In this issue...

• Advisory Committee focuses on conservation issues
• Schedule a groundwater meeting for your group
• Public workshops address well-user concerns
• Recharge program gains worldwide attention
• Groundwater fee reminder . . .
• Did you know?

Advisory Committee focuses on conservation issues
All well users in the Las Vegas Valley are affected by the issue of adequate groundwater supplies. For that reason, the Advisory Committee for Groundwater Management recently began developing recommendations to encourage groundwater conservation.

The Las Vegas Valley groundwater basin has been overappropriated for more than 50 years, and residents use more groundwater annually than is naturally being recharged through snowmelt and rainfall. As a result, many well users experience problems with their wells during summer months, when demand for groundwater exceeds the supply. 

Last June, the Advisory Committee heard a presentation from Doug Bennett, conservation manager for the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA), on programs and incentives that encourage municipal water customers to conserve. The SNWA offers rebate programs to encourage the use of more water-efficient technologies, such as programmable irrigation clocks and energy- and water-efficient appliances. The SNWA also provides financial incentives to customers who retrofit existing lawns with water-efficient landscaping.

During the next year, the Advisory Committee will meet to discuss conservation issues and develop recommendations.

These informal briefings also can help your group understand the different roles various agencies play in groundwater issues and learn the rights and responsibilities of well users.

Each briefing will include a short presentation and allow time for questions and comments. It can be held within your neighborhood and tailored to address your specific areas of interest. To learn more or to schedule a briefing, please call 258-7288.

  Well conversion questions

• If the pump on my well goes out and I'm within 180 feet of a water line, will I be required to connect to a municipal water supply?
  If the pump can be replaced with a pump rig, as opposed to a drill rig, you will not be required to connect. If you are within 180 feet of a water line, require a rig to repair your well AND there is financial assistance available, then you will be required to connect to the municipal water supply, assuming your water right is revocable.
   
• If I am required to connect to a sewer system, must I also connect to municipal water?
  No. The two issues are completely separate. A mandatory sewer connection does not automatically lead to a mandatory water connection.
   
• How does the State Engineer know if a well has been deepened or replaced?
  The well driller must file a log of work done on the well with the Nevada Division of Water Resources. Well drillers could lose their license if they perform work on a well without submitting the required paperwork.
   
• As it relates to the well conversion grant program, what are "offsite costs?"
  Offsite costs include all connection charges and fees required to bring a service connection from the existing municipal water line in the street to the meter box at the private property line (the costs include the meter and the box).
   
• How much does it cost to connect to a municipal system?
  Costs can vary widely based upon a number of factors, including the meter size. You may contact the appropriate water purveyor—Las Vegas Valley Water District (LVVWD), Henderson or North Las Vegas—for an estimate.
  
• May I participate in the well conversion grant program if my property is more than 180 feet from an existing municipal water line?
  This is called a voluntary conversion. Under the program, the SNWA will pay up to 85 percent of the first 180 feet of offsite costs associated with a voluntary conversion (subject to available funding). Costs to run any additional line beyond 180 feet must be paid fully by the voluntary applicant.
  
• How long does it take to complete a well conversion?
  It only takes days to approve an application for connection. However, it takes much longer to complete the actual work, which includes designing the pipelines and other facilities, obtaining all the necessary permits and rights-of-way, constructing the facilities and properly abandoning and plugging the well.

Recharge program questions

• How do you differentiate between the permanent recharge of the Groundwater Management Program and the artificial recharge conducted by the LVVWD and the City of North Las Vegas?
  The Groundwater Management Program recharge water will stay in the ground permanently to maintain water levels in the valley. The LVVWD and City of North Las Vegas recharge water may be pumped out of the ground at some future date as needed.
   
• Is most of the artificial recharge occurring in the northwest?
  Recharge primarily occurs in the northwest and at the LVVWD's north well field near Valley View Boulevard and U.S. 95.
   
• Will the Groundwater Management Program be able to recharge as much water in the future as it is doing now?
  Probably not. In the future, recharged water from the program may only occur during years when Colorado River water is available in excess of Nevada's basic right to 300,000 acre-feet of water from the river. This excess depends on higher-than-average snowmelt in the upper Colorado River basin.