Pumping and injection tests were conducted during a 1981-83 pilot study of the Hueco bolson recharge project in northeast El Paso. Water-level decline and buildup were measured in a recharge well and an observation well. The specific capacity of the recharge well during the October 1982 injection test was 18.3 gallons per minute per foot after 22.5 hours. The recharge well was redeveloped in June 1983. The specific capacity during the final pumping test of the pilot study was 27.5 gallons per minute per foot after 24.5 hours, compared to 35.8 gallons per minute per foot after 24 hours during"the May 1981 pre-injection pumping test.
During the initial 5 years (1985-89) of operation of the Hueco bolson recharge project, water levels in the observation well were measured, and concentrations of selected water-quality constituents were determined. Water levels in six production wells located 0.25 to 0.6 mile from the injection wells of the recharge project declined at a rate of about 2 feet per year prior to 1985. Since 1980, water-level measurements indicate that the effects of pumping and recharge are approaching equilibrium.