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Groundwater Level Measurements in the <br /> Southern High Plains Designated Groundwater Basin <br /> 2022 <br /> This report contains the basic groundwater-level data collected from wells in the Southern High <br /> Plains Designated Groundwater Basin. Acquisition and publication of this information is a <br /> cooperative effort between the well owners, Southern High Plains Ground Water Management <br /> District (SHPGWMD) and the Colorado Division of Water Resources (DWR). The SHPGWMD has <br /> historically obtained the water levels, but starting in 2014 most of the water levels are measured <br /> by DWR staff. Help from Don Wood and Max Smith of the SHPGWMD during this transition was <br /> greatly appreciated. The project is part of a statewide groundwater-level monitoring program <br /> funded by Senate Bill 200 (1987 legislative session). This legislation directed that a portion of the <br /> fees collected for water well permit applications be used for the establishment of a program to <br /> monitor groundwater level trends throughout the state. <br /> Six distinct aquifers or aquifer combinations are present within the Southern High Plains <br /> Designated Groundwater Basin. These include unconsolidated alluvium, Ogallala, Dakota, <br /> Cheyenne, undifferentiated Dakota/Cheyenne, and Dockum aquifers. A stratigraphic chart, Figure <br /> 1, is included in this report to show the relative age and geologic relationship of these aquifers. <br /> The majority of the wells in the basin are completed in the Ogallala, Dakota/Cheyenne, or <br /> Dockum aquifers. In general, wells in the southeast portion of the basin are completed in the <br /> Ogallala and Dockum aquifers while those in the northwest portion of the basin are completed in <br /> the Dakota and/or Cheyenne aquifers. Until 2009 these aquifer units were administered <br /> separately. On June 30, 2009, the Colorado Ground Water Commission accepted amended Rule <br /> 5.2.3 for the Southern High Plains Designated Groundwater Basin so that all of the aquifers <br /> identified above can be administered as a single geo-hydraulic system. <br /> A total of 60 wells were measured during early March 2022. Water levels were not measured in 14 <br /> wells that were pumping or where access was restricted. Figure 2 shows the location and <br /> designation of all 89 monitoring wells. The map shows the well number with "SHP" prefix <br /> removed for spacing purposes. Figure 3 well symbols indicate the aquifers in which these wells <br /> are completed. Tabular data are presented for each well for the previous ten years. Graphical <br /> data are presented for the entire period of record. Analyses of changes in the water level in the <br /> aquifer are complicated by unknown pumping schedules. The table below summarizes some <br /> observations gleaned from the data for each aquifer. <br />