IS "OLD" WATER SUBJECT TO "NEW" CONTAMINATION?

According to a recent report, "ancient" deep groundwater is becoming contaminated.* Scientists tested approximately 6,500 wells world wide with the objective of determining which reached deep "old" water formed more than 1,200 years using radioactive carbon decay dating. They concluded that more than half of wells more than 250 meters (820 feet) deep produced mostly "old" groundwater.

However, more than one-half of the "fossil" groundwater wells showed elevated levels of tritium, said to be a radioactive isotope of hydrogen resulting from nuclear bomb testing. This finding suggested that some of the water in these wells originated after the nuclear tests in the 1950s decade.

The researchers concluded that "younger" water containing contaminates could mix with "old" water in an aquifer or a well itself could mix the waters. Thus, "old" water could become polluted by "young" water, essentially bridging "generation gaps".

What this report appears to suggest is that recharging of even deeper aquifers can introduce contaminates into those waters. In other words, deep waters are not necessarily immune from the polluted impacts of surface waters, shallow ground waters and earth excations.

Age may have its privileges, but it also may have its consequences.

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*Sumner,"Pollution Reaches Old Groundwater,"
Science News, May 27,2017, p.12

© Daniel J. Kucera 2017

STILL HUNTING FOR THE ORIGIN OF WATER

"Water is the driving force in nature."

-----Leonardo da Vinci


Scientists' quest for the origin of water on Earth seems to echo the song "Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places."

In May, 2015, I discussed a report that scientists have asserted water was delivered to Earth from the bombardment by asteroids and/or meteorites containing ice. This hypothesis was based upon measurement of deuterium concentrations in surface water compared with that found in these invaders.*

However, in November, I stated that a subsequent report indicated the asteroid/meteorite assertion was flawed because deuterium levels in ground water were found to be significantly lower than those in seawater.**

Most recently, it has been reported that scientists have developed a new hypothesis. "The researchers have found that deuterium levels in water trapped inside of molten rock and unaltered since the planet's early days are significantly lower than those in seawater. The lower deuterium fingerprint for Earth's primordial water hints that the world's wetness resulted from water-soaked dust grains present during the planet's assemble;y, the researchers conclude." In other words, water was part of the Earth's formation and was not delivered to Earth at a later time.***

So, where in the world did water come from? One could question how all the surface water and groundwater on Earth could have come from "cosmic dust." And even if it did, where did all that watery dust come from, etc.,etc.?

Perhaps da Vinci's statement is instructive. Water is the driving force IN nature, he says. Is water, in reality, a part of nature? If so, the larger question may be how did nature originate on Earth? It appears that all conditions on Earth, including water, came together in a purposeful way to create and sustain nature and life.

Then, again, why is so much scientific research energy being expended on a quest for the origin of water? No amount of such labors will produce more water than the Earth already has. And, it would seem that there are many more critical issues needing Earth's attention, such as hunger, safe water, sustainability of water resources, sanitation, disease, and the like.

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* "Who Cares", May 27,2015

** "Deja Vu", November 3,2015

*** Sumner,"Origin of Earth's Water
Questioned," Science News,
December 12,2015, p.12

DEJA VU

"Memory is like riding a trail at night with a lighted torch.
The torch casts its light only so far, and beyond that is darkness."

----------- Old Lakota Sioux Saying

Earlier this year, I discussed a published report that scientists have asserted the Earth's water was delivered to it by ice-infused asteroids and/or meteorites.* This conclusion was based upon comparisons of the Deuterium-Hydrogen (D/H) ratios of Earth water with water found in rocks from outer space.

Now, a new published report suggests that this water origin conclusion may not be correct, and that no one yet knows how water got here.** According to this report, there are problems with the prior D/H ratio analysis. Most of Earth's water is deep underground and has a different composition from ocean water. In particular, deep water has a different D/H ratio than the seawater ratio previously used to compare with asteroid and meteorite water.

Further, D/H ratios may not be reliable because Deuterium tends to become more prevalent at lower temperature, and computations are variable with distance from the sun making the ratios of questionable value in locating the origin of a water-bearing comet. Alternative ratios, such as nitrogen and oxygen isotopes have been suggested, but such measurements apparently require development of new instruments.

According to the report, no one knows how much water is inside the Earth. Estimates vary from 1.5 times to 11 times the amount of ocean water. Scientists are studying a series of underground lakes located hundreds of feet below Wind Cave National Park in the Black Hills, South Dakota. Wind Cave comprises at least 170 miles of honey-combed tunnels and is said to be the third largest cavern in the world. The lakes pop up in some of these tunnels and form the top of the Madison Aquifer, a valuable drinking water resource. The Lakota believed that their ancient gods delivered their ancestors from Wind Cave to the surface of the Black Hills.

