Sustainable Water for a Sustainable Delta. Kay Whittington, PE, Director Office of Land and Water Resources MDEQ

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1 Sustainable Water for a Sustainable Delta Kay Whittington, PE, Director Office of Land and Water Resources MDEQ

2 There is a problem Long term trend in declining water levels in aquifer used for irrigation Too much being pumped out Increasing demand on groundwater 3,000 wells in 80 s to 19,000 wells in 2015 Not enough being replenished Recharge from rainfall and streams Inflow from Mississippi River and bluff hills Flow from underlying aquifers

3 Delta Sustainable Water Resources Executive/ Staff Producer MDEQ Gary Rikard Kay Whittington MSWCC Pete Hunter Don Underwood Delta FARM Travis Trey Cooke Satterfield YMD Rex Morgan Jimmy Palmer MFB Mike McCormick Task Force Andy Whittington NRCS Kurt Readus Kevin Kennedy Delta Council George King Chip Morgan USACE Kent Parrish

4 Governor s Executive Order No Governor Delta Sustainable Water Resources Task Force established on August 26, 2014 To promote conservation measures, irrigation management practices and plans for the implementation of new Delta surface water and groundwater supplies To advise MDEQ on policies related to Delta water resources To prepare and promote the implementation of strategies and plans developed through the Task Force to ensure the future sustainability of water resources in the Delta

5 Task Force Guiding Principles Manage water as efficiently as possible Store water when it is plentiful to use it when it is not Pursue every feasible alternative

6 Manage Water as Efficiently as Possible Conservation is the near term Task Force Priority Conservation can increase profits NRCS financial assistance is available for conservation Conservation can be implemented quickly and have immediate and significant benefits But conservation alone cannot solve the problem Pipe Planner Surge Valve Meters Soil Moisture Sensor

7 Store when plentiful to use when not and Pursue every feasible alternative Main stem recovery and redistribution Surface water high during irrigation season due to tailwater runoff Treated effluent as irrigation Well fields along MS River and other interior streams Inter/intra basin transfers Tallahatchie to Quiver, MS River to Bogue Phalia Tail water recovery and storage In stream weirs Enhanced recharge through surface or through injection of surface water or groundwater

8 Current Efforts 1. Continue to maintain focus on conservation 2. Need more information on alternative water supplies to effectively evaluate 3. Comparative analysis of modeling results for selected alternatives 4. Consult with an ag economist to get cost estimates in a comparable format 5. Investigate funding options through the Task Force Funding Committee 6. Implement pilot projects and continue data collection to improve model for future applications

9 1. Continue to maintain focus on conservation RISER suite of practices currently only implemented on 20% 25% of acres General permit revision is one tool to promote implementation of the RISER practices Seek continued dedicated funding of NRCS irrigation water efficiency practices Save money and time as well as water Can reduce pressure on ground water and surface water resources now so that have more time to fully investigate other options and continue to avoid mandatory changes

10 2. Need more information on alternative water supplies to effectively evaluate Alternatives Workshop June 2015 Key Points Presenters Were Asked to Cover Total acre ft of groundwater withdrawals reduced Cost per acre ft of groundwater withdrawals reduced Increased groundwater recharge Environmental permits required Potential environmental benefits in addition to groundwater savings Effect on stream flows Cost to construct/cost to maintain and operate Time until groundwater reductions will be achieved Potential negative consequences Additional data needed to adequately address any of the key points and a proposed approach and schedule for obtaining those data Funding sources available or proposed for the alternative

11 2. Need more information on alternative water supplies to effectively evaluate Several alternatives include use of surface water, but there is no silver bullet Declines in surface water availability as well due to groundwater surface water connectivity Conjunctive water use (use of groundwater and surface water to meet needs) is an important component that must be considered All are going to have challenges associated with water quality (numeric nutrient criteria) and water quantity (drought years) Require changes in on farm infrastructure and distribution

