Western Groundwater Law And Resource Challenges

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Western Groundwater Law And Resource Challenges
David L. Pope, Chief Engineer Division of Water
Resources, Kansas Department of Agriculture
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Aquifers Of Kansas
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Points of Diversion in Kansas
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Law And Regulatory Framework

• Pre 1945, Common Law for GW, Vested Rights
  determined/quantified
• Since 1945, Prior Appropriation Doctrine for both
  surface and groundwater
• consider impact of GW use on streamflow, one
  priority system

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Law And Regulatory Framework

• All water dedicated to public use, subject to
  regulation by the State
• First in time is first in right
• Rights established through permit system and
  perfected through actual use
• Allocations limited to reasonable needs
• Priority, quantity, rate, acres, location
• Waste unlawful

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Law And Regulatory Framework

• Permits granted if will not impair prior rights
  or prejudicially or unreasonably effect the
  public interest
• DWR adopts state-wide regulations and rules
  recommended by GMD for specific district, such as
  well spacing and other criteria for appropriation
  and use
• Based on current criteria, entire State closed to
  new permits or subject to safe yield for new uses
• Use by junior rights shall not impair senior
  rights
• Depletion allowed in some areas in past

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Groundwater Management Districts

• Local units of government, called groundwater
  management districts, provide groundwater
  management, planning, and information
• Five groundwater management districts were
  created in the 1970s in the western and central
  parts of Kansas
• The primary use of ground water in these areas is
  irrigation, although several districts also face
  issues of municipal supply
• The districts are governed by local boards and
  have been instrumental in providing information
  and identifying research and regulatory needs
  within their boundaries

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Groundwater Management Areas
Northwest Kansas Groundwater Management District
No. 4
Western Kansas Groundwater Management District
No. 1
Equus Beds Groundwater Management District No. 2
Big Bend Groundwater Management District No. 5
Southwest Kansas Groundwater Management District
No. 3
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Closed and Restricted Areas
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Law And Regulatory Framework

• Replacement wells allowed for if meet spacing and
  move normally within ½ mile
• Limits on expansion of new land
• New uses can be met by acquiring existing rights
  and seeking approval for a change in purpose of
  use. Limited to historic CU.

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Law And Regulatory Framework

• Annual water use report required
• New and replacement wells metered since 1980s,
  plus all wells in some areas
• Enforcement efforts by state and GMDs to prevent
  use over permit amount and waste
• Management programs to deal with historic
  depletion or effects of GW use on streamflow

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Intensive Groundwater Use Control Areas In Kansas

• Intensive Groundwater Use Control Areas (IGUCA)
  are established when
• A groundwater management district recommends an
  IGUCA
• Petition by eligible voters of a GMD
• The chief engineer may initiate such proceedings
  within the area in question for one of the
  following reasons
• Groundwater levels are declining or have
  declined excessively
• The rate of withdrawal of groundwater equals or
  exceeds the rate of recharge
• Preventable waste of water is occurring or may
  occur
• Other conditions exist which require regulation
  in the public interest

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Ogallala-High Plains Facts

• The High Plains aquifer underlies much of
  western and central Kansas, and portions of South
  Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska, Colorado, Oklahoma,
  New Mexico, and Texas
• The aquifer is the shallowest and most abundant
  source of water in the region, which is why the
  economy of the area depends upon it for irrigated
  agriculture
• In Kansas, groundwater flow is generally west to
  east, at an average of 1 foot/day, with some
  natural discharge to streams and springs or
  directly through atmospheric evapotranspiration
• Recharge rates vary from about 1/4 inch/year in
  Western Kansas to 6 inches in south-central Kansas

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Percent Change High Plains Aquifer in Kansas
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As outlined in the State Water Plan, Groundwater
Management Districts 1,3 and 4, and Division of
Water Resources are to develop protocols with the
following criteria
Ogallala Sub-basin Water Resources Management
Program Protocol Criteria
1.) Delineate the Ogallala Aquifer into aquifer
subunits to allow management decisions in areas
of similar aquifer characteristics 2.) The
Groundwater Management Districts and the DWR
Sub-basin Water Resource Management Program
should identify each aquifer subunit in decline
or suspected decline and establish water-use
goals to extend and conserve the life of the
Ogallala Aquifer 3.) Identify aquifer subunit
priorities to extend the life of the aquifer and
sustain the vitality of western
Kansas 4.) Support and expand programs and
activities to extend and conserve the life of the
Ogallala Aquifer 5.) Support and expand research
and education on the Ogallala to extend and
conserve the life of the aquifer
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Depletion of the High Plains Aquifer
Estimated usable lifetime for the High Plains
Aquifer in Kansas based on ground water trends
from 1991 to 2001 and the minimum required
saturated thickness required to support well
yields at 400 gpm under a scenario of 90 days of
pumping with wells on ¼ section.
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Cluster Analysis Example Using Change in Water
Table and Reported Groundwater Use
This figure is from the Kansas Geological Survey
report, Open File Report Series 2002-25
Technical Support for Ogallala Aquifer
Assessment, Planning, and Management