OFFICE OF GOV.

MANHATTAN – Approximately 600 attendees with diverse water interests were encouraged at the Governor’s Conference on the Future of Water in Kansas to keep pushing forward with implementation efforts for accomplishing regional priorities within the Long-Term Vision for the Future of Water Supply in Kansas to ensure our state’s water future.

“The state of Kansas remains focused on its goal of a sustainable water future,” said Lt. Governor Tracey Mann. “During this past year serving as Lt. Governor I have met thousands of Kansans that are working each day to make a living and make Kansas a better place and it’s easy to see how having a ready supply of good quality water means a community or industry can develop and grow. It’s important for everyone to know water is not a Republican or Democrat issue, it is a Kansas issue.”

Attendees heard updates on water resource statuses and continued implementation of the Vision as well as areas of concern throughout the state. Progress continues to be made through local, state and federal efforts to implement conservation practices to improve water quality and decrease reservoir sedimentation, but much work still remains. To date 185 failing streambanks have been stabilized but nearly 700 still need to be addressed in priority watersheds. Reservoirs within Kansas continue to lose storage due to sedimentation. There are now 10 Water Technology Farms across the state demonstrating how producers can maintain their bottom line while reducing water use. More progress needs to be made to reduce water use as groundwater levels continue to fall in the Ogallala Aquifer.

Sustainable food production was the message attendees heard from Tim Hardman, Director of Food and Markets, World Wildlife Fund US, as he shared changing consumer attitudes towards how food is produced. This concept is explored as many businesses look to do business in Kansas and sustainable water is part of that conversation. “How and where we produce food in the next 40 years is the biggest challenge of the 21^st century.  In the next 40 years we have to produce as much food as we have in the last 8,000. In order to live within the planetary boundaries, we have to figure out how to do more with less.”

Meeting growing water supply needs is a common problem facing communities across the nation, and a critical component of the Vision in Kansas. Tom Kula, Executive Director of the North Texas Municipal Water District addressed this issue head-on while describing the construction of the first major reservoir in Texas in 30 years to serve growing communities. Challenges included mitigation of more than 17,000 acres and permitting requirements at all levels. “Your reservoirs are an absolute necessity in our part of the county. We can find ways of building reservoirs which is smart development and taking care of the environment at the same time. It is important to stay encouraged and build key relationships at the local state and federal levels. As with anything difficult it’s important to develop win-win solutions.”

“One important feature of our Conference is to provide a perspective from outside our state from folks who are addressing similar water issues in other parts of the country and around the world,” said Kansas Water Office Director Tracy Streeter.  “We were very pleased to have Hardman and Kula join us.”

The morning also featured the “Water Legacy Award” which was presented to David Pope, who has worked to define and implement the modern water resource management principles used in Kansas today. Starting with his role as manager of Southwest Kansas Groundwater Management District No. 3 for two years, five years as Assistant Chief Engineer of the Division of Water Resources (DWR) and 24 years as Chief Engineer of DWR, Pope spearheaded many groundbreaking initiatives.

This year’s ‘Be the Vision’ award recipients were also honored for taking extraordinary measures to conserve, reuse or adopt better practices to help ensure the future of our state’s water resources.

This year’s recipients were Bryan Taylor, Project Manager in the Civil Works Branch Programs and Project Management Division, who was assigned to the John Redmond Reservoir Dredging project and became an integral part of the process and eventual success; Chuck Samples, with KVOE radio for his continual media coverage of water in Kansas and the John Redmond Dredging project; USDA-NRCS and State Conservationist Karen Woodrich for their partnership with the Milford Lake Watershed RCPP as well as their critical role in the recent drought through the EQIP Drought Initiative Program; and Weston McCary, director of the Precision Ag program at Northwest Kansas Technical College in Goodland which is a comprehensive program teaching students about high-tech practices, equipment, and software being utilized in production agriculture today. Using a combination of classroom, shop, and field environments, students acquire the skills necessary to succeed in today’s competitive precision agriculture industry and incorporating the practices on the Water Technology Farm.  Secretary of Agriculture Jackie McClaskey and Lieutenant Governor Tracey Mann were on hand to help with the award presentation.

