A LOOK BACK AT THIRTY YEARS OF THE PROGRESS…M.V. Water District Taps New Well, Should Double Culinary Water Supply

This summer the PROGRESS is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The newspaper began operations in September of 1987 under the direction of its founder John Z. Robison. Since that time the PROGRESS has covered three decades of community issues, news stories, local businesses, youth sports, politics, elections, Moapa Valley personalities and much more.

Over the next couple of months, we are highlighting the PROGRESS’ role in documenting the day-to-day goings-on in the Moapa Valley communities. We have selected some of the more interesting stories which have appeared in past editions. We will reach back into our archives, both recent and more distant, and look for stories that connect with similar issues today. In the process, we, no doubt, will find that while some things in the community have changed drastically, much has remained, more or less, the same.
So keep an eye out for the PROGRESS over the next few weeks. There will be plenty to look back on; and plenty to look forward to.

Editor’s Note: The following story was published on the front page of the PROGRESS during the week of August 7-13, 1991.

By JOHN Z. ROBISON

Van Robinson stands in front of the new well house above Warm Springs. Robinson recently replaced Jay Whipple who is retiring as manager of the District after some 30 years of running the utility.

The Moapa Valley Water District has recently completed some two miles of 14” pipeline connecting the present culinary water system to a new well located at the head of the valley near the mouth of Arrow Canyon.

“The quality of the water has been analyzed and is identical to the original existing artesian spring,” stated Van Robison, manager of the Water District. “This meets all the state and federal standards.”
The drilling project was bid early last September to A&A Pump and Drilling of Newcastle, Utah. The original contract was for a 500’ hole. A 12 1/4” pilot (test) hole was drilled at 497 feet there was no sign of water. Then almost as if by magic, at 500 feet, they hit a deep carbonate acquifer full of bedrock fissures. They then decided to drill down an additional 65’.

The hole was then enlarged with a 24” reamer bit, ending up with a 20” surface conductor pipe. A 12” pump and column was set at about 150 feet below the surface.
The confined acquifer water table now stands at about 45’.

The well was test pumped with a 10” pump assembly. The test data sheet went up to 4,500 gallon per minute – with only a 30 foot draw down. This well tested at 3,750 gallons per minute.
Engineering for the additional pipeline was done by Leslie and Associates of Cedar City, Utah.

The Moapa Valley Water District is excited about this new source of culinary water for the valley which should meet the needs for our growing communities into the next century.
The total cost of drilling the well and extending the pipeline was $350,000

FAST FORWARD TO 2017…

Jay Whipple stands in front of the new Arrow Canyon Well above Warm Springs. Whipple retired as MV Water District General Manager shortly after the well was completed after some 30 years of running the utility.

The success of this Arrow Canyon well has been a gamechanger for the MVWD over the past 26 years. It provides more water alone than all of the other MVWD sources combined.
But after more than two decades of reliable service, the Arrow Canyon #1 well is nearing the end of its lifespan. The expected normal lifespan of a carbon steel equipped well, like Arrow Canyon, is about 20 years.
“The experts that we have had look at it have said that we have our money’s worth out of it now,” said current MVWD General Manager Joe Davis. “It is time for new well.”

District staff has looked into the possibility of doing extensive revitalization to the well, but it is risky. If something should go wrong through that process, it could render the well useless.
“All of our wells combined can’t equal what it does,” Davis said. “So we wouldn’t have adequate backup to mess with it too much. If we get another well at the site up and running, we would have some options. We could then try to salvage that #1 well and have it as a backup.”

The district is currently going through the BLM permitting process for drilling a new well at Arrow Canyon. This would be the third well drilled by the district at the site. This first well cost $350,000 to develop, as stated above. Arrow Canyon well #2, which was developed several years later, cost $540,000, just to drill the hole. Given current projections, a new well is expected to cost the district $850,000, Davis said.