U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5231

Prepared in cooperation with the city of Wichita, Kansas

Status of Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in 

the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 

2006 to January 2010

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RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

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Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Emma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

104

886

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

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Boundary of central part

 of study area

Line of equal water-level 

 change—Dashed where 

 approximately located. 

 Interval 2 feet

Study area

14

Equus Beds historic 

 observation well

Well hydrograph shown 

 in figure 2

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RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and 

 identifier

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

 30 to less than 40 feet

Area of water-level 

 recovery

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

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Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita personnel.

Recovery of storage volume in study area 

between October 1992 and January 2010 is 

183,000 acre-feet.
Front cover: Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, October 1992 to January 2010. 

Back cover: Photograph showing Phase 1 Artificial Storage and Recovery surface-water treatment facility near Halstead, Kansas. 

Photograph from city of Wichita.
Status of Groundwater Levels and Storage 

Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near 

Wichita, Kansas, January 2006 to January 

2010

By Cristi V. Hansen and Walter R. Aucott

Prepared in cooperation with the city of Wichita, Kansas

Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5231

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey
U.S. Department of the Interior

KEN SALAZAR, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Marcia K. McNutt, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2010

For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, 

natural hazards, and the environment, visit http://www.usgs.gov or call 1-888-ASK-USGS

For an overview of USGS information products, including maps, imagery, and publications, 

visit http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod

Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the 

U.S. Government.

Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to 

reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report.

Suggested citation:

Hansen, C.V., and Aucott, W.R., 2010, Status of groundwater levels and storage volume in the Equus Beds aquifer 

near Wichita, Kansas, January 2006 to January 2010: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2010–

5231, 47 p.
iii

Contents

Abstract...........................................................................................................................................................1

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................1

Purpose and Scope ..............................................................................................................................3

Methods..................................................................................................................................................3

Water Levels.................................................................................................................................3

Precipitation..................................................................................................................................4

Specific Yield................................................................................................................................5

Storage-Volume and Pumpage Changes.................................................................................5

Description of Study Area ...................................................................................................................5

Previous Studies ...................................................................................................................................5

Geology and Groundwater...........................................................................................................................7

Groundwater-Level Changes .......................................................................................................................7

Quarter-Year and Half-Year Intervals, 2006 to 2010.........................................................................9

Cumulative Change Since Period of Maximum Decline...............................................................27

Cumulative Change Since Beginning of Large-Scale Artificial Recharge................................27

Storage-Volume Changes...........................................................................................................................31

Cumulative Change Since Period of Maximum Decline...............................................................31

Cumulative Change Since Beginning of Large-Scale Artificial Recharge................................31

Sustainable Yield..........................................................................................................................................35

Summary........................................................................................................................................................38

References Cited..........................................................................................................................................39

Figures

1. Map showing location of study area near Wichita, south-central Kansas........................2

2. Graph showing relation of (A) precipitation, (B) water use for agricultural 

 irrigation and by city of Wichita for public supply, and (C) water-level altitudes 

 in observation wells 104 and 886 and Equus Beds aquifer storage-volume 

 change in study area 1938 to January 2010 .............................................................................6

3. Generalized geologic section.....................................................................................................8

4. Map showing water-level altitudes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 .......................................................................................................................10

5. Map showing water-level altitudes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, October 1992......................................................................................................................11

6. Map showing water-level altitudes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, January 2010 .....................................................................................................................12

7. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to January 2006 ..........................................................................................13

8. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to April 2006 ................................................................................................14
iv

9. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to July 2006 .................................................................................................15

10. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to October 2006 ..........................................................................................16

11. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to January 2007 ..........................................................................................17

12. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to April 2007 ................................................................................................18

13. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to July 2007 .................................................................................................19

14. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to October 2007 ..........................................................................................20

15. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to January 2008 ..........................................................................................21

16. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to April 2008 ................................................................................................22

17. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to July 2008 .................................................................................................23

18. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to January 2009 ..........................................................................................24

19. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to July 2009 .................................................................................................25

20. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to January 2010 ..........................................................................................26

21. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, August 1940 to October 1992 ..........................................................................................28

22. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, October 1992 to January 2010 ........................................................................................29

23. Map showing water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

 area, January 2007 to January 2010 ........................................................................................30

24. Graph showing comparison of storage-volume changes in the study area 

 for selected periods ...................................................................................................................35

25. Graph showing statistical relation between storage volume and pumpage 

 in the study area, 1993–2009 .....................................................................................................38

Tables

1. Storage-volume changes in Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, south-central 

 Kansas, August 1940 to January 2010 .....................................................................................32

2. Average annual precipitation, irrigation and city of Wichita annual pumpage,

annual artificial recharge, and aquifer storage-volume changes in the study 

 area near Wichita, south-central Kansas, 1988-2009...........................................................36

3. Average annual total pumpage, aquifer storage-volume change, and 

 precipitation in the study area near Wichita, south-central Kansas, for 

 selected time periods.................................................................................................................37
v

Multiply By To obtain

Length

inch (in.) 25.4 millimeter (mm)

foot (ft) 0.3048 meter (m)

mile (mi) 1.609 kilometer (km)

Area

square mile (mi2

) 2.590 square kilometer (km2) 

Volume

acre-foot (acre-ft) 1,233 cubic meter (m3

)

Flow rate

acre-foot per year (acre-ft/yr) 1,233 cubic meter per year (m3

/yr)

inch per year (in/yr) 25.4 millimeter per year (mm/yr)

Conversion Factors

Temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) may be converted to degrees Fahrenheit (°F) as follows:

 °F=(1.8×°C)+32

Temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) may be converted to degrees Celsius (°C) as follows:

 °C=(°F-32)/1.8

Prior to April 2000, vertical coordinate information is referenced to the National Geodetic 

Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29). For April 2000 and after, vertical coordinate information is 

referenced to North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). NAVD 88 vertical coordinates 

are about 0.5 ft higher than NGVD 29 vertical coordinates in the part of south-central Kansas 

discussed in this report.

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83).

Altitude, as used in this report, refers to distance above the vertical datum.

Tables

A1. Streamflow-gaging stations and observation wells in the Equus Beds

 aquifer, south-central Kansas...................................................................................................44

A2. Precipitation stations in and near the study area, south-central Kansas ........................47

Appendix
vi
Abstract

A part of the Equus Beds aquifer in southwestern Harvey 

County and northwestern Sedgwick County was developed 

to supply water to residents of Wichita and for irrigation in 

south-central Kansas. Groundwater pumping for city and agricultural use caused water levels to decline in a large part of 

the aquifer northwest of Wichita. In 1965, the city of Wichita 

began using water from Cheney Reservoir in addition to water 

from the Equus Beds aquifer to meet the city’s increasing 

demand for water. Irrigation pumpage in the area increased 

substantially during the 1970s and 1980s and contributed to 

the water-level declines. Water-level declines reached their 

maximum to date in October 1992.

