Let me start off by saying that I don't know the first thing about drilling, and selling water. Not a lot of that goes on in Indiana. But I am very curious as to how such an arrangement would work.
Are you under any obligation to sell them your water, or is it strictly voluntary on the part of the landowner? Do you have a reason for wanting to stay on their good side? Do you stand to gain anything other than the price paid to you for your water?
My reason for asking is this: according to my math, if you were to sell water at 10 cents a barrel, and made $2000.00, then they will have removed 1,100,000 gallons from your pond. On a 1.5 acre BOW, that will drop the depth by over 2 feet, exposing a lot of shoreline.
If I were under no obligation to sell them the water, there is no way I would let it go that cheap, if I would even sell it at all. Which, under the drought circumstances you spoke of, would not be very likely.
Also, besides doing the math and computing the area of exposed shoreline to get a rough idea, how do you know how much water they take? Do you take their word on it, or is it metered somehow? Seems like an arrangement that would benefit the company far more than the pond owner.
On a different note, with two limited reproducing species such as CC and HBG as the primary forage for your LMB, I would think the bass might be a little on the thin side. If you don't mind me asking, what are your management goals, and how is it working out?
Well, here's what I have in mind. I plan on enlarging the pond. I also plan on clearing it. It looks like watered down tomato soup. I told the drilling company to take all the red water, but leave the clear. LOL! Sorry, I've had a beer or two tonight. The pond is down about 5 ft., but still has a hole that's 13 ft. deep. I'd like to drop the level even more, dredge the bottom and level out the deep spots so that it isn't deeper than 12 ft. when bank full. I plan on putting rip-rap along the dam and place Bermuda sod on top of the dam. I want to gravel the bottom and place sod wherever runoff is an issue as to not silt in the pond with more red clay. I'd also like to dig down to the spring that oozes water into the pond and get it dumping at least 500 gallons a day vs. a few gallons a day. The pond has no structure so I plan on sinking/anchoring some red cedars. I may place some larger boulders in some spots for more structure....... I've been holding off on a lot of expense until I get my Farm Tax ID #. I got that in the mail yesterday and this will save me money on my investments in my land and pond. I pay no tax for anything farm related. This includes alum, hydrated lime, rock, fish food, fish etc........ I'm working on a contract with West Star Drilling right now. They took out 12,500 barrels(42 gallons)when they initially drilled. This second need for water was used for hydro-fracking the well. It required 60,000 barrels, much more water and my pond wouldn't support their needs. They want to dredge the pond, drill a water well, and keep my pond bank full for future needs. They said they'd take care of stocking the fish, too. I have 40 acres here and am retired, at the age of 54. My goal is to serve the needs of the drilling company while maintaining an aesthetically pleasing/appealing pond for my kids and grandchildren when they come to visit. I want fish so I can eat some from time to time......Oh, and another issue is runoff during rains. If I get an inch of rain, the pond rises just a tad over that, maybe two inches max. If I drill a water well, this wouldn't be an issue, but I believe I need more runoff anyway..... There is no vegetation in the pond and this is also a concern that needs to be addressed. No matter how I look at it, I've got a lot of homework, negotiations, and work ahead of me. Again, I'm thankful for finding this site and will get deeper involved and donate in the future. Right now I have my hands full with construction of a house, a tornado shelter, a pole barn, and a "Man Cave", to get away from my Okie, squaw bride when she's on the warpath! LOL! Thanks for your interest and input.......
