FEATURE Harvesting Glacial Meltwater with Managed Aquifer Recharge Michael E. Campana

“If climate change is a shark, water is its teeth.” – Gemma Poag

Glaciers provide humanity and ecosystems with ‘free storage’ of freshwater and parcel out water to maintain and replenish freshwater supplies. During the warm season, glacial meltwater nourishes lower elevation ecosystems and human settlements alike. It can recharge aquifers. Replenishment of the glacier normally occurs during the cooler seasons; the cycle then repeats itself. Ideally, one would like a balance: the glacial ice melting in the summer would be replaced by cold weather precipitation. When the melting exceeds the replenishment, then the equilibrium is disrupted. The volume of the glacier shrinks and if the disequilibrium continues, the glacier will disappear entirely. My idea is to capture that excess meltwater – the amount coming his is a somewhat stream-of-consciousness article to get out of storage – before the glacier some exposure for, and feedback on, an idea that disappears altogether. I have been floating for almost a decade. See Campana Recharging glacial meltwater (2016 and 2017) for more information. I first presented this idea at the 2013 AWRA Annual Conference in Portland, TNo glaciers in Glacier National Park? is Glacier National Park in Montana, OR (see Session 88 @ http://bit.ly/2tgkFCu]. Really? Where did their water go? which might be glacier-free by the How did I get this idea? I visited Copiapó, In response to global warming, middle of this century. Here in western Chile, in August 2008 during the Chilean some mountain glaciers are melting at Oregon, where I live, the highest winter. Copiapó is a city of about 160,000 accelerated rates in various regions (see elevations (e.g., Mt. Hood) are losing in the southern Atacama Desert, one of slides 14-18 in Campana, 2017). This is permanent glaciers. In addition, our the driest spots in the world. I was told by not unique to exotic places – we know seasonal snowpack in the Cascade some of the locals that there had been no that some permanent glaciers in North Range will likely decline as the climate measurable rain in 20 years; the average America are shrinking and some are en warms and more precipitation falls as annual precipitation is about 19 mm (0.75 route to extinction. In the United States, rain and not snow (see slides 20 and 21 inches). Despite the lack of rainfall, the the best example of this phenomenon in Campana, 2017). Copiapó River was flowing, albeit barely.