The rest of the day continued with four panels highlighting different water topics, Conservation and Sustainability; Why Does Navigation Matter to Kansas; Water Technology Farms and Aquifer Impacts and Infrastructure for the Future.

Tomorrow will build on Vision implementation and water management and policy discussions from the previous day with technical presentations, posters and talks. Graduate and undergraduate students will present their research.

The conference also features the Kansas Water Office Photo Contest. More than 120 photos were submitted to be voted on as the ‘people’s choice’ at the conference. The winner will be featured on the 2019 brochure, website and other locations throughout the coming year.

The Governor’s Conference on the Future of Water in Kansas is hosted by the KWO, K-State/Kansas Water Resource Institute. Major sponsors for the event include Black & Veatch, Burns & McDonnell and Great Lakes Dredge & Dock.

The Hays Public Library has hired Callie Kolacny as communications and projects coordinator.

Kolacny comes to the library after serving five years as the marketing director for Smoky Hills Public Television. Prior to that, she spent 14 years as news director for Eagle Radio in Hays.

An Ellis native, Kolacny has lived in Hays for 19 years. She began her duties at the library on Nov. 12.

KDA

MANHATTAN — Water right owners in Kansas soon will be expecting a familiar letter in the mail, requiring them to submit a complete and accurate water use report to the Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources. This year’s mailing will look different, because starting with the 2018 water use reporting period KDA–DWR is implementing a $20 per water right paper filing fee on each water use report (except for domestic use) when that report is submitted in paper form. This $20 fee can be avoided by reporting water use online, which is recommended by KDA–DWR.

This is the fifth year that online water use reporting has been available, and many water right owners have already taken advantage of that option. Online reporting allows water right holders to enter official annual water use reports online and receive immediate feedback to help ensure that the report is accurate. It also provides access to other features such as previous reports submitted online. KDA has supported the cost of the transition to online reporting as it will help the agency achieve long-term cost savings. Instead of implementing online “convenience fees,” KDA has taken an entirely different approach and instead will charge a paper filing fee for water use reports beginning with this 2018 water use reporting period.

Complete your online water use report at www.kswaterusereport.org from January 2–March 1. If you need help completing your report, visit or call any of the KDA–DWR field offices or watch the online video tutorials available soon. You can find contact information and a link to the videos at agriculture.ks.gov/wateruse or call the water use team at 785-564-6638. If you choose not to take advantage of the online water use report option, you can send in your report by mail along with the paper filing fee.

Water use data is essential for management of the state’s resources. Each owner of a water right or permit to appropriate water is required by law to submit a complete and accurate water use report every year. This process ensures that the people of Kansas — and officials responsible for managing or monitoring water resources — have access to complete information about how water is used. The information collected is used by many agencies including the Kansas Water Office, U.S. Geological Survey, Kansas Geological Survey, groundwater management districts, Kansas Department of Revenue, county appraisers and others.

Today Sunny, with a high near 47. South wind 3 to 7 mph.

Tonight Mostly clear, with a low around 26. South southwest wind around 7 mph.

Thursday Sunny, with a high near 57. West southwest wind 6 to 9 mph becoming north northwest in the afternoon.

Thursday Night Clear, with a low around 29. Northwest wind 3 to 7 mph.

Friday Sunny, with a high near 58. Light and variable wind becoming south 5 to 10 mph in the morning.

Friday NightPartly cloudy, with a low around 31.

Saturday A slight chance of rain before 1pm, then a slight chance of rain and snow between 1pm and 3pm, then a slight chance of snow after 3pm. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 37. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

SHERMAN COUNTY — On Tuesday afternoon Northwest Tech administration in Goodland received a call that there was an individual on campus, in a facility, with a weapon, according to the school’s social media page.

Administration immediately contacted law enforcement and alerted campus.

Local law enforcement responded quickly to the scene and cleared the building and quickly established that it was a false report and there was in fact no weapon, no individual carrying a weapon on campus, and students were never at risk.

School administration expressed the appreciation for the rapid response of  local law enforcement “sadly in today’s society, we can never be too safe, nor will we take any chances with the lives of our students, faculty or staff.”