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<br />MWSI Project
<br />Phase" Conjunctive Use Summary Report - DRAFT
<br />
<br />August 22, 1995
<br />
<br />Table I
<br />
<br />Water in Storage and Recoverable Water
<br />from the Denver Basin Aquifers
<br />
<br />Aquifer
<br />Dawson
<br />Denver
<br />Arapahoe
<br />Laramie-Fox Hills
<br />Total
<br />
<br />Total Water in Storal1e
<br />48,000,000
<br />89,000,000
<br />150,000,000
<br />180,000,000
<br />467,000,000
<br />
<br />Recoverable Water in Storage
<br />27,000,000
<br />42,000,000
<br />90,000,000
<br />110,000,000
<br />269,000,000
<br />
<br />Van Slyke (1993) estimates the total amount ofrecoverable water in the five county
<br />Denver metro area to be approximately 150,000,000 acre-feet. The five county metro area
<br />includes all or part of Adams, Arapahoe, Denver, Douglas and Jefferson Counties,
<br />
<br />The DiviSion of Water Resources has mapped the non-saturated sandstone and siltstone
<br />thickness in each aquifer throughout the Basin. (Van Slyke, et. al" 1988a; 1988b, 1988c and
<br />1988d), In confined aquifer areas the maps represent saturated aquifer thickness, The areas of
<br />greatest aquifer thickness and best well production occur in southeastern Arapahoe and northern
<br />Douglas Counties, In these areas the aquifer properties of transmissivity, hydraulic
<br />conductivity, and specific yield are higher when compared to other areas ofthe Basin,
<br />
<br />The water quality of the Denver Basin aquifers is generally good. The water quality in thc
<br />Dawson and Denver aquifers is a calcium-bicarbonate type water and the water quality in the
<br />Arapahoe and Laramie-Fox Hills is a sodium-bicarbonate type water. The aquifers' water quality
<br />generally meets the Colorado Department of Health and Environmental Protection Agency
<br />drinking water standards for public water supply. Many water providers using groundwater
<br />simply cWorinate the groundwater at the wellhead, although larger groundwater users are moving
<br />towards treatment. Elevated values of iron and manganese can occur in the Denver and
<br />Arapahoe aquifers, Hydrogen sulfide at fairly low levels can occur and cause problems in the
<br />Laramie-Fox Hills aquifer. Total dissolved solids can range from less than 100 to more than
<br />2,000 mg/I.
<br />
<br />Wellfield Development
<br />
<br />Wellfield Inventory
<br />
<br />Information compiled by Romero (1976) shows that in 1974 there were 6,062 wells
<br />completed in the Dawson, Denver, Arapahoe and Laramie-Fox Hills aquifers. The vast majority
<br />of these wells, 5,640 were permitted as domestic wells. The total estimated amount of water
<br />permitted from the Dawson, Denver and Arapahoe aquifers in 1974 was 123,800 aflyr. Of this
<br />amount 75,500 aflyr was attributable to domestic well production and ] 1,900 was attributed to
<br />municipal well production, The Colorado Division of Water Resources does not have a current
<br />estimate for thc number of wells completed into the Denver Basin aquifers or values for
<br />
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