By BECKY KISER
Hays Post
The cities of Hays and Russell plan to ask the Kansas Water Office for two separate releases of water from Cedar Bluff Reservoir in Trego County to recharge their Smoky Hill River wellfields in Ellis County.
The last time such requests were made was in 2013. Hays' request dropped the lake level about 4.7 inches.
Hays asked for 1,200 acre feet which took five days to reach the Hays wellfield and saturate the aquifer. The Russell release followed and was also effective.
"The wellfield is now depleted and we're looking at going into a dry spring and summer. And we know this alluvial aquifer depletes very quickly," Hays City Manager Toby Dougherty said at Thursday's city commission work session.
Russell city council members discussed a similar water release request at their meeting Tuesday.
Russell owns water rights in Cedar Bluff. Hays does not, but has the ability to ask for a water release through an operations agreement with the state of Kansas.
The state owns the Cedar Bluff artificial recharge pool with up to 5,100 acre feet available for recharge of the Smoky Hill River aquifer, including the Hays wellfield.
Cedar Bluff is filled to about 60% of its capacity, according to Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks.
All of Ellis County has been in moderate drought for awhile, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor for Kansas. Drought conditions for the western two-thirds of the state will persist or develop through June 30, 2025, in the most recent U.S. seasonal outlook from the NOAA Climate Prediction Center.
"Not good news for the future," Dougherty said. "Things are getting worse."
Since 2022, water levels in the Smoky Hill River wellfield south of Hays near Schoenchen have been declining.
"There's a little bit of a current bump but that will go down and hit rock bottom as the trees start coming out of dormancy," Dougherty said.
"The moisture we got Wednesday (0.40 inch) is going to help but it's not going to solve anything."
Reese Barrick, commissioner, said Hays' conservation programs have helped delay the water release request.
The pockets of winter moisture from Cedar Bluff Reservoir in the Smoky Hill Aquifer drop as they reach Hays' Schoenchen Wellfield (at the U.S. Highway 183 bridge) and decline even further on the way to Russell's Pfeifer Wellfield (at the Pfeifer bridge.)
The Russell wellfield is significantly more depleted than the Hays wellfield.
Russell has been in water restrictions eight of the past 12 years.
Dougherty called the water release process "extremely inefficient." It has to saturate 30 miles of streambed before it actually reaches our aquifer.
"Not letting the streambed dry out is a way to be strategic about it, to be the most efficient with the water that comes out of Cedar Bluff to top off those wellfields and hopefully keep them topped off as we go into what could be a significant drought."
Mayor Sandy Jacobs said Hays and Russell wouldn't have to be dealing with Cedar Bluff if the cities' R9 Ranch long-term water supply project was completed.
"Maybe doing this will wake somebody up. ... We know it's not our legislators; it's the legal process," she said.
"I'm sorry we have to ask for this, but we're going to take care of our community and our citizens. This is the way to do it when we don't have the R9," she said.
Dougherty agreed, "The R9 is our drought backup when it's online.
"Knowing that depleting conditions exist and knowing how quickly they can deplete, if it turns 100 degrees and it's dry and there's nothing coming down, knowing we have the ability to top off those wellfields would be a kind of derelict of duty on our part if we didn't. ...
"We don't take this lightly," Dougherty said.
He told commissioners that if Hays would have to implement heightened water conservation stages, rates will go up for customers.
Mason Ruder, vice-mayor, said, "It's very frustrating that we have to resort to these kind of measures just to make sure we have the water that we need to survive, when we have and own the R9 water."
Ruder suggested concerned citizens contact the Edwards County Commission and WaterPACK (Water Protection Association of Central Kansas) members if they have questions about the R9 delays.
"We've done everything correctly, and beyond what is required of us by law," Ruder said. "They're the ones holding the process up."
Barrick said, "We'll be happy to give you their phone numbers."
Commissioner Shaun Musil said, "It will be sustainable when we get the ranch. We can prove it with the models, and we're not raping Edwards County of water. There's enough water to survive and prosper."
"This to me is not sustainable. ... It's the most asinine thing we can do to have water," Musil said.
The governing bodies of Hays and Russell will schedule a joint meeting about the R9 Ranch project in late April in Russell.