Proposals to artificially recharge the aquifer have been 

made since the 1950s to meet future water-supply needs and to 

protect the aquifer from the intrusion of saltwater from sources 

to the south and west. In 2007, Wichita implemented Phase 1 

of the Equus Beds Aquifer Storage and Recovery project for 

large-scale artificial recharge of the aquifer.

A period of water-level rises associated with greaterthan-average precipitation and decreased city pumpage from 

the area began in 1993 and continued through January 2010. 

During January 2010, the direction of groundwater flow in 

the Equus Beds aquifer in the area was generally from west 

to east, similar to the direction prior to development of the 

aquifer. Water-level changes since 1940 for the period January 

2006 to January 2010 ranged from a decline of more than 30 

feet to a rise of more than 4 feet. Almost all wells in the area 

had cumulative water-level rises from October 1992 (period 

of maximum storage loss) to January 2010 and from January 

2007 (beginning of large-scale artificial recharge) to January 

2010. The average cumulative water-level change from October 1992 to January 2010 was a rise of about 8.7 feet and from 

January 2007 to January 2010 was a rise of about 3.2 feet. 

The storage-volume change in the study area for the 

period October 1992 to January 2010 represented a recovery 

of about 183,000 acre-feet, or about 65 percent of the storage volume previously lost from August 1940 to October 

1992, and was the largest recovery since October 1992 to 

date. Decreased city pumpage and artificial recharge during 

1993–2009 and 2007–09 contributed to the recovery of storage 

volume in both periods, but artificial recharge’s contribution 

was much smaller. Irrigation pumpage, because it increased 

during 1993–2009, did not contribute to the recovery of storage volume from October 1992 to January 2010. Recharge 

from excess precipitation contributed to the recovery of storage volume in both periods because precipitation averaged 

about 2 and 6 inches per year more than the annual long-term 

average of 31.52 inches during 1993–2009 and 2007–09, 

respectively.

Sustainable yield for the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

area was estimated to be about 57,000 acre-feet per year using 

two different methods. The sum of permitted annual irrigation (about 45,600 acre-feet) and city (about 31,400 acre-feet) 

pumpage of 77,000 acre-feet per year greatly exceeds the estimated sustainable yield. Effective water management, including additions to the water budget such as those from the Equus

Beds Aquifer Storage and Recovery project, can help produce 

the most water for beneficial use in a more sustainable way.

Introduction

A part of the Equus Beds aquifer in southwestern Harvey 

County and northwestern Sedgwick County was developed to 

supply water to residents of Wichita and for irrigation in the 

study area in south-central Kansas (fig. 1). On September 1, 

1940, Wichita began pumping from 25 wells completed in the 

aquifer in the central part of the study area (Stramel, 1956) 

(fig. 1). By 1959, there were an additional 30 wells in use by 

the city of Wichita (Stramel, 1967). Groundwater pumpage 

from the aquifer for city and agricultural use has caused water 

levels to decline in a large part of the study area. A substantial part of the decline in water levels occurred from 1940 

until the drought of the 1950s ended in early 1957 (Stramel, 

1967). In 1965, the city of Wichita began using water from 

Cheney Reservoir (Stramel, 1967) in addition to water from 

the Equus Beds aquifer to meet the city’s increasing demand 

for water. Groundwater pumpage for irrigation in the study 

Status of Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the 

Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2006

to January 2010

By Cristi V. Hansen and Walter R. Aucott
2 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RICE COUNTY

RENO

COUNTY

MARION

COUNTY

MCPHERSON

COUNTY

SEDGWICK

COUNTY

KINGMAN

COUNTY

HARVEY

COUNTY

0 2 4 6 8 10 MILES

0 2 4 6 8 10 KILOMETERS

30'

Approximate 

extent of High

Plains aquifer

in Kansas

Index map

KANSAS

Halstead

recharge site

Sedgwick

recharge site

EXPLANATION

SW NE

07143375

Approximate boundary of the Equus Beds aquifer

 (from Ross, 1991; Juracek and Hansen, 1995)

Trace of section—Shown in figure 3

U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station and number 

Study area

Boundary of central part of study area

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Lambert Conformal Conic projection

Standard parallels 33° and 45°, central meridian 98°15'

37°45'

38°15'

97°45' 97°15'

38°

Phase 1 artificial recharge site

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2

Arkansas

Kisiwa

River

Arkansas

Little

West

East

Emma 

Emma

Sand 

Creek

Creek

Cr eek

Emma

Creek

Cheney

Reservoir

North F ork

Ninnescah River Cow

Creek

Creek

River

07143665

07144100

07144200

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Hesston

Valley

Center

Park City

Bel Aire

Newton

Bentley

Hutchinson

Mills

Halstead

Andale

Sedgwick

Burrton

Mount

Hope

Patterson

Alta

Wichita

SW

NE

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Figure 1. Location of study area near Wichita, south-central Kansas (modified from Aucott 

and Myers, 1998).
Introduction 3

area increased substantially during the 1970s and 1980s and 

contributed to the water-level declines (Spinazola and others, 1985; Myers and others, 1996; Aucott and Myers, 1998), 

which became greatest in October 1992 (Hansen and Aucott, 

2001). Long-term water-level declines can be attributed to 

municipal and irrigation groundwater pumpage; however, 

changes in precipitation (and thus recharge to the Equus Beds 

aquifer) also have had short-term effects on water levels.

The Equus Beds Groundwater Management District 

No. 2 (GMD2) was formed in 1975 as part of the effort to balance the factors affecting water levels in the Equus Beds aquifer, to efficiently manage the use of water from the aquifer, 

and to preserve the aquifer for future generations. GMD2 has 

developed a management program that is based on the “aquifer safe yield principle.” The aquifer safe yield principle limits 

the annual amount of groundwater pumpage to the annual 

amount of groundwater recharge as noted in the management 

program of GMD2 (Equus Beds Groundwater Management 

District No. 2, 1995). GMD2 also manages the aquifer based 

on the groundwater-quality principle “which seeks to maintain 

by protection and remediation the naturally occurring quality of the aquifer” (Tim Boese, written commun., Equus Beds 

Groundwater Management District No. 2, July 2010).

