Rathdrum Prairie aquifer

Rathdrum Prairie aquifer

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
North Idaho is famous for its water. The landscape is dotted with natural bodies of water as well as man made storage reservoirs. But where does the domestic water supply for the 500,000 people who live in the area come from? Have you ever heard of the Rathrum Prairie aquifer? That is the underground water supply that stretches from Lake Pend Oreille to the Spokane River Valley. Thanks to various government agencies and some concerned citizens of North Idaho, students at Woodland middle school in Couer d' Alene will soon be doing their part to protect the precious resource. Tom Richardson, president of H2O well service in Couer d' Alene says his company is excited to be a part of the project. "It is really a good opportunity for us to give a little bit back to the community. We tried to drill a well as our costs so that our kids could actually have a working well with a pump in it and they can look at water levels, water temperatures, water chemistry. We have completed the first phase of the project which is drilling the well next to the school. The second phase is to install a pump with a heated sample tap outside so the kids Can go take water samples and then we are going to have a transducer with temperature and water level indicators put inside the school, hopefully hook up to the school's computer systems so a lot of students can access it and have a good understanding of what the aquifer does."
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