DWR Currents

May 25, 2010


Big Blue River Compact Annual Meeting: Comity in Motion
Kansas’ newest compact, just 39 years old, does not receive much press.  And that is a good thing because it reflects a refreshing lack of controversy.

Kansas is a party to four interstate river compacts:

• Republican River Compact (1943) between Kansas, Colorado, and Nebraska
• Arkansas River Compact (1949) between Kansas and Colorado
• Kansas-Oklahoma Arkansas River Compact (1966)
• Big Blue River Compact (1971) between Kansas and Nebraska

The first two compacts listed above have received significant press in recent years due to disagreements between states that led to the ongoing arbitrations and lawsuit over Republican River Compact noncompliance by Nebraska and Colorado, and the recently concluded litigation over Arkansas River Compact noncompliance by Colorado.

Newest compact of the bunch, the Big Blue River Compact receives relatively little media attention.  And little wonder, because Nebraska has been in compliance with the Big Blue River Compact since the beginning and through the Compact the two states have been working cooperatively to address water quality concerns.

Right: Big Blue River at Rocky Ford in Riley County, Kansas (photo courtesy of Kansas Geological Survey).

The Big Blue River Compact states the following purposes:

• To promote interstate comity between the states of Nebraska and Kansas
• To achieve an equitable apportionment of the waters of the Big Blue River basin between the two states and to promote orderly development thereof
• To encourage continuation of the active pollution-abatement programs in each of the two states and to seek further reduction in both natural and manmade pollution of the waters of the Big Blue River basin

In the context of this compact, “to promote interstate comity” means “to promote good relations between the states with regard to water issues”.  One of the main ways this is achieved is through the Big Blue River Compact annual meeting.  The states take turns hosting the annual meeting two years at a time.  This year, as in 2009, Nebraska hosted the meeting in Beatrice.  Kansas will host in 2011 and 2012.

Most of the annual meeting consists of reports by the compact commissioners and their staffs, along with reports of the several committees and cooperating agencies.  Examples of the information shared between states at the 2010 annual meeting are provided by Chief Engineer/ Compact Commissioner David Barfield’s and Water Commissioner Katie Tietsort’s reports, summarized below:

• Chief Engineer’s report covered the following topics: administration change (new Secretary of Agriculture); state budget; new legislation; new/amended regulations; compact litigation (Arkansas River and Republican River compacts); news from Big Blue River Compact area in Kansas; committee assignments; and proposed meeting date and location for 2011. Click here for the complete report.

• Water Commissioner’s report covered the following topics: climate conditions; minimum desirable streamflow; streamflow conditions; new wells; field office relocation; metering; over-pumping compliance program; Tuttle Creek Dam project; and Trans Canada Keystone Pipeline project. Click here for the complete report.

The Big Blue River Compact may be prone to less contentiousness for several reasons:

• The basin is smaller: 9,549 square miles as opposed to 47,774 square miles for the Arkansas River compact and 24,785 square miles for the Republican River compact.
• It occurs in the eastern part of Kansas and Nebraska where precipitation and river flows are generally more plentiful
• The compact’s regulatory obligations are clearer.  The Compact calls for specific action based on target flows set forth in the Compact as opposed to the more complex apportionment and accounting procedures for the Arkansas River and Republican River compacts.

Click here for more information about the Big Blue River Compact.


Chief Participates in May 13-14 Kansas Water Authority Meeting
As an ex officio member of the Kansas Water Authority, Chief Engineer David Barfield regularly participates in Authority meetings which occur several times per year at various locations in Kansas.

In addition to providing a useful forum for state agencies to share information with each other and the attending public, the Kansas Water Authority has the following responsibilities:

• Advising the governor, the legislature, and the director of the Kansas Water Office on water policy issues, state water plan budget, and legislation
• Approving the Kansas Water Plan and revisions
• Approving water pricing and contracts with water marketing customers
• Approving federal contracts with the Kansas Water Office
• Approving regulations administered by the Kansas Water Office
• Approving water conservation plan guidelines and practices

Click here for more information about the Kansas Water Authority.