Proposals to artificially recharge the Equus Beds aquifer have been made since the 1950s (for example, Stramel, 

1956; Albert and Stramel, 1966) to meet future water-supply 

needs and to protect the aquifer from the intrusion of saltwater 

from natural and human-related sources to the south and west 

(Warren and others, 1995). A small pilot project by the city of 

Wichita in the early 1980s indicated that it would be possible to artificially recharge the Equus Beds aquifer (Hufford, 

[1983?]). In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Equus Beds 

Groundwater Recharge Demonstration Project, a trial project 

to prove the feasibility of artificially recharging the aquifer on 

a large scale, successfully diverted more than 1 billion gallons 

(about 3,300 acre-ft) of water from the Little Arkansas River 

and stored it in the Equus Beds aquifer (Wichita Water Utilities, [2008?]; U.S. Geological Survey, 2006). In March 2006, 

the city of Wichita followed up the success of the Demonstration Project by starting construction of the Equus Beds Aquifer 

Storage and Recovery (ASR) project to artificially recharge 

the Equus Beds aquifer on a large scale. Other entities 

involved with the ASR project include GMD2 (Halstead, Kansas), Kansas Department of Agriculture, Kansas Department 

of Health and Environment, Kansas Water Office, Bureau of 

Reclamation (U.S. Department of the Interior), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), 

and various local interest groups and private consulting and 

engineering firms. Phase 1 of the ASR project was completed 

in 2006 and large-scale artificial recharge of the aquifer began 

at the Phase 1 sites in March 2007. The Phase 1 sites (fig.1) 

use water from the Little Arkansas River—pumped from the 

river directly or from wells in the riverbank that obtain their 

water from the river by induced infiltration—as the source of 

artificial recharge to the Equus Beds aquifer (Wichita Water 

Utilities, [2007?]). Water is only allowed to be diverted from

this river for artificial recharge when flows are greater than 

minimums set by the State of Kansas (Approval of Application to Appropriate Water Application File Nos. 45567 through 

45576, 46081, and 46578, Kansas Department of Agriculture, 

Division of Water Resources, Topeka, Kansas, August 8, 2005 

and February 19, 2007).

The USGS and the city of Wichita have worked cooperatively since 1940 in evaluating the Equus Beds aquifer and its 

interaction with streams in the area to further the understanding of the entire hydrologic system and to provide information 

to aid local decision making (Williams and Lohman, 1949). 

This study has developed a baseline condition for evaluating 

the effects of artificial recharge on groundwater levels in the 

Equus Beds aquifer, documented changes in historical hydrologic conditions and the probable causes of these changes in 

the study area, and reviewed changes in the groundwater-flow 

system. The understanding gained from this cooperative study 

of the hydrologic system and the Equus Beds aquifer also 

helps contribute to the wise management of water resources 

where similar hydrologic conditions exist elsewhere. 

Purpose and Scope

The purpose of this report is to describe the status of 

groundwater levels and storage volume in the Equus Beds 

aquifer northwest of Wichita during January 2006 to January 

2010 as compared with predevelopment (before large-scale 

withdrawals began in September 1940) groundwater levels 

and to update historical information related to changes in 

the aquifer storage since 1940. Maps of groundwater-level 

measurements and water-level changes are presented. Two 

hydrographs of groundwater levels were selected to show 

historical water-level variations. Historical water-use and 

climate information also are presented. Information in this 

report can be used to document and improve understanding of 

the effects of climate, water-use, and water-resource management practices on water supplies in the Equus Beds aquifer, 

an important source of water for the city of Wichita and the 

surrounding area.

Methods

Water Levels

Groundwater-level measurements from two observationwell networks were used in this report. The two networks 

are the Equus Beds historic observation well network and 

the areal index well network. Data collection from the Equus

Beds historic observation well network began just prior to the 

beginning of city pumpage from the aquifer in the study area 

in 1940 with water-level measurements from about 50 wells 

(Williams and Lohman, 1949). The network was expanded 

until it included more 200 wells in 1955 (Stramel, 1957). Currently (2010), water-level measurements from more than 100 
4 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

of these wells (table A1 in Appendix) are used to construct 

the water-level-altitude and water-level-change maps used in 

this report. Water levels in the historic Equus Beds observation well network are measured at least quarterly by the city of 

Wichita personnel.

The areal index observation well network contains 38 

pairs of wells in and near the study area that were installed for 

the city of Wichita during 2001 and 2002. Each pair of areal 

index wells consists of a well completed in the upper part 

of the aquifer and another well completed in the lower part 

of the aquifer. These wells were designed for use by the city 

to monitor the water quality and water levels in the aquifer 

throughout the study area and any changes that might occur 

as a result of the artificial recharge project. These wells also 

were used to determine if there are any water-quality differences between the shallow and deep parts of the aquifer 

(Andrew Ziegler, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun., 

September 2003). As water levels also can be measured in 

these wells, the wells were added to the water-level monitoring network in the study area in 2002. For mapping purposes, 

the water levels from the shallow well at the site of each 

pair of areal index wells were used, except at the three most 

northwesterly pairs of areal index well sites. Water levels 

from the deep wells in these three pairs (USGS site identification numbers 380130097385002, 380329097363702, and 

380421097385002) were used because they best represent 

the part of the aquifer open to the historic observation wells 

in this part of the study area (table A1 in the Appendix). The 

selection of the wells used for mapping purposes from each 

of the 38 pairs of areal index wells previously was described 

in Hansen and Aucott (2004). Water levels in the areal index 

well network are measured quarterly by GMD2 personnel and 

occasionally by USGS personnel; all areal index well waterlevels used in this report were measured by GMD2.

 The city of Wichita and GMD2 use standard water-level 

measurement techniques similar to those described in Stallman 

(1971). Water levels for the Equus Beds historic observation 

well network are on file in paper and electronic form with 

the city of Wichita Water and Sewer Department in Wichita, 

Kansas, and are stored by the USGS in the National Water 

Information System (NWIS) database and are available at 

the following URL: http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ks/nwis. Water 

levels measured in the areal index observation wells by the 

USGS and GMD2 also are stored in the NWIS database and 

are available at this URL. 

Average daily surface-water-altitude measurements 

from data automatically collected by equipment at six USGS 

streamflow-gaging stations on the Arkansas and Little 

Arkansas River in and near the study area (fig. 1; table A1 in 

Appendix) were used to estimate the surface-water altitude 

along these streams. If the associated groundwater-level measurements were collected over several days, each streamflowgaging station’s average surface-water altitude for the day 

at the midpoint of the measurement period was used. These 

measurements were used along with the groundwater-level 

measurements in the construction of the water-level altitude 

map created for this report.

In NWIS, surface-water levels are stored as the watersurface’s height (gage height) above an altitude at which there 

will be zero flow at the gage (gage datum). Groundwater 

levels are stored in NWIS as depth to water below land surface. The water-level altitude at a streamflow-gaging station 

was computed by adding the gage height to the altitude of the 

gage datum. The water-level altitude at a well was computed 

by subtracting the depth to water at the well from the well’s 

land-surface altitude. Surface-water and groundwater-level 

altitudes were used to construct water-level altitude maps for 

this report. The water-level change at a well for a selected time 

period was computed as the depth to water at the well at the 

beginning of the time period minus the depth to water at the 

well at the end of the time period. August 1940 is the beginning of most of the time periods used in this report. Most of 

the wells used in this report did not exist or have a measured 

water level in August 1940; for these wells, a 1940 water-level 

measurement was interpolated from the August 1940 waterlevel-altitude map. Only measured water levels were used for 

other dates.

As a measure of quality control, each well’s water levels 

for the period of record are plotted as a hydrograph, usually 

with the water levels of a nearby well on the same graph, and 

visually inspected. Those water level measurements that do 

not fit the expected pattern are researched and if no logical 

explanation for the aberration can be found, the water level is 

not used for mapping purposes.

