Upper Republican River Basin:Kansas Water Office

Upper Republican River Basin

The Upper Republican Basin is located in the High Plains physiographic region of western Kansas. The Kansas portion of the basin is bordered by Colorado on the west and Nebraska on the north covering approximately 4,900 square miles. The basin covers all or parts of Cheyenne, Rawlins, Decatur, Norton, Phillips, Sherman, Thomas and Sheridan counties. The Upper Republican basin includes hydrologic unit codes (HUCs) 10250001, 10250003, 10250012, 10250013, 10250014 and 10250015.

Map UREP BAC Membership

*No.*	*Member Name*	Representative Category	Term Expires
1.	*Chair* - Sid Metcalf, Oberlin, KS	Industry/Commerce (CC)	6/30/2015
2.	*Vice Chair* - Wayne Bossert, Colby, KS	Groundwater Management District (BSC)	6/30/2015
3.	Steven Cox, Long Island, KS	Irrigated Farming (BSC)	6/30/2013
4.	Jeffrey Hill, Atwood, KS	Dryland Farming (BSC)	6/30/2013
5.	Lee Juenemann, Norton, KS	Fish and Wildlife (CC)	6/30/2015
6.	Rhonda May, Oberlin, KS	Municipal Public Water Supply (CC)	6/30/2013
7.	Lari Ann Nickell, Norton, KS	Recreation (CC)	6/30/2015
8.	Charles Peckham, Atwood, KS	Government (BSC)	6/30/2013
9.	Tony Horinek, Colby, KS	Agriculture (CC)	6/30/2015
10.	Vacant	At Large Public (CC)	6/30/2013
11.	Vacant	Conservation/Environment (CC)	6/30/2015

u Upper Republican Basin Advisory Committee Membership Application

Information Sheet - Attending a KWA Meeting as a Representative of your BAC

Upper Republican BAC Member Update - Sid Metcalf - Chairperson

Welcome to the Upper Republican Basin Advisory Committee pages. I’m Sid Metcalf and serve as the committee’s chair. I live in Oberlin and farm irrigated ground near the Nebraska border. I also am an aerial applicator and sell crop insurance.

I’m interested in water issues both personally and professionally. Being part of the Basin Advisory Committee for more than 10 years has given me the chance to learn and have a say in both basin and statewide water resource issues.

The key issues in the Upper Republican River basin involve slowing the declines of the Ogallala-High Plains aquifer and the outcome of the Republican River Compact settlement.

A concerted effort to slow the declines of the Ogallala-High Plains aquifer is underway in Northwest Kansas Groundwater Management District No. 4 (GMD 4). Six high priority areas have been identified. Irrigators, have met to learn more about the problem and, in some cases, work together to identify possible solutions.

As a result of the Republican River Compact settlement, Kansas is due both water and money. In anticipation of receiving water from Colorado, the Upper Republican River Basin Conservation Projects Alliance was formed to come up with ideas to use the water. I serve on the Alliance.

The Kansas Water Office and GMD 4, using the Alliance’s ideas as a starting point, contracted with Denver-based Spronk Water Engineers to do an initial study of several water conservation ideas. The list includes a municipal pipeline with excess water delivered to Keith Sebelius, a centralized, four-county, multipurpose water storage facility; a groundwater recharge project supporting one or more high priority areas; and alluvial recharge provided the surface diversions are significant. The report is due later this year.

Our BAC discussions always are informative. If you’d like to visit, please call (785) 475-8252 or send me an e-mail at scmetcalf@hotmail.com. We’re all busy, so I may not be able to get right back to you.

Current Projects in the Upper Republican Basin

Ogallala-High Plains Declines - Chairman Sid Metcalf's comments provide an overview. Refer to Northwest Kansas GMD No. 4's web page for more details.
Republican River System Management - The Republican River Compact was enacted by Colorado, Nebraska, and Kansas to divide the water supply of the Republican River basin. Kansas is both a downstream state, receiving water from Colorado and Nebraska, and an upstream state to Nebraska. The “Republican River Compact and Settlement Agreement” (RRCA) requires Kansas to meet specific quantity goals for water leaving the Upper Republican basin. Climatic conditions, lack of runoff, alluvial groundwater pumping, and reduced stream flows often limit water leaving the state.

During the first accounting period (2003-2007) under the settlement agreement, Kansas met its obligations under the compact. Meeting these obligations in the future may prove a challenge under some conditions. Management of the hydrologic system is needed to optimize use in Kansas while meeting flow requirements under the settlement

Past Meetings & Materials

April 11, 2012, UREP BAC Meeting - 9:00 am, City Hall, 106 S 3rd Street, Atwood, KS - Meeting Materials
January 25-26, 2012 - KWA, Topeka, KS
November 3-4, 2011 - KWA, Lawrence
August 11-12, 2011 - KWA, Lyons
September 14, 2011 - UREP BAC Meeting, 9:00 a.m., Groundwater Management District Office, Colby, KS (Meeting Materials)
June 15, 2011 - UREP BAC Meeting, 9:00 a.m., Norton, KS - Meeting Materials
March 23, 2011 - Upper Republican BAC Meeting, 9:00 a.m., Gateway Center, 1 Morgan Drive, Oberlin, KS - Meeting Materials

Questions? Contact Susan.Stover@kwo.ks.gov - KWO Upper Republican Basin Planner

Upcoming Meetings & Materials

June 27, 2012 - UREP BAC Meeting, 2:00 pm, Norton County Conservation District, 11506 Pineview Drive, Norton, KS

Water News for the BAC Members

Meeting Notes

Basin Related Links