Billions of gallons of water are removed each year from the hydrologic cycle and injected into underground formations thousands of feet below the earth's surface, never available again. Hydrologists agree that there is approximately less than 1% usable water for humans on our planet. With proven enhanced evaporation and recycling methods, why do we continue sending this precious resource underground out of the hydrologic cycle forever?
Closer to home in Florida, Miami-Dade recently installed a 10,000 ft. well to inject over 300,000 gallons a day of wastewater. This injected wastewater initially begins its journey from the somewhat clean freshwater aquifer. If we multiply the gallons injected on a state-by-state basis, we could be looking at a severe shortage of water and water vapor. According to EPA figures, over 2 Billion gallons of wastewater a day are injected into 180,000 Class II wells and another 3.2+ Billion gallons of sewage in over 10,000 Class I & V wells! Over 30 Class I wells in Florida are used explicitly by wastewater treatment facilities that account for another 1.5 Billion gallons of injected wastewater. Without these billions and billions of gallons of water in our hydrologic cycle, are we setting up future generations to endure water scarcity? Billions of gallons removed from the hydrologic cycle daily add up quickly to the 1% usable water number determined by hydrologists.
Some of the most recent results attributed to injection wells have been earthquakes, contamination of aquifers, casing failures, insufficient record-keeping, excessive pressurization, and large amounts of acid to unclog the wells contaminating the water. To date, there has been little discussion of the water losses associated with injection wells and the effects of this loss on regional and global climates.
Are there any studies looking into the cause and effect of removing water and its vapor counterpart from the hydrology cycle?
Are we discussing the possible human-made climate issues related to sending water deep underground?
Are the current droughts a derivative of injection wells?
Lots of questions surround the use of injection wells, with very few answers on future environmental impacts. Let's openly question the effects of the injection water process and what is best for the hydrologic cycle instead of sending it deep into a black hole.
One sustainable alternative to the injection of wastewater is to evaporate it to its purified vapor counterpart. This area of water vapor is where we can study and analyze the future sustainability and potential positive impacts on long-term climate conditions. Transforming, purifying, and recycling by accelerating wastewater evaporation can be a valuable tool in a comprehensive wastewater strategy while supporting and promoting the sustainability of our future water supplies above the ground.
Perhaps the EPA should consider offering evaporation credits. Think about it, corporations and municipalities could advertise the amounts of pure water they keep in the hydrologic cycle. Those using enhanced evaporation could even include their contributions to cool the planet. If you are interested in learning more about enhanced evaporation, please contact Evaporation King by clicking the contact link below.