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Ag News -
Ag Briefs
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Thursday, 22 March 2012 14:15 |
DWR Currents
 On
Mar. 14, Chief Engineer David Barfield issued orders to curtail water
withdrawals under three surface water rights on the Smoky Hill River
with priority dates after April 12, 1984. The affected area is upstream
from the Smoky Hill River gage at Ellsworth to the confluence with Big
Creek. Streamflow had fallen below Minimum Desirable Streamflow (MDS)
levels for at least seven consecutive days before the orders were
issued.
Right: Graphic showing streamflows at the Smoky
Hill River gage at Ellsworth, courtesy of U.S. Geologic Survey. Click
to view current data.
Precipitation events this week have
caused streamflow to recover. If streamflow remains above the MDS-level
for 14 consecutive days, or if flow is high enough before the 14-day
criteria is met that it appears flow will remain above MDS for the
foreseeable future, the chief engineer may end administration in this
reach of the Smoky Hill River.
The only other stream currently
under MDS Administration is the Little Arkansas River above Alta Mills,
which has been under administration since May 9, 2011. MDS
administration in that reach affects eight surface water rights.
The latest Drought Outlook
from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, released
March 15, forecasts improving drought conditions for most of Kansas
during the next few months. Their latest seasonal assessment indicates
that during the remainder of March, more beneficial precipitation can be
expected across the Great Plains, especially across southeast Kansas.
March precipitation coupled with an increasingly wet climatology favor
improvement across parts of the Great Plains along with the western Corn
Belt and upper Mississippi Valley.
More information about MDS,
including copies of the orders and links to real-time stream gage data
for affected locations, is available on our Minimum Desirable Streamflow website. |
