Charles Vernon "C.V." Theis

C.V. Theis, a pioneering U.S. Geological Survey hydrogeologist, was stationed in Amarillo in 1933 and 1934, during his early studies of the behavior of the Ogallala and aquifers more generally. In 1935, he published the revolutionary Theis Equation, proving mathematically, using analogies from heat flow, that any water pumped from a well must be balanced by a decline in the aquifer’s storage (a drop in water levels), a decrease in natural discharges (a fall in spring flows), or an increase in recharge. He showed that the High Plains region was essentially mining groundwater from the Ogallala, overthrowing the earlier assumption that pumped water would merely be replaced with more water flowing in. Through his work, scientists could, for the first time, quantify how pumping affects aquifer water levels through time and space, enabling conservation, forecasting, and sustainable planning across the High Plains.