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Darian
12-21-2007, 11:04 PM
There was an interesting article in the SF Chronicle today about the affects of groundwater pumping in Riverside county (Palm Springs). The area is home to approximately 120 golf courses, farms and a growing population. The annual precipitation rate is 3". There's a high and increasing demand for water to fuel the local economy. That need is satisfied, for the most part, thru groundwater pumping. :? :?

The SF Chron reported that a recent study by the USGS noted that land in the Coachella valley has subsided or sunk up to 13" over the last decade. The subsidence due to the pumping. :(

The largest portion of the water is used by farmers; then golf courses. :? Golf courses may use up to 6 million gallons of water, daily, during the spring reseeding period. Residential use amounts to something around 1/3 of total usage in that area. :? :? Now, that's some impressive usage for a place that is not, as yet, heavily populated. 8)

Let's put this in perspective, In the same article, the Chron reports that land in the San Joaquin Valley had sudsided 30' and the LA basin 6' from groundwater pumping. :shock: :shock: When I read these, I didn't accept the SJ Valley figures; thinking they were a mistake. However, I asked an acquaintance (a Geologist) about it and he confirmed that those figures are correct. 8) 8)

Sooooo,.... I guess we can add golf courses in the desert to the list of those using water inefficiently and unnecessarily. :( :(

I'm curious about why the water in the Delta doesn't flow backward into the San Joaquin Valley to refill the area(s) of land subsidence. Obviously, 30' at the bottom of the valley is lower than sea level.... Maybe the real reason for pumping so much water from the Delta into the canals is to keep it from overflowing the levees in the south Delta. :lol: :lol: :lol: