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Planners flag West Plains paleochannels, aquifer susceptibility and PFAS contamination risks
Summary
County planners showed aquifer susceptibility and paleo‑channel maps and warned that fast‑moving underground channels on the West Plains can spread PFAS and other contamination quickly, constraining where urban development is appropriate.
Scott Chesney walked through aquifer susceptibility mapping and identified the Spokane Valley–Rathdrum Prairie aquifer and separate West Plains aquifer systems. He emphasized that the paleo channels on the West Plains are highly permeable and can transmit contamination rapidly.
"When you have this fast moving underground river system, it means that once that contamination gets in there, it flows to everybody else's area very quickly," Chesney said, linking the geology to recent PFAS and contaminated‑soil work on the West Plains. He said those groundwater characteristics will be integrated into critical‑area mapping and will influence where the county allows urban‑style development.
