DWR Currents

February 15, 2010


Water Use Reports due March 1
Two weeks remain for Kansas water use correspondents to report their 2009 water use by the March 1 deadline.  Reports postmarked on or before March 1 will be considered on time.  Late reports will be subject to fines.  The fines will increase after June 1.  So please, be sure to get your reports in on time.

DWR field staff are available to answer questions about water use reports.  The field office locations and telephone numbers are provided below, and each location includes an embedded link to an online location map:

Garden City: 2508 Johns Street / 620-276-2901
Parsons: 300 N. 17th Street / 620-421-2697
Stafford: 300 S. Main Street / 620-234-5311
Stockton: 820 S. Walnut Street / 785-425-6787
Topeka: Building 282, Forbes Field / 785-862-6300

DWR headquarters staff are also available to answer questions about water use reports, call (785) 296-1054.

To date approximately 4,900 (35 percent) of the 2009 water use reports have been received by DWR.  It is typical for the bulk of reports to be received in the second half of February.

Staff reviews water use reports as they are received.  Staff then enters the data into the Water Rights Information System (WRIS) database.  Any errors identified during the review are flagged for follow-up and correction.

Due to budget cuts there are vacancies in two of the four DWR data entry positions.  To compensate for this several other Department of Agriculture staff have been trained and are assisting with the water use data entry on a part-time basis during this period.

It is important for data to be received and entered in a timely manner as this information is used for many purposes including water right certification, compliance and enforcement, analysis and planning, etc.  Timely reporting is also essential for Kansas to comply with the April 15 Republican River Compact data exchange deadline.

More information about water use in Kansas is available on DWR’s water use webpage.


Legislature Considering Water Issues
The following water resources bills are scheduled for hearings or anticipated action this week:

  • SB 510 (conservation as a beneficial use of water) – Senate Bill 510 would establish “conservation use” as a new and distinct beneficial use of water under the Kansas Water Appropriation Act.  The owner of a vested or certified water right that has not been abandoned would have the option of changing the water right to conservation use, and subsequently the option of changing the water right from conservation use to another use.  Diversion of water would be prohibited by a water right while the right is authorized for conservation use.  Water rights in conservation use would be protected from abandonment.  More information about the bill is posted on the DWR website under “News”.  The Senate Committee on Natural Resources has scheduled a hearing on this bill February 17.
  • HB 2565 (nonuse in closed areas) – House Bill 2565 would amend K.S.A. 82a-718 to establish that “...a groundwater right, which has as its local supply an aquifer area that has been closed to new appropriations by the chief engineer and where a well is lawfully maintained, shall be deemed to have due and sufficient cause for nonuse and shall not be deemed abandoned.”  The House Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources conducted a hearing on the bill on February 11.  Kansas Department of Agriculture, Kansas Livestock Association, Kansas Association of Aggregate Producers, and groundwater management districts testified in favor of the bill, although there was some disagreement over the exact wording.  Most conferees also expressed interest in adding the provisions of SB 510 to HB 2565.  Subsequently a meeting of conferees was held and it is anticipated that an amended version of the bill will be considered by the Committee this week.

The text and status of bills are available on the Kansas Legislature’s website.


John Martin Reservoir Operating Plan Updated
At a Special Meeting of the Arkansas River Compact Administration on February 11, Kansas and Colorado agreed to a set of revisions to the Resolution Concerning an Operating Plan for John Martin Reservoir ("1980 Operating Plan").  Kansas Chief Engineer and Compact Commissioner David Barfield read a statement summarizing the history of these revisions into the record.

The revisions were developed to stipulate accounting procedures and to clarify proper interpretations of the plan.  The revisions incorporated changes approved by the compact administration at previous meetings over the past several years.

John Martin Reservoir is located in southeastern Colorado and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  Under the compact, some water is stored in the reservoir for releases to Kansas upon request.


Kansas Dam Safety Conference Draws a Crowd
February 8 through 10, DWR hosted the annual Kansas Dam Safety Conference in Hutchinson.  Approximately 140 individuals attended the conference which included one and a half days of presentations on dam safety issues, a single day session on emergency action plans (EAPs), and a day session on obstructions in streams and levees all running simultaneously.  Forty people attended the session on EAPs.  A tour to the Wichita Aquifer Storage and Recovery project was another option for attendees.  Thanks to all who participated to make the conference a success.


Chief Engineer Joins Twitter
David Barfield, Chief Engineer of the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s Division of Water Resources has started a Twitter account at KSChiefEngineer.  This will facilitate timely communication of important matters between newsletter issues.  It also provides the opportunity to receive communications from other Twitter users that the chief engineer is following.


Upcoming Events

  • Feb. 17: Basics of National Flood Insurance Program training (Topeka)
  • Feb. 18: Certified Floodplain Manager test review (Topeka)
  • Apr. 6: Basics of National Flood Insurance Program training (Belleville)
  • Apr. 7: Hearings on proposed amendments to water appropriation regulations in Topeka, with teleconference stations at Garden City, Halstead, Stafford, and Stockton
  • Apr. 20-23: Culvert, Drainage & Levee Maintenance workshop (TBD)
  • Apr. 21: Hearing on proposed water bank regulation amendment (Topeka)
  • May 6: Substantial Damage Estimation class (Lyons)


For more information about these and other upcoming events, please check our events listings at www.ksda.gov/dwr/events.

Kansas Department of Agriculture