Precipitation

Precipitation data for 1938–2009 for nine Cooperative 

and Weather Bureau Army Navy (WBAN) weather stations in 

and near the study area were used to estimate the annual precipitation for the study area. Stations used for this report and 

the periods of data used are shown in table A2 in the Appendix. During 1938–47, only three precipitation stations were 

active in or near the study area; data from five active stations 

in and near the study area were used for the 1948–2009 period. 

If a station did not have annual precipitation data for the entire 

1948–2009 period, a nearby station was used for the remaining 

part of this period. For a station without annual data because 

of partial precipitation record in some months, the daily data 

for the partial months were inspected, the precipitation for the 

missing days was estimated from the precipitation at nearby 

stations by interpolation, the total for the month calculated, 

and the monthly data summed for the estimated annual precipitation for the station. The annual precipitation for the study 

area was estimated as the arithmetic average of the annual 

precipitation of the stations used for the year. The long-term 

average precipitation used in this report is the average of the 

1938–2009 precipitation for the study area. The 5-year moving 

average of precipitation used in this report was determined by 

taking the annual precipitation for the study area and averaging it for each 5-year period. Because past precipitation can 
Introduction 5

affect current groundwater levels but future precipitation 

cannot, the 5-year moving average of precipitation is plotted at 

the end of the 5-year period.

Specific Yield

The specific yield of the Equus Beds aquifer has been 

estimated by many investigators using a variety of methods; 

these methods include aquifer tests, laboratory analyses of 

aquifer samples, lithologic descriptions from drillers’ logs, 

water-balance equations, and parameter estimation for groundwater models. Estimates of specific yield from these methods 

have ranged from less than 0.1 to more than 0.3 with most 

estimates in the range of 0.15 to 0.2 (Williams and Lohman, 

1949; Stramel, 1956, 1967; Kansas Water Resources Board, 

1960; Bayne and Ward, 1969; Lohman, 1979; Gutentag and 

others, 1984; Reed and Burnett, 1985; Spinazola and others, 1985; Stullken and others, 1985; Hansen, 1991; Nathan 

C. Myers, USGS, written commun., 1996; Cederstrand and 

Becker, 1998; and David Stous and Patrick Higgins, Burns and 

McDonnell Engineering Consultants, written commun., 2000). 

A specific yield of 0.2 has been used to compute the changes 

in storage volume in the Equus Beds aquifer since Stramel 

(1956) first computed storage volume for the aquifer. The use 

of a specific yield of 0.2 was retained in this report because, as 

reported by Hansen and Aucott (2001), it is within the range 

of most estimates of specific yield and because there is no 

general agreement on an average value of specific yield for the 

Equus Beds aquifer in the study area. 

Storage-Volume and Pumpage Changes

The changes in storage volume since August 1940 for 

the selected time periods used in this report were computed 

using computer-generated Thiessen polygons (Thiessen, 1911) 

that were based on the measured water-level changes at wells 

and the manually drawn lines of equal water-level change. 

Thiessen polygons apportion the water-level change at each 

well and at points representing the lines of equal water-level 

change to the area around the wells and points. The storagevolume change was computed by summing the area of each 

Thiessen polygon multiplied by the actual water-level change 

value associated with the Thiessen polygon and then by the 

specific yield. This computation was done for the Thiessen 

polygons within the whole study area and for those within the 

central part of the study area to determine the storage-volume 

change since August 1940 in each of these areas. Storage-volume changes for periods that begin at a time other than August 

1940 were computed as the storage-volume change since 1940 

to the end of the selected time period minus the storage-volume change at the beginning of the selected time period. For 

example, the storage-volume change for the period 1993–2009 

would be would be calculated as the storage volume change 

from August 1940 to January 2010 minus the storage volume 

change from August 1940 to January 1993.

Irrigation and city pumpage changes were calculated as 

the pumpage for each year of the selected time period minus 

the pumpage at the beginning of the selected time period. 

These annual amounts were then totaled to get the cumulative change for the selected time period. For example, for the 

time period 1993–2009, the annual city pumpage for 1993 was 

subtracted from the annual pumpage for the years 1993–2009 

and then the results summed to get the cumulative change in 

irrigation pumpage for the period.

Description of Study Area

The study area (fig. 1) includes about 165 mi2 of the 

Equus Beds aquifer and is located in Harvey and Sedgwick 

Counties northwest of Wichita, Kansas. The study area is in 

the Arkansas River section of the Central Lowlands physiographic province (Schoewe, 1949). The land surface has little 

topographic relief and, for the most part, slopes gently toward 

the major streams in the study area. The study area is bounded 

on the southwest by the Arkansas River and on the northeast 

by the Little Arkansas River. The approximately 55 mi2 central 

part of the study area (fig. 1), which is referred to throughout 

the report, is the historic center of pumping in the study area. 

The central part of the study area includes irrigation wells and 

most of the wells that supply water to the city of Wichita.

South-central Kansas has a continental climate that is 

characterized by large variations in seasonal temperatures, 

moderate precipitation, and windy conditions. In Wichita, 

Kansas, long-term daily normal temperatures for 1971–2000 

ranged from 30.2°F in January to 81.0°F in July (National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2002b). The longterm (1940–2009) annual average precipitation for 1940–2009 

at weather stations in or near the study area (at Halstead, 

Hutchinson, Mount Hope, Newton, Sedgwick, and Wichita) is 

31.52 in. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

1998–2009; Mary Knapp, Kansas State Climatologist, written commun., February 1, 2010) (fig. 2A). However, annual 

precipitation values have ranged from about 46 to 152 percent 

of the long-term average for this time period (fig. 2A). The 

extent and severity of periods of greater-than or less-than average precipitation are shown distinctly by the 5-year moving 

average (fig 2A). Since the end of the last reporting period in 

January 2006 (Hansen, 2006), precipitation was less than the 

long-term annual average during 2006 and greater than the 

long-term annual average during 2007–09 (fig. 2A). 

