Wichita

In 1993, the city of Wichita adopted the Wichita Integrated Local Water Supply (ILWS) plan, which presented possibilities to help the city meet water supply demand through year 2050. The ILWS included the development of an ASR program to support plan goals and to recharge the heavily used and significantly depleted Equus Beds aquifer. In 2001, Wichita implemented their ASR program through a 4-phase construction plan. The objective of this plan, currently in phase 2 (as of 2011), is to achieve 100 million gallons per day storage capacity (Sophocleous, 2012). 

Highlights: 

  • 6 ASR wells installed during Phase 2
  • 26 additional municipal wells injecting water into the Equus Beds aquifer
  • The project is expected to add 100,000+ acre-ft of water to the aquifer over a 10-15 year timespan (deSilva and Ary, 2011)
  • Injection water obtained from Little Arkansas River
  • ASR used to create a barrier to prevent saltwater contamination; Equus Beds aquifer prone to salt water plumes due to vintage industrial developments
  • Phase 1 returned 900 MG to the aquifer at a cost of $27 million (Wichita, 2012)

Additional Information:

The city of Wichita maintains an extensive website devoted to its ASR program. For additional information, or to contact the city directly, please visit http://www.wichitawaterproject.org/

The USGS Kansas Water Science Center website also contains a variety of technical information pertaining groundwater monitoring results during the Equus Beds ASR phase 1 injection process. For additional information, please visit http://ks.water.usgs.gov/studies/equus/equus-bed-aquifer.html

References:

City of Wichita (Wichita). 2012. City of Wichita Aquifer Storage and Recovery Program. http://www.wichitawaterproject.org. Accessed 2013.

deSilva,V., Ary, D. 2011. Aquifer Storage and Recovery Program Remedies Witchita’s Groundwater Problems. Journal American Water Works Association. 103 (5): 94-99

Sophocleous, M. 2012. The evolution of groundwater management paradigms in Kansas and possible new steps towards water sustainability. Journal of Hydrology. 414-415: 550-559.