System and Method for Storing Water in an Underground Reservoir and Managing the Same
First Claim
1. A method for storing groundwater comprising the following steps:
- identifying a subsurface aquifer located beneath a developed parcel of land, the developed parcel of land having a ground surface at a base elevation, wherein the subsurface aquiver comprises a porous and permeable layer located at a first elevation;
storing water in a surface water storage facility located at a first location remote from the developed parcel of land;
conveying water through a piping system into the subsurface aquifer, wherein the piping system connects the surface water storage facility and the subsurface aquifer, the piping system comprising an array of conduit members, each conduit member having an outlet into the subsurface aquifer;
conveying water through the piping system into the subsurface aquifer; and
measuring the volume of water conveyed through the piping system to calculate a groundwater recharge credit from the total volume of water banked in the aquifer.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A water storage and management system takes water from a water source, such as captured run-off, and through a piping system, directs a flow of the water into an aquifer for storage and future utilization. Using moisture detectors, the system ascertains the water content of different layers or zones of the aquifer and reports this information to a digital processor. The digital processor may utilize this information to issue instructions to one or more control valves to direct the flow of the water into portions of the aquifer which have additional storage capacity. The digital processor may also instruct a submersible pump to withdraw from the aquifer as desired. This system is utilized in a method of banking groundwater from a remove location. Such groundwater storage may result in receipt of groundwater recharge credits.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method for storing groundwater comprising the following steps:
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identifying a subsurface aquifer located beneath a developed parcel of land, the developed parcel of land having a ground surface at a base elevation, wherein the subsurface aquiver comprises a porous and permeable layer located at a first elevation; storing water in a surface water storage facility located at a first location remote from the developed parcel of land; conveying water through a piping system into the subsurface aquifer, wherein the piping system connects the surface water storage facility and the subsurface aquifer, the piping system comprising an array of conduit members, each conduit member having an outlet into the subsurface aquifer; conveying water through the piping system into the subsurface aquifer; and measuring the volume of water conveyed through the piping system to calculate a groundwater recharge credit from the total volume of water banked in the aquifer. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A method for obtaining a groundwater recharge credit comprising the following steps:
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accepting a volume of surface water from a third party, the third party being either a water district or a private landowner. transferring the volume of surface water through a piping system into a subsurface aquifer, the subsurface aquifer comprising a porous and permeable layer located at a first elevation, the subsurface aquifer located beneath a developed parcel of land, the developed parcel of land having a ground surface at a base elevation, the piping system comprising an array of conduit members, each conduit member having an outlet into the subsurface aquifer; measuring the volume of water conveyed into the subsurface aquifer to ascertain a volume of banked groundwater; and calculating the groundwater recharge credit from the volume of banked groundwater. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method for storing groundwater comprising the following steps:
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transporting a volume of water from a remote location to a developed parcel of land comprising a subsurface aquifer, the subsurface aquifer comprising a plurality of layers; transferring a portion of the volume of water through a piping system into the subsurface aquifer, the piping system comprising an array of conduit members each having an outlet disposed into the subsurface aquifer; monitoring a moisture level within an upper layer of the plurality of layers until a presence of moisture is detected; and diverting any remaining water of the volume of water into an overflow reservoir.
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Specification