BROOKINGS The city continues to work to find a solution to the years-long water supply problem at Edgebrook Golf Course, but its a detailed process with a lot of moving parts, and, as such, not one prone to fast advancements.
This was what the Brookings City Council learned during a May 21 study session from presenters Kristin Zimmerman and Joshua Bauman. The two are director and assistant director, respectively, of the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department.
Attention to the water supply problem goes as far back as at least 2021, when attempts were made to see if more water could be found on golf courses grounds.
Baumann related how Dell Rapids-based Lacey Well Drilling did test drilling at Edgebrook in 2021 and 2022. In all, five wells were drilled, and all five hit clay four at 12 feet, while a fifth one in the southeast corner of the golf course struck clay at 16 feet.
Theyve drilled some stuff for us before, (and) theyre very knowledgeable in this area, he said. We confirmed their findings with the East Dakota Water Development District that we were right on the edge of that aquifer in the southeast corner of the golf course.
(Theres) not really a viable water source in that area, at which point is when we started discussing and looking to go off property, either to the south or to the east to get further into the aquifer where wed have a little deeper aquifer area to gather water from, Bauman continued. Thats when we started speaking with some outside consultants.
Basically, it was a no-go for additional on-site water at Edgebrook. And, to add insult to injury, the water that was found in those test wells wasnt even close to the quality needed for use.
The minerals found within the water would turn everything bright orange is what we were told, and corrode all of the equipment, Zimmerman added. So it would be cost-prohibitive from a maintenance standpoint.
Consultants
ISG, a consulting firm with offices in five states including two South Dakota sites in Pierre and Sioux Falls then entered the picture, receiving a $10,000 contract with the city.
In April 2023, we contracted to do some alternate site locations and alternative water-sourcing options, Zimmerman said. Some of those were a site assessment of the golf course; they did some core sampling of our ponds to see where the water is being held if its being held there, or if were losing to the aquifer, that sort of thing. They found that were actually losing water to the aquifer, so they recommended lining the ponds. So were losing groundwater that we collect at the golf course it just regenerates into the aquifer thats just to the other side of (Interstate 29).
Regarding off-site water potential, ISG looked into that as well.
They also performed an alternative site analysis for other properties: The Everist pond just to the east of the (golf course) property. Groundwater collection to the north, so up to the 3M property. Properties to the west and then (also) seeing if they could somehow capture the runoff from properties south, Zimmerman explained. They also looked at alternative locations up to a mile (of) the golf course so that was looking at a multitude of different options within that mile radius.
Three of the four alternatives had their own issues, so much so that they were deemed unusable.
Some of the reasons that the alternative sites didnt work: The properties to the west, it wasnt ideal because about 12 years ago we did a tiling project, so were already capturing that water that way its already going into the ponds that were losing the water in, Zimmerman said. The properties to the north, the groundwater is actually being collected and then transferred under the interstate and being collected into the L.G. Everist ponds. The properties to the south, it wasnt deemed to flow right to be collected.
That left the L.G. Everist pond as the sole contender a finding ISG confirmed with its completion of the assessment in late 2023. At that time, Zimmerman said, the city requested that water samples be collected in October to determine the ponds viability and investment value. In November, the city received the water test results indicating it was viable.
Zimmerman said the U.S. Golfing Association was brought in for additional consultation in November at a cost of $4,000. The group specializes in everything golf course-related outside the clubhouse: course management, water sources, seed and turf.
They determined it would be a potential viable water source, but they also determined that they would need to do additional onsite testing due to the total dissolved solids within the water, Zimmerman said. We may have to add fountains and aeration to get some of those solids out.
A formal assessment is now planned for July.
Theyre also going to look at seed mixes, if we can add in a more drought-tolerant seed mix into the fairways and rough areas so we wouldnt have to use as much water, Zimmerman explained.
More analysis planned
If the city winds up drawing water from the L.G. Everist pond and thats still an if, because Zimmerman said negotiations are continuing with the company further water analysis will be conducted beforehand to ensure the city is making wise use of taxpayer dollars.
To that effect, she pointed to a $24,500 contract signed with Banner Associates in Brookings in April that aims to answer questions along the line of sustainability, how many years the pond would be able to supply water and what environmental impacts of using it will it have.
Zimmerman said some wetlands are also tied into the pond, and that Banner will assist the city with a permitting process thats expected to include state and federal filings, since the proposal, if it becomes reality, would involve boring under Interstate 29. Additional surveys would also be performed looking at whether a flow system or, on the L.G. Everist property, a pump system would be necessary to bring the water over to Edgebrook, along with engineering designs for the pond. Lastly, she said, Banner would also assist with construction administration.
Speaking of construction, an estimate received in February pegged the projects cost at $812,000. Thats a bit more than the $800,000 the city has set aside for solving the water supply problem at Edgebrook, but Zimmerman said her department could bridge the gap with dollars from within its budget, if necessary.
Council questions
Councilors had many questions on the complex issue, including one regarding potential PFAS pollution.
You mentioned that the runoff north of the golf course goes into the Everist ponds. Have you checked that for the PFAS contamination thats in that area, and has PFAS been run in the Everist pond? Councilor Bonny Specker asked.
That was part of the water testing that occurred in the Everist ponds. They looked at some of that, and it was not determined at the time of the testing, Zimmerman said. Im not aware of any water testing that was done onsite on the 3M property.
I think that thats going to be important to keep in mind when doing this, Specker said.
Councilor Nick Wendell wanted to know the differences between what ISG did in its work, and what Banner is doing.
Im wondering if you can clarify the difference between the feasibility study that Banner is helping to do on the ponds that weve identified versus the water test results that were received in November of 2023 and some of the work weve already done to identify L.G. Everist as a viable location, he inquired. What will the Banner study tell us about those ponds that we dont know already?
Basically, how long the water will allow us to use it for, Zimmerman said. That wasnt ever addressed with the initial consultation how long that water source is viable. Its a significant investment were making and we all just want to make sure were getting the biggest bang for our dollar.
She noted ISGs consultation also determined wetlands were present and, as such, environmental considerations needed to be taken into account.
There may be additional monitoring, so at what level does that impact the wetlands that was important, Zimmerman said.
Councilor Wayne Avery wondered if city water was a possible solution.
We have our own city wellfield, and we irrigate a lot of our lawns from that wellfield would that put too much pressure on our other wells if we use that same water to water the golf course? he asked.
Zimmerman said a meeting with Brookings Municipal Utilities took place on May 21 to look into options. We ran some preliminary numbers if we were to tie into their system and water our golf course the months that we would need irrigation, it would be about just over $77,000 a month in our utility bill just for water alone. So thats a pretty significant investment as well, but thats an ongoing investment.
She concluded, We need to balance that with how much is L.G. Everist going to charge us for the water, and those kinds of things to see whats most cost effective for the city and for our residents.
Contact Mondell Keck at [email protected].
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