Critics against tapping into Floridan aquifer

RICHMOND HILL - The fast-growing city of Richmond Hill, looking for more drinking water, wants to drill a well into the deepest level of a giant underground reservoir, known as the lower Floridan aquifer. <br> <br> But critics say the proposal could permanently damage the aquifer, which has provided drinking water to south Georgia for years. <br> <br> The coastal city on the outskirts of Savannah wants to drill into the lower Floridan, a smaller and saltier layer of the aquifer, because it needs more water as the city grows, Mayor Richard Davis told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. <br> <br> After digging a well, the city would build a plant to treat the water and make it drinkable. <br> <br> The state Environmental Protection Division has to approve the well. If it does so, it would be the first time Georgia has allowed anyone to tap into the lower Floridan since the state capped withdrawals in 1997 because it was concerned about saltwater intrusion. <br> <br> Opponents say EPD chief Harold Reheis should deny the permit because tapping the lower aquifer could allow fresh water from the upper aquifer to leak down into the salty layer, depleting the region&#39;s main freshwater supply. <br> <br> They want the state to put a hold on lower Floridan wells at least until completion of a $14 million state-sponsored study of the entire south Georgia water system. <br> <br> The study, which will be completed in late 2004, will be the basis for the region&#39;s water management plan, due about a year later. <br> <br> ``Water is very critical,&#39;&#39; said state Rep. Anne Mueller, R-Savannah, who opposes the Richmond Hill plan. ``To rush ahead is wrong.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Mayor Davis, however, said Richmond Hill can&#39;t wait. <br> <br> ``We need the water. We&#39;re a fast-growing community,&#39;&#39; he said. <br> <br> Richmond Hill has grown 137 percent from 2,934 residents in 1990 to 6,959 only 10 years later. And Davis said about 2,000 new homes in the city are ``on the drawing board.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The city has the option of buying water from Savannah until the water study is done and a new plan in place. But Davis said the city wants its own well so it can keep costs low. <br> <br> Reheis tentatively approved the Richmond Hill plan in December, but later agreed to review his decision. <br> <br> ``Any decision we make regarding Richmond Hill will not damage that strategy or the upper Floridan,&#39;&#39; he said. ``If we don&#39;t feel confident about letting people use the lower Floridan, we won&#39;t let them do it.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> State geologist William McLemore said $500,000 worth of test wells drilled at the site where Richmond Hill wants to sink its well indicate the withdrawals will cause no harm to the upper Floridan. <br> <br> Sally Bethea, a member of the DNR board, said she believes Reheis should deny the permit, especially since Richmond Hill has the option of buying water from Savannah. <br> <br> ``Why this rush to issue this precedent-making permit, this rush to allow withdrawals from the lower Floridan?&#39;&#39; she asked.