Is there fresh water below the salt water of the Pacific Ocean to serve Oregon’s coastal communities?
A hydro-geologist from Oregon State University who wants to explore that possibility will speak in Yachats at 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 26. The presentation in the multipurpose room of the Yachats Commons is sponsored by the Yachats Academy of Arts & Sciences. Admission is $5.
Todd Jarvis believes that offshore aquifers could exist with the potential to provide long-term water security for central coast communities. He says offshore drilling along the Oregon coast in the 1960’s found no oil, but the seven exploratory wells did encounter rocks that appear remarkably similar to the aquifers already tapped wells in Oregon, suggesting they extend beneath the continental shelf.
Jarvis wants to re-evaluate the drilling data to map target areas for determining the size of these subsea aquifers, recommend additional geophysical surveys or drilling, and begin a search for funding.
Two other offshore groundwater studies are under way off the East Coast and in the Mediterranean Sea. But Jarvis says a well located offshore Oregon would be the first specifically targeting drinking water supplies, potentially providing a model for other coastal areas facing water shortages.
