Virginia's Aquifer Recharge Gamble | Virginia Beach News

Virginia’s drought relief is hitting a snag: rain isn’t refilling the critical Potomac aquifer, which only gets water from rare events like the shutdown of a paper mill in 2010. Now that mill’s back online, levels are dropping again. To combat this, the state’s launching a $billions SWIFT project—treating wastewater to drinking standards and injecting it underground to boost aquifer levels via pressure. But here’s the catch: those who pay for it don’t own the water yet, and lawmakers must decide how to allocate rights—with human use first, then “first come, first served”—while data centers eye the aquifer and critics demand reforms before injections begin this fall. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/61271aa1a145aae5