First, It Was Our Land… Now Transplants Are Drinking All Of Idaho’s Water

People are continuing to flock to our lovely state of Idaho and in many cases, we'd say it's no big deal. People move to different places all the time and as human history has shown us, we typically adapt and overcome any challenges population influx brings.

"Stop moving to Idaho!"

The complaints Idahoans have about transplants range from political to bad driving habits to overcrowding.

Did the price of milk go up? Blame it on the transplants. That car that just cut you off? Probably from California. We hear it all the time and while they might be based solely on conjecture, there is one problem that could be happening due to the influx of people moving to Idaho.

First our land... now, our water

Kootenai County is located in northern Idaho and is home to cities including Post Falls, Hayden, and Coeur d'Alene.

The county gets its water from the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer which, according to Spokane County's website, sits under Kootenai County and is about 370 square miles with a volume of about 10 trillion gallons.

However, Idaho's recent weather conditions have impacted the aquifer and could have a detrimental effect on those relying on the Spokane Valley-Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer.

“Drought impacts aquifer recharge by reducing annual and multi-annual precipitation contributions,” Meg Wolf of the Idaho Water Resources Research Insitute told the Coeur d'Alene/Post Falls Press.

“Warm, dry conditions during drought increase evaporation and transpiration rates, sending more water back to the atmosphere and reducing water available during recharge.”

Many natives in the area are concerned with more outsiders moving in, citing risks of contamination to the aquifer via development including chemicals from winter road treatment, nitrates for lawns, illegal dumping, and other hazards via storm drains.

It can be easy to brush off these concerns since some of us don't see an immediate impact, but as Kootenai County Commissioner Leslie Duncan told the Coeur d'Alene/Post Falls Press, a growing community can present some serious issues.

“As our county continues to develop and grow, the risk of contamination or degradation to the aquifer increases," Duncan said.

"Education is key to newcomers on how development impacts the aquifer. We must commit ourselves to the aquifer’s protection to preserve our current quality of life, as well as the value of our individual properties.”

What other areas do you think are being impacted by Idaho newcomers? Share your thoughts with us here.