Elbert County reviews USGS groundwater monitoring update, seeks plan to restore lost wells

Elbert County commissioners met with representatives of the U.S. Geological Survey on April 2 to review a decade of groundwater monitoring in the Denver Basin aquifers beneath the county and to discuss next steps for restoring and improving the county’s monitoring network.

USGS scientists said the agency has maintained a monitoring network in the county since 2015 and will publish a scientific investigation report (SIR) covering water-level records through the end of 2023. Kelly Palko, hydrologist with the USGS Colorado Water Science Center, said the data are public and described how measurements are collected and shared. “After each site visit, these data are uploaded to our website, the National Water Information System, we call it NWIS,” Palko said.

The county’s commissioners said the information will help them evaluate development proposals and update the county comprehensive plan. Byron McDaniel, chairman and commissioner for District 3, told USGS staff the board is especially concerned about growth in the northwest and north-central parts of Elbert County and wants a clear, implementable plan for replacing wells lost from the network.

Why it matters: Elbert County’s domestic and municipal water planning depends largely on groundwater from the Denver Basin. County leaders said they need timely, interpretable data to judge…