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The Sylvania water tower in 2013. Sylvania is one of several suburban communities considering tapping in to the Michindoh Aquifer, rather than joining a regional water authority with Toledo.
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Suburbs see future in water from aquifer

Suburbs see future in water from aquifer

Editor’s note: A previous version of this story misquoted Bryan city council member John Betts in regards to concerns for the aquifer.

BRYAN, Ohio — It’s a massive underground freshwater aquifer sprawled under parts of Ohio, Michigan, and Indiana.

It’s located about 40 miles from Toledo, a great distance away when compared to the Great Lake sitting on the region’s doorstep.

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That hasn’t stopped several northwest Ohio communities from exploring whether the Michindoh Aquifer might make more sense as a reliable drinking water source than the city of Toledo-led attempt to form a regional water authority supplied by Lake Erie.

But officials in Bryan, Ohio — whose residents use more than 1 million gallons per day from the aquifer located beneath the ground the town sits on — have concerns about sending millions more to the Toledo area, and on Monday are holding a public meeting to discuss the issue.

“Our concern is that [the water supply] isn’t as unending as has been represented,” Mayor Carrie Schlade said.

Bryan city council member John Betts said he believes there are too many environmental and economic concerns with the aquifer. He said there are concerns wells will be depleted and deeper ones will need to be dug while private companies might be unable to garner permits to tap the aquifer because there isn’t enough water in reserve.

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“Over the last three and a half weeks I have heard ... over one hundred not in favor — well over that — and none in favor. That becomes very simple because there is no value to the city of Bryan or the county of Williams, nor can I see any value for any of the 22 communities served by the Michindoh aquifer. ...

“So, in a nutshell, there’s no pro and there are environmental and economic negatives. Why would anybody being served by the aquifer be in favor of this?”

City councils in Maumee and Sylvania want to explore the possibility of tapping into the aquifer and have agreed to conduct a study. Officials in Perrysburg, Whitehouse, Fulton County, Henry County, and the Northwestern Water & Sewer District also are considering the aquifer as an alternative to Toledo Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz’s plan to form a regional water commission.

The cost for each entity to perform the study, using a company called Artesian of Pioneer, depends on how many agree to it. The study’s total cost is capped at $35,000.

The aquifer covers more than 2 million acres underground, larger than the state of Delaware. It serves parts of nine counties — three in each state — with drinking water. But whether it can supply water to places like Maumee and Sylvania remains unclear for now. Tests and studies must be done, and both the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources need to sign off on any plan to move forward with the idea, officials said.

Still, Maumee Mayor Richard Carr is hopeful. A vocal critic of Mr. Kapszukiewicz’s regional water plan, he called the aquifer “the answer.”

“These are the alternatives: One, Maumee’s rates immediately go up and will continue to go up,” Mayor Carr said. “Or we can go forward with [the aquifer] and your rates will stay the same, or possibly go down.”

Even though the aquifer stretches under three states, federal regulators, at least for now, do not need to weigh in on the plan.

The Michindoh Aquifer has not been deemed a sole source aquifer, a designation given to aquifers that are the only drinking-water option for at least 50 percent of the people they serve. Without it, there is no federal law preventing outside communities from connecting with the aquifer, according to the U.S. EPA.

U.S. EPA sole source aquifer coordinator Val Bosscher said a petition was filed years ago by the city of Bryan, Ohio, to make the the Michindoh Aquifer a sole-source aquifer. The EPA requested more information from the city but did not receive it, and the petition has been dormant for years.

Mayor Schlade referred questions about the petition to head water superintendent Nate Gardner, who did not return a phone call requesting comment.

Mike Beazley, a senior policy adviser to Mr. Kapszukiewicz who has played a key role in Toledo’s efforts to develop a regional water authority, said leaders from the city and region are all looking for the best path to make sure the area has reliable and safe drinking water — including a backup water source to guard against another 2014 algae-fueled water crisis from crippling the Toledo region again.

Mr. Beazley also questioned whether the aquifer can supply enough water to the communities that currently get their water from Toledo.

“The utilities leadership in Toledo is aware of some of the benefits of the aquifer but don’t believe it can meet the needs of the system,” he said.

