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TxDOT to Hold Public Meetings This Week to Discuss Highly Trafficked Roads 6/16/13
Odessa Moves Forward with Ft. Stockton Test Well 1/25/13
CBS 7 News
Staff Reports
January 25, 2013
The city of Fort Stockton has received approval to drill a test water well for an additional source of water for Odessa, in hopes of adding 10 million gallon a day to the city’s system.
"3000 gallons a minute is a little bit over 4,000,000 gallons a day and that would be just a little bit under 50% of the initial 10,000,000 gallons a day that the city of Odessa would like to produce.", says Darrell Peckham, a Water Resource Scientist for Water Quest.
But the test well’s cost just tripled;
"Because it went from primarily a test well to [one] that will be converted into a full production well and the size the well is designed is to be a bigger well; that's where your cost increased."
But a 3 million dollar price tag begs the question, why this project?
"The water quality would be better [than] that in the Ward County field which would lower the cost of treatment and so it's an economic feasibility that really drives this project."
The test well will be drilled and monitor the impact of pumping 4 million gallons a day will have on the aquifer.
The results of the test will be handed over to the Middle Pecos Groundwater Conservation District to approve the project.
"The Middle Pecos Groundwater Conservation District has the responsibility of managing groundwater in Pecos County, so certainly approval for production permits and transport permits would have to be approved.", Peckham states.
If approved, more wells will be drilled over the span of several years.
The City of Odessa tells us they have not paid any money and are still negotiating a contract with Fort Stockton. If for whatever reason, the amount of water in contract cannot be delivered to the city, Odessa will be reimbursed.