January 1997 Kansas Water Levels and Data Related to Water-Level Changes

Abstract

Water levels measured in January 1997 generally showed more increases and fewer declines in the western regions (I, II, and III), while in the south-central region (V), 1997 water-level changes generally mirrored the pattern of annual precipitation during 1996. The 1997 measurements showed an average water-level rise of 0.06 ft (1.8 cm) over the 1996 measurements, compared to an average decline of 0.5 ft (15 cm) during the 1995–1996 period. The overall pattern of rising water levels is probably a result of increased recharge and decreased pumpage in the western regions and in the western portion of the south-central region since the 1996 measurements. The single largest rise in water level was 20.0 ft (6.10 m), and the largest decline was 23.1 ft (7.04 m). Annual water-level rises outnumbered declines 53% to 47% for wells in this report, compared to 54% declines and 46% rises in the 1996 report. Regional breakdowns of the data indicate an increase in the areas that experienced rising water levels in the western regions I and II. Region III showed more areas with water-level declines in the western part of the region and more areas with water-level rises in the eastern part of the region. In region V, the water table is relatively shallow. In most of the western counties of this region, rising water levels correlate with increases in annual precipitation during 1996. In contrast, water-level declines are more prevalent in the eastern counties and correlate with decreases in annual precipitation during 1996. Small areas of sharp decline seem to indicate localized areas of increased irrigation pumpage. In the remainder of the state (regions IV, VI, VII, and VIII), the water-level data are too sparse to lend themselves to regional analysis.