Previous Studies

Water-level data have been collected periodically by the 

city of Wichita in the study area since 1940 and are on file 

with the city in Wichita, Kansas, and are stored in the NWIS 

database at http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ks/nwis. Water-level data 

also have been collected by GMD2 since 1978 from wells 

completed in the Equus Beds aquifer (Equus Beds Groundwater Management District No. 2, 1995). Annual water-level data 
6 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

400,000

450,000

500,000

550,000

1,350 600,000

1,360

1,370

1,380

1,390

1,400

1,410

1,420

1,430

1,440

1,450

1,460

1,470

1,480

19381940194319481953195819631968197319781983198819931998200320082010

STORAGE-VOLUME CHANGE, IN ACRE-FEET

Storage-volume change

Water-level altitude in well 104

Water-level altitude in well 886

C. Water-level altitudes in observation wells 104 and 886 and Equus Beds aquifer storage-volume change in the study area 

WATER-LEVEL ALTITUDE, IN FEET ABOVE VERTICAL DATUM (NAVD 88)

B . Water use for city of Wichita public supply and for agricultural irrigation 

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

WATER USE, IN ACRE-FEET PER YEAR

Total city water use

for public supply

Permitted groundwater use for agricultural 

irrigation in study area in 2009 

City groundwater use

for public supply from

study area 

City surface-water use from Cheney

Reservoir for public supply Estimated groundwater use

for agricultural irrigation 

City artificial

groundwater

recharge

Permitted groundwater use 

for public supply in study area

in 2009 

City groundwater use for public supply from outside study area

PRECIPITATION, IN INCHES PER YEAR

Average annual 

5-year moving

average 

Long-term annual average, 1940–2009

(average for weather stations at Halstead,

Hutchinson, Mount Hope, Newton,

Sedgwick, and Wichita) 

1940 to 1958 1958 to 1978 1978 to 1993 1993 to 2007 2007 to 2010

A. Precipitation

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Figure 2. Relation of (A) precipitation, (B) water use for agricultural irrigation and by city of Wichita for public supply, and (C)

water-level altitudes in observation wells 104 and 886 and Equus Beds aquifer storage-volume change in study area 1938 to January 

2010 (modified from Aucott and others, 1998). Source: (A) precipitation data from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 

(1998–2010) and Mary Knapp (written commun., Kansas State Climatologist, February 1, 2010); (B) water-use data from Wichita Water 

Department [1959?], Stramel (1956, 1967), Gerald T. Blain (written commun., city of Wichita, 1997), Megan Schmeltz (written commun., 

city of Wichita, 2009), and Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources (unpublished data, 2010); (C) water-level 

altitude data from Stramel (1956, 1967) and from data collected by city of Wichita, Equus Beds Groundwater Management District 

No. 2, and on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas. Location of observation wells is shown in figures 1 and 5. Storagevolume changes from Stramel (1956, 1967), Aucott and Myers (1998), Aucott and others (1998), Hansen and Aucott (2001, 2004), 

Hansen (2006, 2009a, 2009b) and data on file with U.S. Geological Survey in Lawrence, Kansas.
Groundwater-Level Changes 7

for the High Plains aquifer (fig. 1), which includes the Equus

Beds aquifer, have been collected since 1937 by the Division 

of Water Resources of the Kansas Department of Agriculture 

(DWR), USGS, and Kansas Geological Survey (KGS). The 

data on file with the USGS in Lawrence, Kansas are stored 

in the NWIS database and are available at http://waterdata.

usgs.gov/ks/nwis; data on file with the KGS, including annual 

water-level data collected by KGS and DWR since 1997, are 

stored in the WIZARD database (Kansas Geological Survey, 

2002). Historical and near-real-time data and reports associated with the USGS work on the Equus Beds aquifer (Ziegler 

and others, 1999; Ziegler and others, 2010) are available at 

http://ks.water.usgs.gov/Kansas/studies/equus/.

Williams and Lohman (1949), Stramel (1956, 1967), 

Lane and Miller (1965a), and Leonard and Kleinschmidt 

(1976) have published water levels and water-level decline 

maps for the study area; Williams and Lohman (1949) and 

Stramel (1956) also published water-level altitude maps for 

the study area. Ross and others (1997) noted water-level rises 

in the Equus Beds aquifer from 1993 to 1997 and attributed them largely to decreases in withdrawals by the city of 

Wichita. Aucott and Myers (1998), Aucott and others (1998), 

Hansen and Aucott (2001, 2004), and Hansen (2007, 2009a, 

2009b) published water-level-decline maps for the study area 

and discussed the changes in storage volume for noteworthy 

past and recent periods of time. Myers and others (1996) 

evaluated the hydrologic interaction between the Arkansas 

River and the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area. 

Water-level data for the High Plains aquifer, which 

includes the Equus Beds aquifer, have been compiled and 

mapped recently in Kansas by Mitchell and others (1993, 

1994), Woods and others (1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 

2000), Woods and Schloss (1996), Woods and Sophocleous (2002, 2004), Olea and Davis (2003), Laflen and Miller 

(2003, 2004, 2005), Bohling and Wilson (2004, 2005, 2006), 

Young and others (2008), and Buddemeier and others (2010), 

and regionally by McGuire and Sharpe (1997), McGuire and 

Fischer (1999), McGuire (2001, 2003, 2004a, 2004b, 2007, 

2009), and McGuire and others (2003).

Geology and Groundwater

Quaternary deposits occur throughout the study area 

primarily as alluvial deposits. These alluvial deposits, known 

locally as the Equus beds, are as much as 250 ft thick in the 

study area (fig. 3). The Equus beds consist primarily of sand 

and gravel interbedded with clay or silt but locally may consist 

primarily of clay with thin sand and gravel layers (Lane and 

Miller, 1965a; Myers and others, 1996). The middle part of 

the deposits generally has more fine-grained material than the 

lower and upper parts (Lane and Miller, 1965b, Myers and 

others, 1996).

The Wellington Formation of Permian age underlies the 

Quaternary deposits in the study area and forms the bedrock 

confining unit below these deposits. The Wellington Formation is about 700 ft thick (Bayne, 1956) and consists of three 

members—the lower anhydrite member, about 200 ft thick; 

the Hutchinson Salt Member, about 300 ft thick; and the upper 

shale member, about 200 ft thick (Myers and others, 1996). 

Dissolution of the Hutchinson Salt Member resulted in subsidence of the overlying upper shale member, formation of low 

areas in the bedrock, and concurrent accumulation of alluvial 

deposits that now compose the Equus Beds aquifer (fig. 3) 

(Myers and others, 1996).

The Equus Beds aquifer is the easternmost extension 

of the High Plains aquifer in Kansas (Stulken and others, 

1985; Hansen and Aucott, 2001). The Equus beds aquifer is 

an important source of groundwater because of the generally 

shallow depth to the water table, the large saturated thickness, 

commonly good permeability (Myers and others, 1996), and 

generally good water quality (Ziegler and others, 2010). Near 

the Arkansas River, the water table may be as little as 10 ft 

below land surface. Farther from the Arkansas River and near 

the Little Arkansas River, the water table is at a greater depth, 

depending on the altitude of the land surface and the amount 

of water-level decline that has been caused by groundwater 

withdrawals. The maximum saturated thickness of the Equus

Beds aquifer within the study area, almost 250 ft, is near the 

Arkansas River and corresponds to the lowest areas of the 

underlying bedrock surface (Spinazola and others, 1985). Hansen (2007) estimated the storage volume of the Equus Beds 

aquifer in the study area at about 2,100,000 acre-ft.

