Maderas Looks to Use Groundwater Again; Poway Residents Upset

After two years of being denied groundwater, Maderas Golf Course is asking the City of Poway to modify its water permit in order to save costs, the U-T San Diego reported.

According to the paper, Maderas may go before City Council on July 16 to discuss the modification, which will allow the golf course to draw water from its wells, which may affect residents of the Old Coach neighborhood.

Since August 2011, the golf course has had to use raw water from Lake Poway to irrigate its course, according to the U-T.

At the June 18 City Council meeting, Old Coach resident Tom Moore told officials that the possible modification could impact his well and his neighbors' wells—their only source of water for their homes.

Barry Leonard, who does community relations for Green Valley Civic Association, was also concerned that if Maderas started pumping groundwater to maintain their course, other well water supplies "could be exhausted," and thought the council should focus on "sustainability" for the Old Coach residents. 

Leonard said Dudek, the third-party company hired by the city to do underground water studies, "did not determine the recharge rate to make sure the water is refilling once it’s taken."

”We feel a sustainability report is necessary,” Leonard said.

According to the U-T, Maderas could save $300,00 to $500,000 annually if allowed to use its wells.

Read more about the Maderas Golf Course water debate at the U-T.