As if figuring out where Earth water came from was not challenging, another report states that several moons of Jupiter and Saturn contain underground oceans of water, not to mention the possibilities on Mars.***

Is looking for a scientific explanation for the origin of water on Earth or anywhere else like looking for love in all the wrong places? To paraphrase the Lakota, "Looking for the origin of Earth's water is like riding a trail at night with a lighted torch. The torch casts its light only so far, and beyond that is darkness."

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* "Who Cares", May 27, 2015

** Crockett,"Struggle To Find Origin Of
Earth's Water",Science News,September 5,
2015, p.8

*** Crockett,"Ocean Envelopes All Of
Enceladus", Science News, October 17,
2015, p.8

OWNING WATER?

According to a recent report, a wastewater utility in Texas has asserted that it owns treated effluent from its facility and retains ownership even after the effluent is discharged into a river.* The ownership claim was made in an application for a "bed and banks" authorization to help support uses of the river.

Ownership of water, or the lack of ownership, can be a complicated and inconsistent issue across the United States. And, ownership of water does not necessarily mean control or permitted use of water.

For example, in Texas it appears that ownership and control of water depends upon the source of water. Groundwater below land is the property of the landowner, but withdrawal of the water is subject to controls by the state. Surface water is owned by the public and controlled by the state. Storm water is the property of the landowner until it enters a natural watercourse.

Another example is the use of Lake Michigan as a drinking water source. The water may be held in trust for the benefit of the public, but withdrawal of water is subject to control by a US Supreme Court decision in the case of Chicago area; state allocations; an international compact, and other law.

Still another example may be the ownership of a tract of land on which there is a wetland. Te landowner may own the wetland, but may be prohibited from draining or developing it by federal or state law.

If a water utility takes raw water from a source, whether groundwater or surface water, and treats the water to USEPA standards, does it "sell" the treated water delivered to a customer? A sale would imply ownership of the water first by the utility and then by the customer. Some oourts have held that a utility does not sell water. Rather, its charges are for providing a service--finding source water, treating it and delivering it to a customer. In turn, it would appear to follow that a customer has use of the water but not ownership.

Along the same lines, when a drinking water customer flushes wastewater delivered to a sewer, does the wastewater utility (often the same utility that delivered the drinking water) acquire ownership if the influent? Or, does the utility merely provide and charge for a service--receiving and treating wastewater to enable it to be delivered to a waterbody?

In many ways, issues of use or control of water may of greater importance than ownership. At best, the issue of ownership would seem quite fluid.

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*"Water Rights...Even After It Leaves The Pipe?",
WEF Magazine, Nov. 2014, p.19

MOVING MOUNTAINS FOR WATER

According to to a recent report, withdrawal of large volumes of groundwater in California's Central Valley is causing nearby mountain ranges to rise and may also be triggering small earthquakes.*

Over the past 150 years, the aquifer in this area has been depleted by about 160 cubic kilometers of groundwater. A concern beyond the loss of such water is that the resulting mountain movement could stress the San Andreas Fault.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reports that from 1900 to 2008, U.S. aquifers were depleted by more than twice the volume of water contained in Lake Erie and explains more than 2% of the observed global sea level increase during that period. In the period 2000-2008, the depletion rate averaged 25 cubic kilometers per year. Municipalities in the Gulf Coastal Plain, High Plains, Pacific Northwest and Desert Southwest have experienced declines of groundwater levels up to hundreds of feet. As an example, pumping from the large and important Ogallala aquifer since the 1940s has resulted in a lowering of the water table of up to 160 feet.

According to USGS, use of groundwater in the highly populated Milwaukee-Chicago corridor has reduced groundwater levels by as much as 900 feet. In the last half of the 20th century, Chicago suburbs experienced accelerated growth, with their water systems almost exclusively relying on groundwater. As pumping increased, wells were drilled deeper , not only to get more water but water of higher quality. As growth continued, however, wells became less reliable-- particularly deep wells such at the 1500 foot level or more, which began to mine salt water. Fortunately, for most of these communities eventually Lake Michigan water became available, enabling wells to be retired. Of course, cities away from Lake Michigan do not have Lake water as an option.

Draining of fresh water aquifers is not limited to the United States. It is a global issue. So, what is the point? It should be obvious. If this trend continues unabated by common sense conservation and development of alternative sources of supply, withdrawal of groundwater may not just move mountains--but people everywhere may have to move mountains to find water.
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*Science News, June 14, 2014, p.9