Metro - South Metro Regional Aquifer Supply Assessment_Scope of Work

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Scope of Work South Metro Water Supply Authority Regional Aquifer Supply Assessment This Scope of Work is divided into f our sections as suggested in the Grant Application Instructions. Section 1 provides a description of each major task associated with the project along with a functional description of who will be completing the work and a description of the deliverables associated with the task. Section 2 lists the key personnel proposed f or the project along with a brief description of their relevant project experience. Section 3 presents a detailed breakdown of the costs to complete the study and Section 4 presents the proposed Project Schedule. Section 1 Task Summary Introduction and Background In 2004, the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) completed the Statewide Water Supply Initiative (SWSI). That study included estimates of unmet water demands in the South Platte Basin will be over 400,000 acre-feet through 2030, with over 90,000 acre-feet of "gap" between projected municipal and industrial water demands and available water supplies remaining after identified projects and processes are implemented. SWSI estimated that by 2030 approximately 40,000 AFY of this gap was in the south Metro Denver area, which has been one of the fastest growing regions in the state and nation f or over a decade. This 40,000 AFY gap was based on assumption that existing levels of groundwater pumping could continue indefinitely into the f uture. The southern metro area is a region that relies almost entirely on groundwater supplies developed from deep bedrock aquifers within the Denver Basin. These groundwater supplies do not have a natural source of recharge so are considered non-renewable. Legally, water from these bedrock aquif ers does not interact with surface water supplies or the connected tributary groundwater and are deffined as non-tributary. While the south Metro Denver municipal water suppliers have the legal rights to non- tributary groundwater supplies located beneath their boundaries, the dramatic increase in groundwater withdrawals over the past two decades have led to water level declines of 20 to 30 f eet per year over large portions of the south Metro area. As a result, one of the key findings from SWSI is that continued reliance on nonrenewable, non-tributary groundwater supplies brings serious concerns over the reliability and sustainability of this source of supply along the Front Range area. Water providers in the south Metro area have joined together as the South Metro Water Supply Authority (SMWSA) to coordinate on a variety of activities leading to more sustainable water supplies. In 2004 a study was completed on the effects of future pumping of the Denver Basin bedrock aquifers by south Metro water providers through 2050. This study concluded that projected pumping will draw down aquifer water levels to an extent that production from individual wells will decline by 40 to 80 C:1Documents and SettingslrowannclDesktoplTo File BacklSouth Metro 179 Grant ApplicationlSMWSA179SOW.doc