Regional commission accepts Cold Springs water-balance analysis; model to be shared with agencies

The Truckee Meadows Regional Planning Commission on a unanimous voice vote accepted a presentation and report on the Cold Springs water-balance analysis, a regionally funded study that models how groundwater and surface water interact within the Cold Springs closed hydro basin. The presentation was led by Kim Rigdon of the Western Regional Water Commission and Dwayne Smith, utilities and capital projects director for Washoe County, and the commission voted to accept the report after a question-and-answer period with commissioners.

The analysis was developed by Washoe County with Stantec as the consultant and funded through the Western Regional Water Commission (WRWC). Dwayne Smith said staff compiled precipitation, well pumping and reclamation inflow data, calibrated a groundwater–surface-water model, and is now running scenarios to show how new development, storm events and changes in water use would affect groundwater levels, White’s Lake and wastewater flows. Smith said, “that facility is a 700,000 gallon per day…