Will Marion Run Out of Water?

When you're taking a shower, turning on the faucet or watering your lawn, you might, just might, think of where that water comes from.

In Marion, it comes from what's commonly known as the Jordan Aquifer. This is an enormous underground water source that's 1,600 feet deep and stretches from Eastern Iowa all the way to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

But we won't be able to tap this resource forever, said Mike Gannon, a geologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Are you concerned about Marion's water supply?

In a recent report by the Iowa DNR, the agency outlined that has only 10-15 years of usage left from the aquifer.

Gannon said it is not because the water supply is depleting, but rather due to the nature of the aquifer.

Because the underground lake is pressurized, when water is taken from it, the pressure decreases, and the water level sinks. In 10 to 15 years, that level will presumably sink so low that the Iowa DNR, which is in charge of regulating the aquifer, will require Marion to switch water sources.

In all likelihood, the city will tap the Silurian Aquifer, the underground water source that Cedar Rapids currently uses, Gannon said.

Even though the city could potentially pump the aquifer further, Gannon said the water levels will not rise fast enough to meet the demand.

"You want a sustainable resource," he said. "That doesn't mean you can't pump, but that you can’t for an extended period of time."

Though it is unclear exactly how long it will take the aquifer to return to its prior water level, Gannon said it is well known that this process could take as long as a millennia.

"That’s why we are preserving it for my grandchildren and your grandchildren," he said. "So we can have it later on."