Pooling the Pools?

The Standard Times headline stated:

Twin Buttes water to be pooled together 

Given the North Pool's lack of rise, vs. the five feet promise, it's more like a pass through.  According to the article the City is pumping 21 million gallons a day from the South Pool.  The city uses 20 million gallons a day, with 12.2 million coming from Ivie Reservoir.

Doing the math, the city pumped 21 million gallons a day to supply 7.8 million gallons of treated water.  Councilman Alexander went from predicting "no loss in pumping" to lamenting a 50% loss.  That means the city loses 10.5 million of the 21 million gallons in transport.

South Pool water raised the North Pool less than a tenth of an inch since pumping began.  Given the two pools relatively equal volume before pumping started, the impact should be much greater.

The City drains the South Pool to meet our non-Ivie supplied water needs.  It's neither complicated nor a combination.

Medium Rain to Fill South Pool?

Thank the Lord for rain.  I wonder if it was the medium rain Councilman Paul Alexander predicted will easily refill the South Pool at Twin Buttes.  That would be great. 

Update 9-3-12:  Councilman Alexander's promise did not materialize

Spring Rains Gone from South Pool

Three weeks of pumping dropped the South Pool to levels seen last August.

The City effectively drew down all the water from this spring's rain.  I expect to be able to windsurf the South Pool for a few more weeks.

The North Pool won't rise near the five feet promised by City leaders.  Water Czar Will Wilde said the goal was to get the North Pool up six more inches to get proper pressure for flow into Lake Nasworthy.  

City Council wants to "master develop" land around Lake Nasworthy.  If Twin Buttes and O.C. Fischer dry up, Nasworthy will be it.  How much will master development restrict public access to the water at Nasworthy?  It remains to be seen.

Water Czar Changes Tune on Pumping Loss

It's funny how city leaders delivered a dramatically different story than promised and did so with a straight face.  Months ago, the city promised no water would be lost in pumping the contents of the South Pool into the North. 

On August 21 San Angelo's Water Czar presented the following slides to City Council (with my highlighted additions)

City leaders would have more credibility if they'd come clean with the public.  Do they believe there is no institutional memory?  . 

Alexander's Two Faces on Water Loss

Months ago San Angelo City Councilman Paul Alexander suggested water could be pumped from the South Pool at Twin Buttes to the North Pool with no loss in transfer.  He changed his tune in the August 21 City Council meeting:

"There are ways we can save our water by changing up the system a little bit," Alexander said, having said that about half of the water is lost in the journey from the Twin Buttes South Pool to the North Pool to Lake Nasworthy to the water treatment plant.

I like to call the faces sitting up high "The Rushmores."  Did Paul Alexander add a second face?

Tale of Two Pools

San Angelo's Water Czar showed City Council the dramatic drop in water volume at Twin Buttes Reservoir. Willl Wilde failed to show the breakdown in that volume between the South and North Pools. The four data points above came from the Bureau of Reclamation website for Twin Buttes. 

The North Pool is way down, while the South Pool is higher than a year ago due to spring rains.  Council approved pumping for only one month.  I expect they'll authorize a second month of South Pool pumping at their next meeting.

South Pool Receding

The City of San Angelo stated it would pump 25 million gallons of water a day from Twin Buttes' South Pool.  The three pumps Gajeske installed hum around the clock.  City leaders represented pumping in the following manner:

1.  There would be no loss of water in transferring water from the South Pool to the North, i.e. no seepage or thirsty vegetation.

2.   Pumping would occur during a low evaporation time of the year.  It started August 1, at the height of summer heat.

3.  Transferring water to the North Pool will raise its level five feet and dramatically reduce evaporation loss.

The rock picture above shows a shrinking South Pool.  What's the data show for the North?

It will be interesting to see how much the North Pool rises from draining the South Pool. 

South Pool Pumping: Day 3

Click the right pointing arrow to advance through today's pictures Pumping South Pool 8-3

For slide #4: The rock pictured was completely dry on 8-5-12.

Pumping South Pool: Day 1

I checked out Day 1 of pumping at Twin Buttes South Pool.  Pipes were extended into the water (intake) and the Equalization Channel (outflow).  Pictures can be seen by scrolling through the document below:

South Pool Pumping Day 1