Agenda topics for the May 13-14 meeting included: sediment baseline study above Perry Reservoir; contracts for sediment monitoring, streamgaging, and weather modification; proposal for agreement with Corps of Engineers for federal liaison to Kansas; public water supply committee report; 2011 legislative/congressional issues; 2012 budget; Kansas Water Plan updates; Lower Smoky Hill River update/policy; capital development and storage maintenance plan; carbon capture and storage; and more.  Click here for more the meeting agenda and related documents.

Right: File photo of David Barfield at November 2009 KWA meeting in Liberal (photo courtesy of Southwest Times).

In addition to working with fellow members of the Authority on other meeting agenda items, Barfield reported on a number of DWR activities and initiatives including:

• Republican River Compact issues
• Senate Bill 510, conservation use
• Amended regulations
• Efforts to quantify Ozark aquifer safe yield
• And more

Click here for Barfield’s complete report.


Please Make Appointments before Visiting DWR Field Offices
Like many state agencies, budget cuts have forced us to reduce our staff resources.  During the summer months, when staff are performing work in the field, we may not have someone in the office to help walk-in customers.  Please help us make the best use of our staff resources and call ahead for an appointment.

We are also mindful of the fact that water right holders and others who visit DWR field offices for assistance are busy too, and making an appointment for your visit will ensure that you receive prompt attention from qualified staff.

Click here for DWR field office locations and contact information.


DWR Team Participates in National Floodplain Management Conference
Federal grant funds enabled Tom Morey, Andy Megrail, Steve Samuelson, and Alicia Benson – collectively DWR’s Floodplain Management Team – to attend the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM) 34th annual national conference in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, May 16 through 21.   The largest organization of floodplain management professionals in the world, ASFPM represents 14,000 flood hazard reduction practitioners and 29 State Chapters throughout the U.S. and beyond.

Right: Image courtesy of ASFPM.

This is the premiere flood management training event in the country, and this year’s theme, “Building Blocks of Floodplain Management,” provided more than 1,200 government and private professionals with techniques to reduce flooding and its effects before floodwaters rise, the surest and most effective option for reducing flood losses.  Every state in the U.S., along with many foreign countries, sent their floodplain managers and planners from all levels of government, along with engineers, consultants, researchers, academia, insurance, and non-profit organization experts.  Topics included floodplain mapping, flood mitigation, response and recovery, climate change, local success stories, watershed management, flood-proofing techniques, arid region issues, flood insurance, and much more.

Keynote speakers included FEMA Administrator, Craig Fugate; White House Council on Environmental Quality Director, Nancy Sutley; EPA Administrator, Lisa Jackson; U.S. Assistant Secretary for the Army, Jo Ellen Darcy; U.S. Geological Survey Director, Marcia McNutt; University of Colorado Professor Emeritus, Dennis Mileti; and other experts who manage risk to humans and floodplain resources.

As part of Kansas’s Map Modernization Maintenance and Support (MMMS) cooperative agreement, federal grant funds are provided as scholarships to local floodplain managers to help offset costs for their attendance at the conference.  This year scholarships were given to officials from 10 different communities across the state.  In addition, officials from four other Kansas communities attended the conference.

As Chair of the ASFPM Certification Board of Regents, Tom Morey of DWR gave an update of the Board’s activities over the past year.  Morey also presented a workshop with Rhonda Montgomery, a former DWR employee now working for FEMA Headquarters in Washington, DC, to local floodplain managers on what to expect during an audit of the communities’ floodplain management activities.

Click here for more information about floodplain management in Kansas.


Upcoming Events

• May 27: REAP Regional Water Conference (El Dorado)
• June 3: GMD 4 Board Meeting (Colby)
• June 8: GMD 2 Board Meeting (Halstead)
• June 10: GMD 3 Board Meeting (Garden City) ***New Date***
• June 10: GMD 5 Board Meeting (Stafford) - Canceled

For more information about these and other upcoming events, please check our online events listings.