State of the aquifer

The Idaho Water Resource Board toured a $15.9 million groundwater to surface water conversion project with Bonneville Jefferson Groundwater District officials. I called Brian Patton, chief of the Planning Bureau, David Sparks, Idaho AG today. Speaker2: The Water Resource Board is trying to provide funds and take interest for projects that help the parties achieve success with a 2024 water settlement agreement on the Eastern Snake Plain aquifer. That includes both taking an interest and possibly funding that Jefferson Clark Groundwater District Pipeline, where they are proposing to deliver excess surface water when it's available in good water years out into grounds that are now only served with groundwater. And that gives them options going forward and helping to meet their settlement agreement obligations from 40,000ft. Speaker1: What's your view on the aquifer? Is it losing water or is it staying where it should be or being overused? What's the status at present? Speaker2: For the past couple of years, it appears that we may have stabilized it, although we probably need, you know, a few more years of data in order to conclusively say that we've definitely changed that trend line from going down to maybe going sideways. So I'm hopeful that we've stabilized it.