Additional Details

Description

Ground water is an important part of the water supply in the arid and semiarid mountains of the Southwestern United States, which is increasingly stressed by continued population growth. Between 1980 and 2000, the population of Chaffee County, in the upper Arkansas River Basin of Colorado (fig. 1), increased about 23 percent to 16,000 people and is projected to increase an additional 70 percent by 2030 (Colorado Water Conservation Board, 2004). Individual domestic wells likely will be used to supply the growing population of the upper Arkansas River Basin because surface-water supplies already are appropriated and most population growth likely will be in areas that are not served by municipal water supplies. Planners and resource managers need an improved understanding of the hydrogeology of the ground-water system to evaluate the potential effects of increased ground-water withdrawals on the sustainability of the area.s water resources.

Survey Date

2006

Print Date

2006

Two Sided

Yes

Pieces

1

Languages

English