Overview
M&A has supported APS for more than a decade at the Cholla Power Plant. Early in our involvement, a long-term land lease was terminated, threatening the plant’s water supply because many of its production and monitoring wells were located on this property. M&A worked with APS to replace production wells, develop a new monitoring network, and establish programs for ensuring the reliability of water supply.
Services
M&A provided a range of services to ensure that the plant would maintain continuity for its water supply. In addition to installing replacement wells, we conducted analyses to support land-condemnation negotiations, constructed a monitoring network, and implemented a comprehensive monitoring program. We also developed a groundwater flow model that was used to help assess pumping impacts and optimize wellfield operations.
Groundwater Resource Development
- Conducted an exploration program that entailed characterizing fracturing and assessing potential yields from the sandstone aquifer to support the siting and design of production wells
- Deployed downhole explosives in selected boreholes to enhance fracture connectivity and increase yields to more than 3,000 gpm in some wells
- Designed, installed, and tested 11 new production wells and modified two existing wells
- Monitored water levels / quality and pumping rates and analyzed data to optimize the pumping distribution across the wellfield
- Supported an evaluation of the potential for well casings and pumps to deteriorate because of water quality issues, including dissolved gases
Groundwater Modeling
- Developed a groundwater flow model to simulate drawdown impacts from historical pumping and to identify operational strategies that would minimize the decline of water levels and the migration of poor-quality water