(The following information provided courtesy of the Bureau of Land Management)
The Bureau of Land Management has received funding to drill a replacement Park Center Well as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Park Center Well is an 80-year-old artesian well located on BLM - administered lands along Garden Park Road north of Canon City. The well supplies water for domestic and fire suppression uses to approximately 4,000 users in the Park Center Water District. The BLM learned in 2008 that the 3,000 foot deep well had developed serious leaks in the casing.
According to RGFO Manager Roy Masinton, "The BLM will coordinate the plugging of the old well with the drilling of the new one to minimize impacts to local water users. This should be possible unless the old well fails."
An environmental assessment for the project is scheduled for completion in July 2009, with drilling of the new well scheduled for completion in early 2010. The contract to drill the replacement well will be done in accordance with the federal procurement process, with competitive bids determining the eventual cost of the replacement well.
The original well was drilled in the 1920's for oil and gas exploration, and then abandoned when drillers hit water instead of fluid minerals. The BLM later acquired ownership of the well. The BLM holds a Federal Reserve water right for 227-acre feet of water annually. The BLM leases the well water to the Park Center Water District through an agreement with the BLM Royal Gorge Field Office.
According to RGFO Manager Roy Masinton, "The BLM will coordinate the plugging of the old well with the drilling of the new one to minimize impacts to local water users. This should be possible unless the old well fails."
An environmental assessment for the project is scheduled for completion in July 2009, with drilling of the new well scheduled for completion in early 2010. The contract to drill the replacement well will be done in accordance with the federal procurement process, with competitive bids determining the eventual cost of the replacement well.
The original well was drilled in the 1920's for oil and gas exploration, and then abandoned when drillers hit water instead of fluid minerals. The BLM later acquired ownership of the well. The BLM holds a Federal Reserve water right for 227-acre feet of water annually. The BLM leases the well water to the Park Center Water District through an agreement with the BLM Royal Gorge Field Office.