Groundwater-Level Changes

Groundwater-level declines can result from a combination of factors—pumpage, decreased recharge resulting from 

less-than-average precipitation, and other factors. Droughts, 

such as occurred during 1952–56 and 1988–92 (fig. 2A), 

decrease the amount of recharge available and increase 

demand for and thus use of groundwater (fig. 2B), resulting 

in increased water-level declines (fig. 2C). Periods of greaterthan-average rainfall, such as occurred in 1957–62 (fig. 2A), 

tend to increase the amount of recharge available and decrease 

the demand for and thus use of groundwater (fig. 2B), resulting 

in water-level rises (fig. 2C). Artificial recharge supplements 

the amount of recharge naturally available and may result 

locally in smaller water-level declines or, if large enough, in 

water-level rises. If the water-level declines or rises are large 

enough, they may alter the direction of local groundwater 

flow.

Description of noteworthy periods of water-level change 

in the study area is facilitated by the use of hydrographs of 

water levels in observation wells 104 and 886 (fig. 2C). The 

hydrograph of well 104 serves as a representative descriptor 

of agricultural irrigation effects near the northern edge of the 

study area; the hydrograph of well 886 serves as a representative descriptor of historical water-level changes in an area 
8 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

of maximum water-level decline near the historic center of 

pumping by the city of Wichita in the central part of the study 

area (fig. 1). 

Aucott and Myers (1998) identified four noteworthy 

periods of water-level change (fig. 2C): 1940 to 1958, the 

initial water-level decline period when pumpage began in the 

study area, which includes a phase of accelerated declines in 

the mid-1950s coinciding with drought conditions; 1958 to 

1978, a period of general equilibrium with relatively stable 

city pumpage and water levels and increasing irrigation pumpage that became of greater significance in the late 1970s; 1978 

to 1993, another period of water-level declines and increased 

city and irrigation pumpage because of increased demands and 

drought conditions; and 1993 to 1999, a period of water-level 

rises associated with generally greater-than-average precipitation and decreased city pumpage. The first three periods have 

been well documented by Aucott and Myers (1998) and will 

not be described in this report. The fourth period—the period 

of water-level rises seen by Aucott and Myers (1998) during 

1993 to 1999—continued through January 2010 as indicated 

by patterns of precipitation, pumpage, storage volume, and 

water levels shown in figure 2A–C. The fourth period also 

includes a small amount of artificial recharge from the Equus 

Beds Recharge Demonstration Project (fig. 2B). However, for 

the purposes of monitoring the effects of large-scale artificial 

recharge on the Equus Beds aquifer, a fifth period of waterlevel change is considered as starting in 2007 (fig. 2A–C). 

In March 2007, the city of Wichita began large-scale artificial recharge at the six Phase 1 ASR sites in the Equus Beds 

aquifer. 

The consistently large seasonal water-level variations 

in well 104 probably are because of agricultural irrigation 

pumpage and subsequent recovery in the non-growing season. 

Irrigation water-use amounts prior to 1989 are not plotted 

in figure 2B because of incomplete reporting of water-use 

data before 1989 (Lane Letourneau, Kansas Department of 

Agriculture, Division of Water Resources, oral commun., 

August 2, 2002). Reported water use for agricultural irrigation 

and public supply in the study area in 2009 were about 55 and 

59 percent, respectively, of what is permitted by the State of 

Kansas (Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water 

Resources, Topeka, Kansas, unpub. data, 2010) (fig. 2B); thus, 

increased irrigation or city use in the study area could become 

a more significant factor, especially during future dry years.

The use of groundwater hydrographs along with the use 

of maps of water-level altitudes and of water-level changes 

and the use of tables and graphs of changes in storage volume 

can provide a more complete picture of changes in hydrologic 

conditions than the use of any one of these graphic tools. 

Hydrographs of individual wells are important for indicating 

Confining unit

0 1 2 3 4 5 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 5 KILOMETERS

VERTICAL SCALE GREATLY EXAGGERATED

DATUM IS NATIONAL GEODETIC VERTICAL DATUM OF 1929

Trace of section shown in figure 1

1,700

1,600

1,500

1,400

1,300

1,200

1,100

1,000

900

800

700

600

1,700

1,600

1,500

1,400

1,300

1,200

1,100

1,000

900

800

700

600

Arkansas River

Little Arkansas River

Quaternary deposits Projected pre-dissolution

top of Hutchinson Salt 

Member

Bedrock surface

Projected pre-dissolution

top of lower anhydrite member

of Wellington Formation

Lower anhydrite member

of Wellington Formation

Upper shale

member of

Wellington

Formation

Hutchinson 

Salt Member of 

Wellington Formation

FEET FEET

SW NE

Equus Beds aquifer

Figure 3. Generalized geologic section (from Leonard and Kleinschmidt, 1976; Myers and others, 1996).
Groundwater-Level Changes 9

changes over time at a specific point and can be used to infer 

the effects of water-level changes at that point. Such effects 

could include dewatered shallow wells or increased pumping 

costs to lift water from greater depths. Water-level-altitude 

maps show the gradient and direction of groundwater flow 

over a large area at a particular time. A single water-levelaltitude map cannot indicate location or extent of the areas 

affected by water-level declines or rises or how great these 

declines or rises are. However, water-level-change maps can 

be used to illustrate the location, extent, and magnitude of 

water-level declines and rises. Tables and graphs showing 

changes in storage volume, which are derived from waterlevel-change maps and represent a decrease (or increase) 

in the groundwater resource available for use, are a good 

measure of the cumulative effects of pumping and climatic 

conditions on the aquifer.

To illustrate water-level conditions for selected periods, 

previously published water-level-altitude maps for August 

1940 (fig 4; Stramel, 1956; Aucott and Myers, 1998) and 

October 1992 (fig 5; Hansen and Aucott, 2001) were used 

in addition to the water-level-altitude map for January 2010 

that was constructed for this report (fig. 6). Water levels used 

for the January 2010 water-level altitude map (fig. 6) were 

measured in the historic observation wells by city of Wichita 

personnel during January 4 to 13, 2010, and in the areal index 

wells by GMD2 personnel during January 14 to 15, 2010. 

Average daily surface-water-altitude measurements computed 

for January 10, 2010, from data automatically collected by 

equipment at six USGS streamflow-gaging stations on the 

Arkansas and Little Arkansas Rivers in and near the study 

area (fig. 1, table A1 in Appendix) were used to estimate the 

surface-water altitude along these streams as depicted in figure 

6. The average daily surface-water altitudes for January 10, 

2010, are shown for the three streamflow-gaging stations on 

the Little Arkansas River that are in the study area (fig. 6); no 

streamflow-gaging stations on the Arkansas River are in the 

study area (fig. 1). 

Figures 4, 5, and 6, respectively, illustrate conditions for 

predevelopment (August 1940), record low water levels in 

October 1992, and current (January 2010) conditions. Prior to 

pumpage from the Equus Beds aquifer in 1940, near-predevelopment conditions existed in the study area (Williams and 

Lohman, 1949; Aucott and Myers, 1998). The August 1940 

water-level-altitude map from Stramel (1956) that was modified by Aucott and Myers (1998) (fig. 4) shows that groundwater flowed generally from west to east and discharged to the 

Little Arkansas River. Water-level-altitude maps for August 

1940 and January 1955 (Stramel, 1956); for January 1957, 

January 1970, January 1993, and January 1998 (Aucott and 

Myers, 1998); for January 1997 (Aucott and others, 1998); for 

October 1992 (fig. 5) and January 2000 (Hansen and Aucott, 

2001); for April 2000 and January 2003 (Hansen and Aucott, 

2004); for January 2006 (Hansen, 2007); and for January 2010 

(fig. 6) indicate that following development, groundwater flow 

remained from west to east, but that the flow generally became 

more southeasterly and more parallel to the Little Arkansas 

River near the eastern edge of the central part of the study area 

between Halstead and Sedgwick. 

