Water Management Services
The Water Management Services program conducts a variety of administrative and technical activities related to water resource issues. The program's work is grouped in functional areas:
Administration: The chief engineer is the director of the Division of Water Resources, which is composed of three programs: Water Appropriation, Water Structures and Water Management Services. Together with the assistant chief engineer and senior administrative specialist, the chief engineer performs the following functions:
- Provides leadership, management and coordination of the water programs
- Administers 31 sets of statutes and regulations covering an array of water resource issues
- Develops policy and regulations, and addresses legislative matters
- Advises the secretary of agriculture and the governor's natural resources subcabinet team
- Issues, or delegates authority for issuing, water appropriation and water structures permits and certificates
- Conducts administrative hearings and issues orders
- Coordinates with other state agencies, local units of government, the five groundwater management districts, other districts and organizations
- Serves on the four interstate compact commissions, as well as a number of other commissions and organizations, including the
Kansas Water Authority, State Conservation Commission, Missouri River Association of States and Tribes and Western States Water Council
Interstate Water Issues: The chief engineer represents Kansas on four interstate compacts relating to the apportionment of waters in rivers that flow through Kansas and one or more neighboring states. These compacts are:
- Republican River Compact (Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska)
- Arkansas River Compact (Kansas and Colorado)
- Kansas-Oklahoma Arkansas River Compact
- Big Blue River Compact (Kansas and Nebraska)
The interstate water issues staff help the chief engineer in highly technical data collection, analysis and modeling to determine whether Kansas and neighboring states are complying with compact terms and whether actions are needed. The chief engineer also serves as Kansas' representative to the Missouri River Recovery Implementation Committee; alternate Kansas representative to the Missouri River Association of States and Tribes; and Kansas' lead member in the Western States Water Council.
Technical Services: Technical services staff perform a wide variety of analytical and administrative tasks:
- Monitor and help administer minimum desirable streamflow
- Help administer the Big Blue River Compact and Kansas-Oklahoma Arkansas River Compact
- Help administer the Water Assurance Program Act
- Review and certify flowmeters to conform with rules and regulations
- Provide technical assistance to the chief engineer in administrative hearings and intensive groundwater use control area hearings
- Conduct impairment investigations
- Respond to environmental notification letters
- Review water conservation plans required of applicants for new permits or certain changes to existing water rights to ensure they are consistent with approved guidelines
- Help review complex water appropriation applications
- Perform complex database queries and data analysis
- Provide other technical assistance to help the agency fulfill its missions
Basin Management Team: Analyzes aquifers and stream systems in areas identified by the State Water Plan, and works with stakeholders to develop and assess strategies for protecting water rights and improving sustainability of water resources. Current project areas include:
- Upper Arkansas River Subbasin
- Middle Arkansas River Subbasin
- Rattlesnake Creek Subbasin
- Solomon River Basin
- Pawnee-Buckner-Sawlog Subbasin
- Ogallala-High Plains aquifer
- Ozark Plateau aquifers
The team also participates in annual groundwater data collection to monitoring Ogallala-High Plains aquifer levels.
Operations and Data Management: The operations section is responsible for managing administrative activities, including:
- Staffing
- Budget development
- Procurement
- Contracts
- Facilities management
- Inventory
- Data management
- Database programming and analysis
The data management team maintains the Water Rights Information System and the Water Structures Inventory databases. They are essential for the Water Appropriation program and Water Structures program to track applications and permits, make informed decisions related to program responsibilities, and to make timely and accurate responses to open record requests and other inquiries. The data management team is also responsible for the annual data entry and quality control of nearly 15,000 water use reports for more than 30,000 active water rights, and for helping all water programs with various administrative tasks.