Wabash watershed study finds supply should meet demand with proper management
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A highly anticipated state water study focused on a region prime for utility-intensive economic development concludes enough water exists for current and future demand, but coordinated management is needed to ensure demand does not outweigh supply.
The Indiana Finance Authority financed two regional studies of the Wabash watershed, which is the largest in the state, and its northeast surrounding counties. Detailed in the new reports, released Tuesday, are breakdowns of water demand and supply through 2070 for 28 total counties in north-central Indiana.
The new findings offer “no surprises,” said Indiana University professor Gabriel Filippelli, who is the executive director of the IU Environmental Resilience Institute.
The findings are consistent with an Indiana Chamber of Commerce statewide water study released in August. It concluded that Indiana has a “plentiful” but unevenly distributed water supply that will require a coordinated effort to manage in the future.
The findings emphasize that projected demand is not expected to outpace water supply, but seasonal climate changes and future increased use should be considered and planned for.
“With recent increasing drivers for economic development, Indiana is rapidly approaching a crossroads in water management,” the study says. “While multiple risks could threaten water availability and suitability into the future, numerous opportunities exist to more effectively manage and protect the region’s finite water resources.”
Water demand in the Wabash Headwaters Region is expected to grow 9% by 2070, from 81.8 million gallons a day to 89.8 per day.
The North Central Indiana water study findings are a bit more complicated. Water withdrawals in the region will continue to significantly drop as two coal energy plants go offline in 2016 and 2028. The energy industry is still responsible for 85% of total water withdrawal, but demand is mostly non-consumptive water use, meaning that most of the water is returned to the river after use.
By 2070, public water use in the North Central region is expected to grow by 30%, to 78 million gallons a day, and industrial use is expected to grow by 25 percent, to 66 million gallons per day.
“With recent increasing drivers for economic development, Indiana is rapidly approaching a crossroads in water management,” the North Central water study reads. “While multiple risks could threaten water availability and suitability into the future, numerous opportunities exist to more effectively manage and protect the region’s finite water resources.”
For a community like Lebanon in Boone County that is growing residentially and commercially, Filippelli said, the report signals it needs to develop a water plan to avoid depleting its groundwater “savings account.” While surface water is variable, groundwater is much more stable and can replenish itself over time, Filippelli said.
Planning is important for these situations, he said, so leaders know when to conserve water or work to move some of an abundant supply elsewhere to a constrained area.
“It’s important to know that you can’t really go into a negative on your account,” he said. “When it’s done, it’s done, and it takes a while to build back up again.”
Gov. Eric Holcomb instructed the IFA to expand its study in March to cover every county that touches the headwaters of the Wabash River. The studies were conducted by Edmonton-based Stantec Consulting Services and Dallas-based Jacobs Engineering Group. Both companies have Indianapolis offices.
State economic development officials have been eagerly awaiting the results, in part to guide the future of the Indiana Economic Development Corp.’s LEAP Research and Innovation District in Boone County. (LEAP stands for Limitless Exploration/Advanced Pace.)
The state’s ambitious economic development district seeks to land more advanced manufacturing businesses, such as microelectronics and life sciences, which tend to be water-intensive. Indianapolis-based drugmaker Eli Lilly and Co. has committed to investing $13.5 billion in the Lebanon site.
The project requires outside water supplies because Boone County doesn’t have sufficient sources to support long-term plans for the 9,000-acre campus, but the wider region doesn’t have a water shortage. Thus, two water infrastructure projects— including a 35-mile Wabash River aquifer pipeline and an extension of the Citizens Energy system—to the district have been proposed.
The IFA studies’ primary request is for more research and work on models to prepare for future development.
This report found that not enough data has been available previously, Filippelli said, and measures such as installing more water sensors could be a next step to better understand current and future needs.
“This is a great roadmap to say here are the areas where we think we will have problems,” he said. “We need to have a water management plan to make sure those problems don’t make us suffer, both as Hoosiers as well as economically.”
Water management policies are expected to be up for debate at the Statehouse this legislative session.