Water-level change maps were constructed from available 

water-level data to show changes between August 1940 (predevelopment) and quarter-year intervals from January 2006 

to July 2008 (figs. 7–17), between August 1940 and half-year 

intervals from January 2009 to January 2010 (figs. 18–20), 

between August 1940 and October 1992 (fig. 21), between 

October 1992 and January 2010 (fig. 22), and between January 

2007 and January 2010 (fig. 23). The August 1940 to October 

1992 period (fig. 21) was selected as representative of the 

cumulative change between predevelopment and the period of 

maximum water-level decline (Hansen and Aucott, 2001). The 

October 1992 to January 2010 period (fig. 22) was selected 

as representative of the cumulative change since the period of 

maximum water-level decline (Hansen and Aucott, 2001). The 

January 2007 to January 2010 period was selected as representative of the cumulative change since just before the beginning 

of large-scale recharge (fig. 23).

In constructing figures 7–20 and similar maps in recent 

reports showing water-level changes since August 1940 

(Aucott and Myers, 1998; Aucott and others, 1998; Hansen 

and Aucott, 2001, 2004; Hansen, 2007, 2009a, 2009b), if a 

1940 water-level measurement did not exist for a well in the 

study area, one was interpolated from the August 1940 waterlevel-altitude map (fig. 4). For all other dates, no interpolations 

were made; contours were drawn based only on measured 

water levels. 

Quarter-Year and Half-Year Intervals, 2006 to 

2010

The water-level changes since August 1940 for the period 

January 2006 to January 2010 (figs. 7–20) ranged from a 

decline of more than 30 ft in a well about 2.5 mi west-northwest of Halstead in the northern part of the study area in July 

2006 (fig. 9) to a rise of more than 4 ft in July 2007 at a well 

near the Little Arkansas River about 2 mi northwest of Halstead (fig. 13). The shapes of the water-level-change contours 

since August 1940 for the period January 2006 to January 

2010 (figs. 7–20) are similar to those published for recent 

years (Aucott and Myers, 1998; Aucott and others, 1998; 

Hansen and Aucott, 2001, 2004; Hansen, 2007, 2009a, 2009b). 

Comparisons of figures 7–20 show the annual cycle of waterlevel declines and rises that generally occur in the study area. 

Typically, the largest water-level declines occur during the 

summer or fall when agricultural irrigation and city pumpage 

are greatest. During the period January 2006 to January 2010, 

this is shown most distinctly by the expansion of areas with 

water-level declines of 10 ft or more on the July and October 

maps of water-level changes since August 1940 and the occurrence of areas with declines of 20 ft or more on the July 2006, 

October 2007, and July 2009 maps (figs. 9, 10, 13, 14, 17, and 

19). As vegetation and human water use decrease following 
10 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

886

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

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1,425

1,430

1,420

1,405

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1,415

1,360

1,355

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1,375

1,340

1,385

1,395

1,335

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1,365

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1,405

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97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Water-level measurements were made by city of Wichita personnel.

Boundary of central part of study area

Approximate direction of groundwater flow

Water-level contour—Shows altitude of water 

 level, August 1940. Dashed where approximately

 located. Contour interval 5 feet. Datum is National 

 Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929

Study area

1,440

Equus Beds historic observation well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 886

EXPLANATION

Figure 4. Water-level altitudes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 (modified from Stramel, 1956; 

Aucott and Myers, 1998).
Groundwater-Level Changes 11

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

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Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

104

886

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

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1,385

1,395

1,390

1,400

1,380

1,405

1,415

1,410

1,420

1,370

1,375

1,425

1,365

1,360

1,355

1,435

1,350

1,345 1,340

1,335

1,355

1,440

1,370

1,355

1,375

1,380

1,365

1,410

1,345

1,405

1,360

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1,415

1,395

1,430

1,420

1,430

1,425

1,445

1,390

1,330

1,350

1,385

1,435

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Low head dam on 

Little Arkansas 

River at Halstead 

(altitude is 1,375 

feet at top of dam)

Water-level measurements were made by city of Wichita personnel.

!

EXPLANATION

Boundary of central part of study area

Water-level contour—Shows altitude of water 

 level, October 1992. Dashed where approximately

 located. Contour interval 5 feet. Datum is National 

 Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929

Study area

Equus Beds historic observation well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2

U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station

104

1,440

Approximate direction of groundwater flow

Figure 5. Water-level altitudes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, October 1992 (modified from Hansen and Aucott, 

2001).
12 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

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!

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!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

1,445

1,385

1,440

1,380

1,415

1,410

1,405

1,400

1,395

1,390

1,370

1,375

1,385

1,390

1,380

1,395

1,400

1,405

1,410

1,415

1,420

1,425

1,375

1,370

1,365

1,430

1,360

1,435

1,355

1,350

1,345 1,340

1,335

1,330

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel. 

Water-level measurements at streamflow-gaging stations were 

collected by U.S. Geological Survey personnel. 

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

# U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging station

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

Approximate direction of groundwater flow

Water-level contour—Shows altitude of water 

 level, January 2010. Dashed where approximately 

 located. Contour interval 5 feet. Datum is North 

 American Vertical Datum of 1988

1,425

Boundary of central part of study area

Study area

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

EXPLANATION

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

RENO COUNTY

Low head dam on 

Little Arkansas 

River at Halstead 

(altitude is 1,375 

feet at top of dam)

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 6. Water-level altitudes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, January 2010.
Groundwater-Level Changes 13

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

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!

!

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!

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!

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!

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!

!

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!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

104

886

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

0

-2

-2

0

0

-2

-4

-4

-6

-6

-8

-8

-10

-10

-12

-12

-14

-14

-16

-16

0

-18

-18

-10

-2

-16

-14

-18

-4

-10

-14

-8

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14 EXPLANATION

Area of water-level decline !

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

-14

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 !

104

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and January 2006 is 

127,000 acre-feet.

Figure 7. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to January 2006 (modified from Hansen 

and Aucott, 2007).
14 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

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" " " "

" "

"

"

"

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" " "

"

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" " "

"

!

! !

!

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!

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!

!

! !

!

!

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!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

104

886

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

-2

-4

-4

-4

-6

-6

-6

-8

-8

-8

-10

-10

0

-12

-14

-16

-18

-20

-22

0

-16

0

0

-18 -20

-14

-10

-2

-2

-10

-12

-16

-2

-22

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and April 2006 is 

135,000 acre-feet.

