Vast Aquifer Discovered in Oregon’s Cascades: Blessing for Water Supply, Risk for Volcanic Activity

University of Oregon scientists have discovered a huge aquifer beneath volcanic rocks in the Cascades that could favorably impact water supplies to consumers during drought and other extreme weather conditions.

More Than Four Times the Size of Crater Lake

The UO scientists say the aquifer could be the largest in the U.S. with its storage capacity of at least 81 cubic kilometers – more than four times the size of Crater Lake with its 18.7 cubic kilometers of water.

Volcanic Eruptions Could Increase

A more sobering aspect of the discovery is that volcanic eruptions in the area could increase because of the explosive reaction of magma to large volumes of water.

University researchers describe the aquifer as a large water tower near the Santiam Pass on top of the Cascades.

The discovery was made when a team from the UO, together with other university scientists, the U.S. Geological Survey, and the U.S. Forest Service, set out to study water flow through the volcanic landscape.

Scientists were able to assess the size of the underground reservoir by using drill holes from the 1980s and 1990s to explore the geothermal energy resources and establish how deeply water was infiltrating through cracks in volcanic rock formations.

The underground reservoir could be larger than that revealed by the research teams because the drill holes are restricted to a small area.

At this stage, it is unclear to what extent the aquifer will help water shortages in the state because the volume of the underground water supply depends on snowpacks, forecast to decrease as climate changes affect weather patterns.