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Show Utah Foundation Legalities hold up development of underground water, report says Development of substantial sub-stantial quantities of underground un-derground water in Utah could be facilitated by a legal clarification, according ac-cording to a Utah Foundation Foun-dation report. The special session of the Legislature convening June 23 could initiate in-depth studies to determine the exact situation and perhaps prepare legislation to accelerate ac-celerate the development of a resource whose importance im-portance is emphasized by the current drought. According to a published report of the Utah Division of Water Resources, about one million acre-feet of water seep into the ground in Utah each year. The report further estimates that approximately ap-proximately 400,000 acre feet of this amount, half of it along the Wasatch Front, is not now being developed and used. An acre foot is the amount of water w hich would cover an acre of ground to the depth of one foot It tran slates to 325,851 gallons, which is the amount consumed con-sumed by an average household each yerar for both inside and outside uses, without restrictions. All underground water originates as precipitation on the surface and then seeps into the ground. Much of it collects in underground pools known as aquifers and some can be brought to the surface and put to use through the digging of wells. So long as the amount taken exceed the amount which is exceed the amount which is annually returned by seepage the water source will produce indefinitely, the Foundation points out in a Research Rrief released this week. One obstacle to further development of underground water is a decision of the Utah Supreme Court which held that a person drilling a well may be held liable to compensate the owner of an already established well if the pressure in the older well is lowered. The Court decision was divided and a dissenting opinion pointed out that this philosophy "does not serve the fundamental fun-damental purpose of our water law, providing the fullest conservation and highest development of water by making it available to all users in the most economical and convenient way." A later Supreme Court decision held that the driller of a well w as not required to compensate other water users for loss of pressure, but water experts and legal authorities are not certain just how and to what extent the later court ruling modifies or supersedes the earlier. "There appears to be general agreement that the uncertainty on this issue tends to restrict development develop-ment of needed water and that it would be advantageous ad-vantageous to have the point clarified", the Foundation points out. The special legislative session is restricted in what it can consider to matters placed before it by the Governor, but the appointment ap-pointment of a study committee com-mittee to investigate a water question would appear to fall within the Governor's designation of drought relief, the Foundation notes. As there would be no question of immediate legislation, it is not believed that appointment of the study committee would take more than a few minutes of the legislators' time. Unused groundwater is not only going unused in the face of critical need, but along the Wasatch Front substantial sub-stantial amounts, are wasting into the Great Salt Lake to raise the lake level. "It is ironic that the state and the Wasatch Front counties are faced with spending millions to develop supplies of fresh water, and (continued on page 3) o Foundation report.... (continued from page 1 ) at the same time contemplating con-templating spending additional ad-ditional millions to keep the lake from flooding." the f Foundation notes. "Putting water that is now wasted to use before it reaches the lake could assist in meeting both problems." It is recognized that development of underground water is more complicated and difficult than developing surface supplies, and that some underground water ' can never be effectively , used. Water experts agree, however, that substantial i quantities of water that are I ally usable do exist " . .... snould be developed in this water-scarce region. |