Tampabay: Water, water -- but not everywhere

Water, water -- but not everywhere

December's rains have the aquifer beneath Tampa at its highest level in four years. But in the well fields, it's still way low. Bottom line: Keep conserving.

By DAN DEWITT and KATHRYN WEXLER

TAMPA -- Driven by this month's heavy rains, aquifer levels in Tampa are higher than normal for the first time in more than four years.

"It's just an indication that things are filling up," said Michael Molligan, spokesman for the Southwest Florida Water Management District.

The aquifer has risen nearly 2 feet in the past week. That's about 3 feet higher than this time last year.

Molligan warned, however, that residents should still conserve water.

"The short-term view is December rainfall looked good and helped greatly," he said. "From a long-term standpoint, we still have a water supply problem and we want people to continue to conserve whether it's raining today or not."

The groundwater measurements do not include areas around Tampa Bay Water's well fields, where the utility withdraws millions of gallons per day. The aquifers there remain severely depleted, Molligan said, and the district has no plans to lift the once-a-week watering restriction that applies to customers of the water consortium.

Also, Molligan said, the aquifer never stays high. The last above-normal measurements were due to heavy rains during the last El Nino winter, in 1997-98. But by the time that reading was taken, in October 1998, the region had already entered into a drought that lasted for three years.

Most of the region's drinking water comes from the aquifer, which is a system of porous limerock saturated with water.

"It's not a bathtub," Molligan said.

The water district designates the bottom of the normal range as zero. The top end of the range in the central part of the district is 6 feet above that, Molligan said.

This week, the measurement was 6.3 feet.

The district's caveat aside, recent rains are definitely good news, said Sandra Anderson, manager for the consumer affairs division of Tampa Bay Water.

"The state of water resources in (the Tampa Bay area) are good -- much better now than two years ago," Anderson said.

The rainfall has caused consumption overall to drop, Anderson said. Residents, it seems, are easing up on their hoses.

"Watering is down significantly compared to just the week before," she said.

El Nino, evaporation caused by the warming of ocean waters along the equator, gets much of the credit for the wet December.

"It dramatically increases our jet stream and available moisture during the wintertime," said Frank Alsheimer, lead forecaster for the National Weather Service.

More than 12 inches of rain have fallen this month in parts of Pinellas County, and more than 10 inches have fallen in some areas of Hillsborough, Molligan said.

The northern part of the water district, which includes Hernando and Citrus counties, has received slightly less rain. The aquifer in that part of the district is in the middle of the normal range, Molligan said.

But the largest river that runs through that area, the Withlacoochee, is nearing flood stage because of heavy rain at its source, the Green Swamp.

It is expected to crest at 12.3 feet at Trilby, which is about 4 inches above flood stage, according to the National Weather Service.

Water will probably cover streets in flood-prone neighborhoods of southern Hernando County, said Mark Tobert, Hernando's emergency management coordinator.

"It may cause some access problems for smaller vehicles, but it's not going to damage any homes," he said.