CPASA Applauds Supreme Court Decision on Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer

Tishomingo, OK – The Oklahoma Supreme Court on Tuesday denied a last ditch request to re-hear an appeal from the Oklahoma Water Resources Board’s Final Order determining the maximum annual yield for the Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer. The Court’s decision effectively upholds the OWRB’s Final Order.

“We’re elated in the Supreme Court’s decision,” said Amy Anne Ford, President of Citizens for the Protection of the Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer. “Those of us in South-Central Oklahoma have been fighting this fight for fifteen years against large outside interests, in true David and Goliath fashion, because we understand that having flows from the Arbuckle-Simpson continue is vital to our economic growth.”

“When you look at where we are now, with all that’s going on in Ada, Ardmore, Durant, Sulphur, Tishomingo and all the communities in our area bringing in new jobs and industries,” Ford said, “we can all point back to our ability to ensure a reliable water supply as a critical component of that growth.”

While the efforts to protect the Arbuckle-Simpson have been challenged every step of the way by large state-wide interests, today’s ruling ultimately upheld the protections put in place by the provisions of Senate Bill 288. Passed by the Oklahoma Legislature in 2003, SB288 required the Oklahoma Water Resources Board to set a sustainable maximum annual yield for the Arbuckle-Simpson Aquifer that protects springs and streams from excessive groundwater pumping.

“Last month we lost Ray Lokey, one of our earliest and most vocal supporters.” Ford said. “While we still have many ongoing challenges with some of the mining interests in the area, it’s nice to see the SB288 issue finally resolved before we lose another.”