Aquifer Storage and Recovery Facts

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Highlighted Facilities

  • The San Antonio Water System (SAWS) ASR facility at H2Oaks Center has 29 ASR wells and a recovery capacity of about 60 million gallons per day. As of May 2024, the volume of the Edwards Aquifer groundwater stored in the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer was about 154,919 acre-feet. During the summer of 2023, SAWS recovered a total of approximately 28,300 acre-feet from their ASR well field in response to historic drought conditions, which was 8.5% of the system’s distribution. This additional supply helped to keep San Antonio in stage two drought restrictions while other Edwards Aquifer Authority customers were in more severe stage four restrictions. SAWS continued recharging the ASR well field and stored an additional 3,600 acre-feet in 2023.
  • The City of Kerrville has two ASR wells and a recovery capacity of about 2.6 million gallons per day. As of January 2024, the volume of Guadalupe River surface water stored in the lower Trinity Aquifer is about 2,547 acre-feet, or about 75% of the city’s annual potable water supply. The city has a third production well drilled to ASR specifications, which could potentially increase their total ASR capacity to four million gallons per day, but the city is holding off on converting the well to ASR.
  • The 12 million-gallon-per-day Fred Hervey Water Reclamation Plant in El Paso is considered a hybrid ASR-AR-indirect reuse facility and infiltrates up to three million gallons per day. It recharges the Hueco Bolson Aquifer with advanced treated reclaimed water via shallow wells and infiltration basins. This facility may also be classified as “aquifer storage, transfer, and recovery” because the recharged water moves down gradient for 5 years before it is recovered via production wells. Due to clogging and energy costs, the shallow wells are being retired and replaced with more easily maintained infiltration basins. Since 1985, over 92,000 acre-feet of water has been injected or infiltrated into the aquifer, slowing water level declines.

2022 State Water Plan

  • The volume of new water supplies coming from ASR recommended water management strategies by 2070 is 193,000 acre-feet per year (2.5 percent).
  • "Approximately 60 percent of 2070 ASR supplies are associated with stored surface water sources, while 30 percent are associated with a combination of groundwater and surface water sources. The remaining 10 percent are associated with groundwater or a combination of surface water and reuse or groundwater and reuse supplies."
  • "Ten regions recommended ASR strategies. Associated with these strategies are 27 recommended projects that would establish ASR systems or pilot projects. Regions not recommending ASR strategies (Regions B, D, F, I, M, and P) cited reasons such as the lack of suitable geology in proximity to needs, cost constraints, or a lack of interested project sponsors."