Beginning early next month Kansas Geological Survey crews will begin studying almost 600 Kansas wells. The research is part of an effort to measure changes in groundwater levels, reports KAKE.
The study is conducted annually in western and central Kansas. In addition to the geological survey, the Kansas Department of Agriculture's Division of Water Resources will measure about 830 wells. 90 percent of the wells to be measured draw water from the massive High Plains aquifer system. This system consists largely of the beleaguered Ogallala aquifer. The remaining 10 percent of wells are drilled into the Dakota aquifer and other deeper systems or shallow aquifers along creeks and rivers.
Water levels in the Kansas network of wells declined an average of almost a foot during 2014.
