240 CONSERVATION OF GROUND WATER 



a lot in seeking solutions for existing problems of water sup- 

 ply and pollution. The ground-water reservoirs can be an in- 

 tegral part of any coordinated plan for improved methods of 

 supply and disposal. In some areas ground water occurs in 

 aquifers sufficiently independent of each other that they can 

 be utilized as tanks to receive or discharge water of certain 

 specific properties: cold water desirable for air conditioning, 

 warm water desirable for boiler feed, soft water desirable for 

 washing, etc. Aquifers containing water unsuitable for most 

 uses might be the recipients of brines and other highly miner- 

 alized industrial wastes, as in Kansas where state regulations 

 require the disposal of brines from oil wells into brine-bearing 

 rock formations. On the other hand, there are areas where 

 disposal of waste into the ground at any point would be detri- 

 mental to other users of water, and it has been necessary to 

 discharge those wastes into trunk-line sewers or streams specif- 

 ically designated to function as sewers or into tanks where 

 the fluids can be evaporated. 



MANIPULATION OF STORAGE FOR MAXIMUM UTILIZATION 

 OF WATER 



The great majority of wells today are dependent entirely 

 upon the facilities provided by nature for replenishment. In 

 some places the natural replenishment is far greater than in 

 others, and many of these "others" are now facing problems 

 of ground-water shortages. In a small but increasing number 

 of areas there have been significant achievements in putting 

 water into ground-water reservoirs by means of ponds, basins, 

 spreading grounds, and wells (see pages 53, 73, 96, 125, 127, 

 141-144, 189). 



In many other areas storage in ground-water reservoirs has 

 been increased as a by-product of irrigation, sometimes with 

 detrimental effects (pages 89-90, 152, 198). The areas where 

 soil water has been increased by soil conservation practices 

 are widely distributed throughout the country (pages 64- 

 68). Throughout the country there is ample evidence that the 

 storage of ground water can be increased by artificial means, 



