By BECKY KISER
Hays Post

The month of June yielded significant rain for Hays, nearly 10 inches, according to official records kept by the K-State Ag Research Center. That’s 6 inches above average for the month.

Although lawns are green, Hays is still in the fourth year of a drought.

During a special meeting Monday night in which city commissioners voted to lift the fireworks ban, Mayor Henry Schwaller pointed out Hays “remains about 12 inches behind average precipitation.”

Commissioners will hear a water supply update from Bernie Kitten, Director of Utilities, during their Thursday night work session.

The recharge of two of the city’s water wellfields, Smoky Hill and Big Creek, is being calculated.

“The data from both of those wellfields will give the commission the opportunity to make the determination of the appropriate stage to be in in our water plan,” Assistant Hays City Manager Paul Briseno said Tuesday.

“There are a number of factors,” he explained, including how much water is used each day by customers:

Hays also gets some water from the Dakota Aquifer.

“We try to balance our sources,” Briseno added. “We usually go about half and half between Big Creek and the Smoky, and commingle a small percentage from the Dakota, so we don’t deplete any one source and our water supply lasts as long as possible.”

The city of Hays is currently in a water warning, with no outside watering allowed between 10 a.m. and 9 p.m.