28 • Water Resources IMPACT September 2017 The flow was fed from the meting glaciers such a strategy cannot compensate for the Water use, economics, ecosystems. in the Andes, which towered above the reduction in annual runoff caused by glacier Is the water use sufficient to justify the city. A local hydrologist worried that the ice depletion. Our estimates indicate that project? Do the economics ‘work?’ What streamflow was eventually going to stop by 2070–2099, 0.73 ± 0.67 km3 a−1 of this about ecosystems (including marine, if any) because the glaciers were melting and would non-renewable component of the water cycle reliant on the glacial runoff? Effects must eventually disappear, at which point the could be missing in Alpine water supplies.” be evaluated. river would cease to flow. They did estimate that it would take only Legal and institutional. Are the legal, Concern was expressed over Copiapó’s about a dozen dams in the deglaciated areas regulatory, and political environments water supply – mainly groundwater. The to provide the storage required. Take a look favorable? Are there any water or other local economy is built upon silver and at Figure 1 in their paper – very informative. rights (e.g., land, mineral) issues? copper mining and agriculture (table grapes, They did not consider groundwater Downstream problems? olives and tomatoes) and both industries storage, which might not have been an Socio-cultural. Any such barriers? compete for water. Conflicts over water option in their area. But their approach Unforeseen issues. Are there issues we were on the horizon, and could easily be could be used to calculate the amount of don’t know that we don’t know? Of course exacerbated by the melting glaciers. In fact, water available. It’s a good template for the there are! that was the reason for my visit – to talk work I envision. Subsurface storage of accelerated about water conflict. glacial meltwater is a potential alternative Note that groundwater storage of the Back to the Andes to ‘losing’ glacial meltwater that could glacial meltwater would not be a permanent, No, not to Copiapó, but just to the otherwise be stored in the subsurface. It sustainable solution to freshwater shortages. north – Peru. Maria Gibson and I pursued would likely be less costly than surface It might provide a buffer to permit the a grant from USAID. The mission officer storage for later use. It is not a sustainable development of alternatives to ensure was intrigued but we needed to get the solution, but neither are melting survival of ecosystems and humans. government of Peru on board, which we glaciers sustainable. So where in the world could this could not do. Next time, perhaps. As a final note, Maria Gibson and I are be done? I actually think Copiapó would be a working on a similar project in the Yakima good candidate and when I mentioned Basin of Washington State. There, we will Surface storage in the Alps this approach in 2009 to the gentleman be looking for areas in the Columbia River For the moment let’s forget about who hosted my visit, he, too was intrigued, Basalt aquifers to store ‘excess’ Yakima groundwater storage and just examine but like Peru, we could not get beyond the River flow that would be pumped out in the the glacier melt process and storage. ‘intrigued’ stage. summer to enhance streamflow for salmon Something akin to my idea has been and irrigation. proposed by Farinotti et al. (2016) who Potential geographic Any suggestions are welcomed. ■ worked in the Alps, where the glaciers areas and problems are also melting unsustainably and will Enough water and need. Most of the Michael E. Campana is professor of produce a peak flow before they melt world’s great mountain ranges have the most hydrogeology and water management at completely. Farinotti et al. proposed that important element: a sufficient source of Oregon State University and technical dams could be built to store this ‘peak water in the form of glaciers. To that end, director of AWRA. He is also president runoff’ from the melting glaciers. Their the following mountain ranges should be of the NGWA Foundation and the Ann abstract: “The potential exploitation of examined: Alps; Andes; Rockies; Cascade Campana Judge Foundation and chair of areas becoming ice-free in response to Range; Caucasus; Zagros; Alburz; Greater the Oregon Water Resources Department’s ongoing climate change has rarely been Himalayas (Pamirs, Karakoram, Hindu Kush, Groundwater Advisory Committee. Campana addressed, although it could be of interest Kunlun, Tian Shan, etc.); Tibetan Plateau. enjoys many things, but mostly he enjoys from the water management perspective. The aforementioned list is not exhaustive; his status as an inveterate WaterWonk Here we present an estimate for the potential other mountain ranges may be important who opines about melting glaciers and all of mitigating projected changes in seasonal locally depending upon how much water is that water. He blogs at www.waterwired. water availability from melting glaciers by needed. The main assumption for each of org and Tweets @WaterWired. Contact: managing runoff through reservoirs. For the these areas is that there is need for glacial [email protected]. European Alps we estimate that by the end meltwater to be recharged. In many of the of the century, such a strategy could offset aforementioned areas there is probably no use References Campana, M.E., 2016. Great Minds and All That: up to 65% of the expected summer-runoff for stored water. No need, no bother. Groundwater Storage, Meet Melting Alpine Glaciers! changes from presently glacierized surfaces. Hydrogeology. Is the area suitable for a http://bit.ly/2uk6t0q [Accessed 11 July 2017] A first-order approach suggests that the MAR/ASR operation? Does it have the right Campana, M.E., 2017. Storing Accelerated Glacial Meltwater with Managed Aquifer Recharge. http://bit. retention volume potentially available in the kind of geologic formations? How about ly/2sijE1r [Accessed 10 July 2017] areas becoming deglacierized is in excess the chemistry of the water in the receiving Farinotti, D., A. Pistocchi, and M. Huss, 2016. From of the volume required for achieving the aquifer – is it compatible with the glacial dwindling ice to headwater lakes: could dams replace glaciers in the European Alps? Environ. Res. Letters maximal possible mitigation by more than meltwater? Are the aquifers near the point 11 (2016) 054022 Available at: http://bit.ly/2uk6t0q one order of magnitude. Obviously, however, of use? [Accessed: 10 July 2017]

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