Monday morning, November 10, SEG kicked off its 2008 Conference with its “Managing Groundwater Resources” Forum in Ballroom F of the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. Panelists included Rodney Smith, President, Strategic Water Management LLC; Ken Albright, Director, Groundwater Resources, Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA); William (Bill) Alley, Chief, Office of Ground Water, USGS; Rosemary Knight, Professor, Department of Geophysics, Stanford University; and David White, President, Schlumberger Water & Carbon Services.

The forum’s moderator, Sheldon Breiner, Chairman and CEO, 3DGEO, opened saying “In the energy industry we often talk about ‘alternatives’, but when it comes to groundwater there are no alternatives.” Breiner added, “Most of us are familiar with the term ‘peak oil’ however in recent years we are starting to here another term: peak water.”

The panel of experts for SEG’s opening forum highlighted the importance of enhancing developments in the areas of groundwater management. Rodney Smith, who has written more than 50 books and articles on the law, economics, and finance of water resources and water policy, presented on current stress on groundwater resources due to a consistent rise in demand.

Smith’s general observations included the gradual definition of water rights, the increase in market value of water resources, the requirements for better management and tools brought on increasing value.

According to Smith, from their origins groundwater rights have evolved over time. Originally, groundwater rights were based on ownership followed by the rule of captive supply. These worked for a time until increased pumping began to create the need for better management of groundwater resources.

As a result, alternative systems of management have showed some improvements. Smith pointed out specific developments in states like California, Texas, and Nevada that have significantly increased the efficiency at which groundwater resources are managed. Adjudications combined with permitting schemes have successfully limited allowable pumping. Additionally, the movements toward linking resources with their areas of feed have allowed these regions to better monitor water resource basins to identify specific changes to enhance the recharge process associated with many aquifers. “Allowing transportability of water rights or permits has also promoted flexibility in groundwater use,” Smith said.

Key issues for the improved management of groundwater resources include the determination of “safe yield,” identifying the sustainability and reliability of groundwater supply, signifying the interrelation among recharges, pumping, and environmental values, discovering the impacts of climate change, and defining how pumping should be managed in the face of hydrologic risk.

Smith closed with his main point saying, “Investment in planning requires an in-depth understanding of the groundwater resource base.”

Ken Albright, who has worked as the Director of Groundwater Resources for the SNWA since 2002, provided a local perspective on the importance of proper water management. Las Vegas currently has a population of 2 million with an average of 40 million visitors per year. According to Albright, this places extreme pressure on Southern Nevada, which operates with a “one source” water supply from the Colorado River Basin.

Albright presented several statistics on Lake Mead. At full capacity, Lake Mead’s water level reaches 1,225 ft.; currently, the lake’s level is 1,100. In the last nine years, Southern Nevada has achieved full capacity in only two years. The area’s water supply has averaged a 67% capacity over the last nine years. “This provides Southern Nevada’s Water Authority with a major challenge,” Albright said.

Through several aggressive conservation programs, the region has managed to successfully reduce its water use. Albright attributed this success to several programs such as removing grass from residential front yards and reducing backyard coverage to 50% as well as paying $1.50 per sq. ft for removing grass from commercial landscapes replacing space with other (waterless) forms of landscaping.

In 2002, Southern Nevada consumed 325,000 acre ft of water. In 2007, this number was reduced to 279,000 acre ft even with an additional population of 400,000 people. “This is a very important difference,” Albright said. He added that independent research shows that Southern Nevada’s population will exceed 3.6 million by 2035.

Overall, the key issue for SEG’s Groundwater Resource Forum was the importance of managing water responsibly. In the face of a fast developing water-intensive unconventional oil and gas market, industry proponents must work at collaborating with the groundwater resource markets to insure proper and efficient developments within both industries.

For complete coverage of SEG 2008 click here.