12 3. Comparative analysis of modeling results Working with USGS to utilize existing delta wide model to predict how the aquifer will respond to different scenarios as compared to a base scenario Voluntary Metering data is key to accurate representation of water use Scientifically defensible Best information available before spending money

13 4. Consult with an ag economist to get cost estimates in a comparable format Working with MSU DREC 5. Investigate funding options through the Task Force Funding Committee Existing authorities and challenges Assessment of benefitted properties Identifying additional opportunities Solutions going to involve significant resources Stronger working together than alone

14 6. Implement pilot projects and continue data collection to improve model for future applications Pilot projects needed to test feasibility and address environmental permitting and economic feasibility uncertainties Monitor benefits and impacts of pilot projects Environmental and economic Improve model with data collection to better define geology USGS multi year project Use improved model to continue to develop and evaluate concepts Scale up projects as more information available

15 What is our goal? Sustainable water use still trying to determine Models are important for making projections and evaluating different scenarios about what is sustainable Must be based on sound science MDEQ and USGS are working together to develop the most scientifically defensible model possible Requires a lot of data Accurate estimate of water use is an important input Metering at least 10% of the wells in each county is a good starting point to obtain geographically distributed representative estimates

16 Water Use Reporting Voluntary Metering Program 5% in each county by Feb. 1 st 2015 achieved 10% in each county by Feb. 1 st 2016 (achieved) and annually thereafter (2017 also achieved) Water use reporting is as important as getting meters installed Data needed annually to improve our science Continue to demonstrate the ability of the Delta to take necessary steps voluntarily

17 2015 Usable Reports Crop # of Crops Corn 171 Cotton 53 Rice 75 Soybeans 646 Fish 35 Corn/Soybeans 26 Rice/Soybeans 13 CottonMulti 16 Peanuts Crop % Based on Number of Crops Fish 3% Rice/Soybeans 1% Corn/Soybeans 3% Soybeans 62% CottonMulti 2% Corn 16% Peanuts 1% Cotton 5% Rice 7% Corn Cotton Rice Soybeans Fish

18 Geographic Distribution Analysis by Crop Regionally North (Tunica, Desoto, Tate, Coahoma, Quitman, Panola, Yalobusha) Central (Bolivar, Washington, Sunflower, Leflore, Grenada, Carroll) South (Issaquena, Sharkey, Humphreys, Holmes, Yazoo, Warren) Precipitation during growing season Low (20 25 inches) Medium (25 30 inches) High (30 35 inches) Soils Hydric (More clay, less permeable) Non Hydric (Less clay, more permeable)

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20 2015 Water Use Preliminary Analysis General Observations Very fortunate to have such a large data set Important that we continue to get this annually to improve % usable and to improve data quality Great potential to improve model confidence and reliability Extrapolated over very large area so small improvements can make a big difference Education and outreach opportunities Feedback to participants and all water users Preliminary analysis indicates regional and precipitation differences Next step is to work with USGS scientists and YMD to refine analysis for Model input and education and outreach

21 Why is this important going forward To advance our understanding of the varying levels of pumpage and the geographic distribution of that pumpage throughout the Delta Cropping practices differ widely from site to site and year to year depending on local soil and aquifer characteristics, commodity prices, and precipitation Increased awareness of water use and ability to track over time

22 Improving Information Need better estimates of inputs and outputs so that they can be balanced Inputs Recharge from above USGS MAP multi year innovative data collection efforts to better characterize topstratum and improve modeling of Soil Water Balance Exchange from below MDEQ is monitoring paired wells and evaluating geophysical logs to better define areas of connection Outputs Know trend in wrong direction and more is being pumped out than is being recharged Voluntary metering is critical to more accurately represent geographic distribution of pumpage

23 There is an opportunity Business as usual can t continue Water can make the difference in the environmental and economic sustainability of the Delta Great potential for conservation practices to save time and money as well as water The problem of declining aquifer levels can only be solved through a Delta wide commitment and through taking the long view Improving information and modeling so that the Delta can make informed decisions on best suite of solutions