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On a serene street in the Pemberton Heights neighborhood, thepneumatic hammer with its rock-pulverizing bit slams into baredirt, then begins chewing its way toward the Edwards Aquifer morethan 300 feet below. This newly remodeled house in one of Austin's most exclusive areasis getting what is becoming a popular amenity in West Austin: aprivate water well. As plummeting lake levels triggered drastic watering restrictionsduring the drought, homeowners drilled 47 new water wells in Austinlast year — more than doubling the 19 drilled the yearbefore, according to data from the Texas Water Development Board.More than 150 new wells have been drilled since 2006 — thenumber also jumped during droughts in 2006 and 2009 — andnearly all of those wells are in West Austin neighborhoods such asPemberton Heights, Tarrytown and Balcones, where many homes boastlush, carefully manicured landscaping. "We've probably done 40 to 50 wells within a five-mile radius ofthe Governor's Mansion," said Greg Svetlik, design specialist forBee Cave Drilling. "This general area of Pemberton Heights andTarrytown has really picked up." Bee Cave's drilling rig, with its derricklike 38-foot mast, willtake two days to sink a shaft through the limestone. When the crewis done, the owners will have access to an unlimited amount ofwater. No more soaring summer water bills, no more concern aboutcity watering restrictions during a drought. Many homes now havesmall signs announcing why the sprinklers are running when everyoneelse's are off: grounds watered by private well. Svetlik said 90 percent of the company's residential customersdon't use well water inside their homes, which requires an in-hometreatment system. They're drilling to water their lawns andlandscaping, he said, and "they have the option to water every dayif they damn sure want to." Homeowners are drilling into the Edwards Aquifer's northernsegment, which stretches from Lady Bird Lake to the Lampasas Riverin Bell County, not the better-known — and heavily protected— Barton Springs segment, which begins south of Lady BirdLake and feeds Austin's iconic springs. The northern segment hasn't seen the kind of pumping that has ledto heavy regulation of the aquifer's southern segments — infact, several cities north of Austin have largely weaned themselvesoff of aquifer water — and no one's claiming that a clusterof residential wells in Austin is a significant threat to aquiferlevels. Well owners and drillers also point out that using aquiferwater means less demand on Lake Travis, Austin's water source. But the increase is being closely watched by public officials,conservationists and groundwater managers who are concerned thatunregulated drilling into a virtually unprotected aquifer couldundermine efforts to make Central Texans more frugal with water. Those who can afford the price tag — Bee Cave Drilling, themost active company in the city, charges $18,000 to $32,000 withinthe city limits — don't need to obtain a city permit to dig awell (although plumbing and electrical work require a permit) orreport how much aquifer water they use. That's because most ofTravis County doesn't have a groundwater conservation district. At the Clearwater Underground Water Conservation District, whichmanages the aquifer where it seeps under Bell County, GeneralManager Dirk Aaron said the effect of the new wells in TravisCounty on the northern Edwards — which he calls "the mostunstudied and least known part of the aquifer" — is anyone'sguess. "The trend concerns me," he said. "This is the most preciousresource we have, so drilling for the sole purpose of landscape(watering) is philosophically a challenge for a lot of us." Austin isn't considering any ordinances to regulate drilling forwater, said Daryl Slusher, an assistant director at the AustinWater Utility, but "we're definitely watching it. We are definitelyconcerned about the impact of folks doing this." Slusher's main concern is the effect residential drilling will haveon attitudes toward water. Once people have shelled out tens ofthousands of dollars for a well, he said, they don't have muchincentive to conserve water. In fact, the more water they pump fromthe aquifer, the faster they can recoup their investment. "When neighbors see people watering any time they want and having alush green lawn, it can act to push people in the other direction"away from conservation, Slusher said. We are high quality suppliers, our products such as China Seat Slide , Manual Recliner for oversee buyer. To know more, please visits Seat Slider.
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