Cd’A wells to start pumping with rising temperatures

The mild temperatures and wet conditions that have delayed summer weather this year haven’t gone unnoticed by Terry Pickel.

“We’ve had a cool, mild spring,” the superintendent of the Coeur d’Alene Water Department said. “That has really helped keep usage down.”

The wetter-than-usual precipitation so far has given lawns a relatively irrigation-free break as cooler temperatures and rainy days have kept lawns green. But that reprieve is likely to come to an end, as temperatures in the area are expected to soar into the 90s this week, starting Monday with an expected high of 87 degrees before peaking today around 93 degrees. With no rain predicted for the foreseeable future, unwatered lawns will likely begin to brown.

“Next week,” Pickel said, “I would imagine we’re going to see those sprinklers more. We’ll probably have all 10 wells running at some point next week.”

By this time next year, Pickel said, the number of wells in full operation will hit 11. Plans to install a well near Huetter have already been approved. The Coeur d’Alene City Council will vote this evening on a contract with Keller Associates to design the well and lend engineering and consulting to the project, which will eventually deliver a well that will produce 5 million gallons per day.

As of press time, the most single-day water consumption on record happened in 2017, when Coeur d’Alene residents used 40.6 million gallons from the Rathdrum aquifer. So far this year, that number hasn’t eclipsed 27 million. The decline, Pickel said, wasn’t all because of a late start to summer.

“This year, our consumption has been a little behind because of COVID,” he explained. “Business has been slower, so businesses haven’t used as much. That’s played into it, as well.”

In the meantime, even though the weather this year has lessened Coeur d’Alene’s risk to face drought conditions, Pickel said it’s still important to be mindful of water usage.

“We still need to be mindful of consumption,” he said. “Irrigation is a killer: Over 50 percent of our usage is irrigation. People love their green spaces, but they don’t want to love their green spaces too much. Just remember: We have conservation-style rates, so the more you use, the more you pay.”