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MAXIMIZING AMERICA’S ALLUVIAL AQUIFERS

The American Ground Water Trust’s Louisville conference on riverbank filtration and collector wells brought over 50 water experts together to discuss the design, construction, operation and maintenance of unconventional water supply systems, non-traditional wells and riverbank water supply systems. The program was held at the historic Louisville Water Tower Park and was hosted by the Louisville Water Company. The program showcased case studies of design, construction and operation of vertical wells, slant wells, collector wells and galleries. Emphasis was places on how the characteristics of alluvial aquifer hydrogeology influence design options, how site conditions influence construction and installation costs. Photograph shows Greg Slone of Building Crafts Inc. making his presentation on the costs of collector wells.

 The principal conference presenters were:
Kay Ball, Engineer, Manager – Advanced Treatment Technology Program, Louisville Water Company, Louisville, KY
Doug Hunter, Senior Scientist, Cox-Colvin & Associates, Inc., Plain City, OH
Martha Silks, Associate/Hydrogeologist, Leggette, Brashears & Graham, Inc., North Kansas City, MO
Frank Getchell, Senior Vice President, Leggette, Brashears & Graham, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ
Greg Slone, Collector Well Services Manager, Building Crafts, Inc., Wilder, KY
Dave Traut, Vice-President, Traut Companies, Waite Park, MN
David Dahlstrom, Senior Hydrogeologist, Barr Engineering, Minneapolis, MN
Sam Stowe, General Manager, Ranney Collector Wells, Layne Christensen Company, Columbus, OH
D. Douglas Haney, Hydrogeologist/Project Manager, HDR, Olathe, KS
Rick Hockett, Geologist, Louisville District, US Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville, KY
Scott Riegert, Senior Project Manager, Parsons Engineering, Columbus, OH

Program sponsors were:

The American Ground Water Trust’s Annual Colorado Groundwater Conference had a focus this year on private sector involvement in water infrastructure, legal issues related to water management and administration and the potential for increasing groundwater storage in Denver Basin Aquifers. 

            The private sector related presentations included talks by Gary Barber, Water Rights Broker and Consultant, Colorado Springs, CO; Brett Bovee, Intermountain Regional Director, Westwater Research, Fort Collins, CO and  Kevin France, CEO, SWIIM Systems, Partner, Regenesis Management Group, LLC, Denver, CO. 

            The panel on legal issues was convened by Steven Sims, Shareholder, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP, Denver, CO and included Leila C. Behnampour, Associate, Vranesh and Raisch, LLP, Boulder, CO; Brad Grasmick, Attorney, Lawrence Jones Custer Grasmick, LLP, Johnstown, CO and Dan Ault, President, Deere & Ault Consultants, Inc., Longmont, CO. 

            The Denver Basin panel was convened by Dennis McGrane, President, McGrane Water Engineering, Boulder, CO, and included Scott Mefford, Hydrokinetics Inc., Golden, CO; Christopher Sanchez, Principal / Hydrogeologist, Bishop-Brogden Associates, Inc., Englewood, CO and Mark Palumbo, Principal Hydrologist, HRS Water Consultants, Inc., Lakewood, CO.

            The end of conference discussion on water legislation expected or needed for the 2017 session was led by legislators Vicki Marble, Colorado State Senator District 32  and Representative Jeni James Arndt, Colorado House District 53.

The day following the conference, the AGWT held an all-day technical workshop on Water Supply Systems that focused on water well design, pump selection, and operation efficiency.

Staff from 14 US Embassies attended Groundwater Workshop. 

Andrew Stone, AGWT Executive Director, was an invited presenter at a Johannesburg groundwater workshop held for US Embassy staff from Southern African Countries.  Stone was one of the US experts recruited by the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Water Partnership (USWP) who presented a three-day program dealing with water issues faced by southern African countries.  The purpose of American Ground Water Trust involvement was to provide Foreign Service Officers and locally engaged staff from U.S. embassies in the Southern African Development Community (SADAC) region with a basic understanding of groundwater occurrence and water well technology. The long-term objective is to achieve sustainable management of water in SADAC countries. The workshop program included the basics of hydrology, groundwater exploration and development, aquifer storage assessment, drilling and pumping technology, water management governance as well as the implications of changing weather patterns on future water supply availability. 

  Forty five of the North country’s property transaction professionals took part in a three-hour training   program on private water wells at the North Conway Grand Hotel. The program was presented by the   American Ground Water Trust and sponsored by the White Mountain Board of Realtors.  With 3 out of   5 New Hampshire residents dependent of groundwater it is important at the time of property transfer   for the buyer to know about a home’s water supply system.  The program included background on       the state’s geology, how wells are constructed and how to know if equipment for water treatment 
  may be needed.