Initial tests by Pioneer will involve drilling a few observation wells and a production well on property near the aquifer. Then, water will be pumped at high rates for 72 hours.

The impact on existing wells will be examined, as well as data to determine the volume of the aquifer and if it’s sustainable. Artesian of Pioneer CEO Ed Kidston said his firm should have answers by Sept. 1.

Mr. Kidston said it’s not yet clear what a final deal would look like, but his company would stand to make a profit if selected for the potential project.

State approval

The Ohio EPA is responsible for enforcing the Safe Drinking Water Act, including provisions related to the operation and permitting of public water systems, spokesman Dina Pierce said.

Before signing off on northwest Ohio communities tapping into the aquifer, the agency would request a plan that investigates available options for water and the costs, demonstrations showing the new water system is capable of operating and managing its assets, and proposed treatment plants and infrastructure.

Communities using the aquifer likely would be required to submit a source-water protection plan detailing how they would protect the water. Mike Ekberg is a manager at the Miami Conservancy District, which works to keep groundwater clean in the Dayton area. Over 1 million people rely on the Great Miami Buried Aquifer for water.

“We encourage communities to understand the area around their well field that contributes water to their drinking-water system, then proactively do activities in that area to minimize that chances for contamination,” Mr. Ekberg said. “Some communities have adopted overlay zoning ordinances in some areas that prohibit certain activities. Other communities have a groundwater monitoring program in place so they can get an early warning if there’s contamination.”

Mr. Kidston said the Michindoh Aquifer is a very consistent water source, day in and day out.

“You can treat groundwater for half the price or less than what you can treat surface water because you don’t have all the contaminants or the environment,” he said.

The Ohio EPA requires a water system to meet double the average daily usage for any municipality it serves.

Mr. Kidston said if Maumee, Whitehouse, Fulton County, Henry County, and Liberty Center join Sylvania, the aquifer system would need to produce 14 million gallons of water a day.

The Ohio DNR would also play a role in the approval process. Spokesman Stephanie Leis said any water withdrawal facility with the capacity to draw more than 100,000 gallons a day must register with the DNR. Because the Michindoh Aquifer is in the Lake Erie Basin, any withdrawal from a ground water source of more than 1 million gallons per day over a 90-day period must be approved and permitted by the Division of Water Resources.

Details laid out

Pioneer’s preliminary plans call for a pair of 36-inch pipes to be installed; one along the southern portion of the region and another to the north. An additional 36-inch line could be built along the eastern edge of Fulton County to connect the two lines and build redundancy in case either line needs to be shut down.

Mr. Kidston said above-ground storage would be built along the eastern border of the lines to supply each community for one day in case of an emergency. A treatment plant would also be constructed, although groundwater requires minimal treatment.

Maumee City Administrator John Jezak said it’s too early to know exactly how much building a new system would cost, but he expects it to be at least $10 million.

Perrysburg City Council referred the matter to its public utilities committee. Mayor Tom Mackin said it “seems like it is worth considering.”

The Northwestern Water and Sewer District passed a resolution to partner with Maumee and Perrysburg to examine alternatives to Toledo’s regional water proposal, including the aquifer.

“The devil is in the details, which will hopefully be outlined by the end of this year,” NWSD president Jerry Greiner said. “Once we have them, we plan on hosting a public meeting and sharing our preferred alternative. There are many options to consider, some reasonable, some not based on distance, water capacity, or water quality concerns.”

The public meeting in Bryan is set for Monday at 5 p.m. in council chambers. City council there will consider a resolution to oppose any outside entities drilling into the aquifer.

“Until we find out more scientific information, we want to do what we can to keep that aquifer within the boundaries of the Michindoh,” Mayor Schlade said.

Contact Jay Skebba at jskebba@theblade.com, 419-376-9414, or on Twitter @JaySkebba.

First Published July 15, 2018, 12:05 a.m.

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The Sylvania water tower in 2013. Sylvania is one of several suburban communities considering tapping in to the Michindoh Aquifer, rather than joining a regional water authority with Toledo.
Michael Beazley  (The Blade)  Buy Image
Maumee Mayor Rich Carr  (The Blade/Kurt Steiss)  Buy Image
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