Moses Lake council weighing water concerns
One of the options to providing water to Moses Lake residents could be the lake itself. Pumping and treating water from the lake was among the options discussed during a daylong Moses Lake City Council workshop.
CHERYL SCHWEIZER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
MOSES LAKE — Water use, guaranteeing water supply and making sure there’s enough water as Moses Lake grows were the subject of an extensive discussion during a daylong planning session of the Moses Lake City Council on Tuesday. City Engineer Richard Law said staff members are studying water rates and working on an overall plan for the water system to help make some of those decisions easier.
“They’re coming together,” Law said.
City officials reviewed some preliminary recommendations and possible goals with council members.
Most of the city’s water comes from a deep underground aquifer that’s gradually declining. Law cited the example of a well in the Knolls Vista area; production started to decline, the well was rebuilt in 2016, but still isn’t producing as much water as it used to.
Assistant Public Works Director Leigh Ramsey said officials are recommending that the city acquire new water rights not tied to the deep aquifer. One option would be to convert some of the deep aquifer water rights to water closer to the surface, she said.
Another option would be water rights for surface water – the Columbia River, Moses Lake, or canals in the Columbia Basin Project.
Law said there’s a study underway to determine what it would take to develop a regional water plan. The plan for the Yakima River Basin took about 20 years to complete, but it’s had a positive impact, he said.
“But that’s going to take big work,” Law said.
In answer to a question from council member David Skaug, Law said obtaining surface water rights probably would be cheaper than buying rights for subsurface water.
Skaug asked whether water in aquifers closer to the surface would require treatment to meet drinking water standards, and if so, how much it would cost. Law said the need for treatment would depend on the location, citing two of the city’s existing wells. Both pump from aquifers closer to the surface; one requires treatment, but the other doesn’t, he said.
Moses Lake has options, including surface water, that some other municipalities in the Columbia Basin don’t, Law said. Ramsey said the city has water rights that will allow it to drill more wells down into the deep aquifer, but with water levels in the aquifer declining, that’s probably not a long-term solution.
City Manager Rob Karlinsey asked council members to think over the options and decide where city officials should put their focus.