January 1998 Kansas Water Levels and Data Related to Water-Level Changes

Abstract

Water levels measured in January 1998 generally showed more rises and fewer declines in region I (southwest), a very slight tendency toward water-level rise in region II (west-central), a tendency toward decline in region III (northwest), and a rather strong tendency toward water-level rise in region V (south-central). The 1998 measurements showed an average water-level rise of 0.15 ft (4.6 cm) over the 1997 measurements compared to an average rise of 0.06 ft (1.8 cm) during the 1996–97 period. The overall pattern of increasing water-level decline in region III may be the result of increased pumpage since the 1997 measurements. The strong pattern of increasing water-level rise in the central and eastern portions of region V is probably caused by increased recharge from precipitation in 1997. The single largest rise in water level was 25.3 ft (7.71 m), and the largest decline was 30.2 ft (9.20 m) for the wells in this report. Annual water-level rises outnumbered declines 51% to 48%, contrasted with 53% declines and 47% rises in the 1997 report. Regional breakdowns of the data indicate that more areas experienced rising water levels and that fewer areas experienced declining water levels in region I. Region II showed fewer areas with declines and fewer areas with rises greater than 1 ft (0.3 m), while showing a slight overall trend of water-level rise. Region III generally showed more areas with water-level declines throughout except in the central part of the region where water-level rises were generally observed. In region V, where the water table is relatively shallow, a marked increase in the total area of water-level rise and a marked decrease in the total area of water-level decline were observed. Most of the areas of decline were in the far northwestern, western, and southwestern portions of the region.