestic wells for purposes beyond watering a small lawn around the house. For example, they often grow fruit, flowers and vegetables in small garden farms. I bet that in most cases, they use less than 10 acre feet per acre but certainly more than 2.4 acre feet.
A limit of 2.4 acre feet will make it difficult for property owners to sell larger parcels, because they can only guarantee a water right of 2.4 acre feet. A buyer facing the uncertainty of whether it would be possible to get a larger water right from the water management board is likely to look outside the reservation for property where a 10 acre feet per year limit would apply.
Dick Erb
Moiese
