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ChiseledTwinkie t1_j5sme97 wrote

Reply to comment by Fluxmuster in The Key to California’s Survival Is Hidden Underground The state is ping-ponging between severe drought and catastrophic flooding. The solution to both? Making the landscape spongier. by Sariel007

Why can't we pump the water back into the ground? Like a reverse well. We could create temporary rainy season reservoirs and pump the water back into the ground near farmlands

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Justanothebloke t1_j5sw3q1 wrote

It is feisable. It is called ASR. Aquifer storage and recovery. The concept is to drill and case the bore to a specific depth in the bedrock that aligns with a fracture. Those fractures hold enormous amounts of water as they go for kilometres. Clean the captured water and pump it down the hole and recover it at a later date when needed.

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Fluxmuster t1_j5vgpdo wrote

This is done in a lot of places. Especially places with deep sandy soil. Orange county California has a pretty extensive ground water recharge program. They actually inject partially treated water in a line along the coast to prevent salt water intrusion into the water tables as they pull from the aquifers, lowering freshwater tables.

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trappingsofignorance t1_j5wn822 wrote

Seawater intrusion is a major issue all along the coast. Once your aquifer goes salty you pretty much need to find a new aquifer.

Also implicated in the Delta which is part of why keeping a certain amount of water flowing into San Pablo Bay is a big deal

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inc0ncise t1_j5stfgd wrote

That exists in the oil fields actually. They are called water injection wells! Wonder if it’s viable for what you suggested.

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