Conservancy district curtails water sales from Atwood Lake because of drought conditions

NEW PHILADELPHIA ‒ Due to significant drought conditions in much of Ohio and the Tuscarawas Valley, the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District is curtailing water sales from Atwood Lake to Encino Energy for oil and gas well operations.

As of Wednesday, the conservancy district is reducing water sales to Encino by 75% because Atwood Lake is a foot and a half below its normal summer pool, according to Craig Butler, MWCD executive director. The MWCD had an agreement to sell the company a maximum of 2 million gallons a day from Atwood for a couple of pad operations. Until lake levels stabilize, that number has been reduce to 500,000 gallons per day.

Other MWCD news: Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District plans $11 million in improvements to four parks

Atwood has a storage capacity of 7 billion gallons.

"We think it's the right thing to do," he said.

The conservancy district receives significant revenue from bonuses and royalties from oil and gas wells around the district. The MWCD has about 100 wells on its property, generating around $200 million in revenue in the past decade or so.

This is the first time the conservancy district has had to curtail water sales, Butler said.

Encino will draw more water from Leesville Lake, which isn't as low as Atwood. It is down by less than a foot. The MWCD has a similar agreement with Encino for Leesville to sell a maximum of 2 million gallons of water per day. Leesville has a storage capacity of 6.4 billion gallons of water.

Significant drought conditions

Ohio is currently experiencing significant drought conditions, with nearly two-thirds of the state affected, according to the latest data from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's "U.S. Drought Monitor." As of Aug. 22, the Drought Monitor reports that 62.67% of the state is under drought conditions. Since the beginning of the calendar year, nearly 45% of Ohio has been impacted by drought.

The most severe conditions, classified as "extreme drought," are primarily affecting southern and southeastern Ohio. Approximately 2.7 million Ohioans currently live in drought-affected areas.

According to the Aug. 22 Drought Monitor, all of Tuscarawas County is either abnormally dry (in the northwest part of the county), in moderate drought (the central part of the county), or in severe drought (the southeast corner). The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh reports that Harry Clever Field in New Philadelphia received 1.51 inches of rain in June (a departure of 2.72 inches from average), 2.22 inches in July (a departure of 1.52 inches) and 0.86 inches so far in August (a departure of 2.31 inches).

Levels at other lakes

Of the lakes operated by the conservancy district, Atwood has the lowest water level, Butler said. Tappan Lake is down nine-tenths of a foot, Clendening and Piedmont lakes are down half a foot and Seneca Lake is down a foot.

The village of Cadiz gets its water supply from Tappan Lake, but Butler said drought conditions will have no impact on that.

Reach Jon at 330-364-8415 or at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: Conservancy district curtails water sales from Atwood Lake because of drought conditions