Drastic drop in springflow the result of gauge error
Some aquifer watchers were spitting coffee Thursday morning when they accessed the website of the Edwards Aquifer Authority (EAA).
The daily reading for flow from San Marcos Springs was 101 — a full 35 cubic feet per second (cfs) lower than Wednesday’s posted reading of 136.
That’s a nose dive that’s unheard of among those who track these things and, as it turns out, based on an error.
Responding to a Daily Record query, Ann-Margaret Gonzalez of the EAA cleared up the misunderstanding and in doing so answered the question posed in our Thursday edition about why the San Marcos River is so low that part of the riverbed is exposed at Sewell Park.
Gonzalez said that the U.S. Geological Service, which owns the gauge the EAA bases its figures on, went out Wednesday and recalculated the gauge from streamflow to springflow, “which is why there was a change in the readings.”
It’s unknown how long the gauge was giving inaccurate readings.
Currently, both the city of San Marcos and the EAA are under Stage 2 water conservation rules due to the prolonged drought the area is experiencing. Municipal water customers and those with permits to pump from the Edwards Aquifer are mandated to reduce by 30 percent. For a complete list of the San Marcos rules, visit sanmarcostx.gov/drought.
Twitter: @AnitaMillerSMDR
