The City of El Mirage, Arizona experienced a water emergency during the summer of
2003 due primarily to explosive growth that had occurred over the previous three years.
The City grew from a population of 7,600 in 2000 to 25,500 in 2003. The City had
trouble developing new groundwater sources to meet the growing demand to the point
where parts of the city were virtually out of water during the 2003 peak summer hours.
The City implemented a number of emergency measures, including reducing the water
distribution system pressures, installing an emergency connection to a neighboring
private water company, banning outdoor irrigation, and seeking customer assistance in
reducing water demands.
To overcome the expected shortfall in peak production capacity of up to 3 mgd in the
summer of 2004, the City embarked on a fast-track program to convert former irrigation
wells to temporary domestic use. Historically, land use in the city has been agricultural,
so several irrigation wells were available. The fast-track project rehabilitated and
converted three groundwater wells from agricultural to domestic use over a six-month
period. The converted wells will serve on a temporary basis until permanent groundwater
production wells can be completed.
This paper discusses the well investigation techniques, observations and assessments that
were used in the well rehabilitation process. It also describes the process of efficiently
managing such an accelerated scheduled project. The City's experience in resolving
anticipated water emergency issues can help other small system utilities that are facing
similar short term water shortage issues. Includes 5 references, tables.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 290 KB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 11 |
| Published : | 11/15/2004 |