EXPLANATION

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104 Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

-14

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 8. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to April 2006.
Groundwater-Level Changes 15

"

"

" "

"

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

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"

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" " "

"

!

! !

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!

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!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

-14

0

-16

-22

-6

-18

-20

-8 -6

0

0

-8

-14

0

-20

+2

-4

-24

-2

-6

-10

-26

-16

-12

-18

-16

-22

-22

-2

-22

-4

-4

-6

-8

-24

-16

-14

-24

-16

-12

-26

-22

0

-2

-2

-2

-10

-10

-20

-20

-6

-24

-16

-18

-30

-28

-20

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and July 2006 is 

180,000 acre-feet.

EXPLANATION

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

 30 to less than 40 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

-14

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

Figure 9. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to July 2006.
16 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

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" " " "

" "

"

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" " "

"

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" " "

"

!

! !

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!

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!

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! ! ! !

!

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!

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!

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! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

104

886

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

0

0

-6

-8

-8

-8 -6

-10

-10

-12

-12

-12

-14

-14

-16

-20

-18

+2

-22

-24 -26

-28

-24

-4

-18

-2

-22

-16

-14

-4

-4

-6

-4

-2

-2

-16

-30

-4

-2

-2

0

-4

!

EXPLANATION

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

 30 to less than 40 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

-14

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and October 2006 is 

182,000 acre-feet.

!

104

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 10. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to October 2006.
Groundwater-Level Changes 17

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

RB-2

RB-1

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

EXPLANATION

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and January 2007 is 

167,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

-14

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

0

-2

0

-2

0

-2

-8

-10

-14

-4

-18

-6

-8

-20

-12

-16

-4

-12

-16

-4

-6

-12

-4

-6

-2

Figure 11. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to January 2007.
18 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

-8

-6

-2

-16

-4

-18

-20

-22

-12

-14

-24

-22

-20

0

-10

-2

-12

-10

-14

-16

-18

-18

-20

-6

-10

-2

-8

-20

-4

-10

0

-2

0

-2

-4

-4

-6

-8

-2

-22

-22

-24

0

-12

-14

!

!

EXPLANATION

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and April 2007 is 

161,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

Figure 12. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to April 2007.
Groundwater-Level Changes 19

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

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!

!

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!

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!

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!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

-6

-6

0

-4

-14

-16

-8

+2

-10

-12

-18

-20

-2

-2

-4

-2

-14

-20

-16

-18

-12

-14

-8

-8

-18

-8

+2

-10

-10

-10

-12

0

0

-18

0

-16

-8

0

+2

0

0

+4

-2

-18

-10

104

886

-14

RRW-2

EXPLANATION

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and July 2007 is 

123,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

" Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 13. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to July 2007.
20 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

886

104

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

0

-2

0

0

0

0

-4

-10

-8 -6

-4

-8

-6

-12

-12

-10

-14

-14

-16

-18

+2

-20

-22

-24

-20

-14

-20

-2

-22

-18

-16

-10

0

+2

-20

-2

0

-2

-2

-26

-28

-8

RRW-2

EXPLANATION

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and October 2007 is 

154,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

" Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 14. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to October 2007.
Groundwater-Level Changes 21

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

0

0

0

0

-4

-4

-6

-6

-12

-12

0

-14

-16

-2

+2

-8

-18

-20

-10

-22

-8

-8

-2

-20

-10

-10

-2

-16

0

-16

-2

-18

-24

-22

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

RRW-2

EXPLANATION

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and January 2008 is 

141,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites

" Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 15. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to January 2008.
22 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

0

0

-4

-4

-6

-6

-14

-14

0

+2

-18

-10 -8

-12

-16

-16

-2

-16

-16

0

-10

0

-2

-16

-2

-16

-2

-14

-8

-8

-8

-2

-12

-16

EXPLANATION

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Bousndary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

RRW-2

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

" Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and April 2008 is 

135,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

" Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 16. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to April 2008.
Groundwater-Level Changes 23

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

"

" " "

"

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

0

-2

0

-4

-6

-4

-6

-2

-8

-8

-14 -18

-22 -10

-16 -20

-12

-12

-14

-10

-10

-14

-16

0

-16

-18

-14

-14

-16

-18

-18

-6

-6

-2

-2

-8

-16

-12

EXPLANATION

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and July 2008 is 

134,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Hachures indicate 

 closed areas where the water-level change is a 

 smaller decline than in the surrounding area. 

 Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 17. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to July 2008.
24 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

"

" " "

"

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

-2

-4

-12

+2

-14

-14

-16

-6

-18

-10

-10

-14

0

-6

-8

-14

0

-16

-2

-2

-4

-4

-6

-6

-8

-8

0

-20

-8

-22

-24

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and January 2009 is 

111,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

EXPLANATION

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 18. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to January 2009.
Groundwater-Level Changes 25

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

"

" " "

"

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

0

+2

0

0

-6

-6

-8

-8

-10

-2

-2

-12

-14

-4

-16

-16

-22

-18

-20

-24

-20

-2

-14

-16

-2

-4

-4

-18

-12

-12

-10

-12

0

-12

-14

0

-14

-20

EXPLANATION

!

!

Equus Beds historic observation well

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

" Equus Beds areal index well

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and July 2009 is 

124,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 19. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to July 2009.
26 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

" "

"

" "

"

"

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

" " " "

" "

"

"

"

"

" "

"

"

"

" " "

"

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

! ! ! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

RB-2

RB-1

0

+2

0

0

-2

-4

-2

-4

0

-8

-8

-6

-6

-10

-10

-12

-12

-14

-14

-16

-16

-12

0

-2

-14

-16

EXPLANATION

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

! Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and January 2010 is 

100,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

-14

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

! Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 20. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to January 2010.
Groundwater-Level Changes 27

the summer months, so does irrigation and city pumpage, 

resulting in water-level rises that generally continue into the 

following spring. The maps of water-level changes since 

August 1940 for the period January 2006 to January 2010 

show these water-level rises most obviously as the decrease in 

the size of the areas with declines of 10 ft or more in the January and April maps and the complete disappearance of areas of 

declines of 20 ft or more in January 2006 and April 2008 (figs. 

7, 8, 11, 12, 15, 16, 18, and 20).

Cumulative Change Since Period of Maximum 

Decline

As pointed out previously by Hansen and Aucott (2001, 

2004), the maximum recorded decline in the study area 

occurred in October 1992 (fig. 21); therefore, a map for the 

period October 1992 to January 2010 was constructed to 

illustrate the magnitude of cumulative water-level changes 

since the period of maximum decline (fig. 22). The cumulative water-level changes from October 1992 to January 2010 

ranged from declines of less than 2 ft near the Little Arkansas 

River between Halstead and Kisiwa Creek and near Valley 

Center to rises of more than 30 ft in two wells near the center 

of city pumpage in the central part of the study area (fig. 22). 

Seasonal water-level changes in some wells during October 

1992 to January 2010 were larger than the cumulative waterlevel changes for the same period (for example, see hydrograph of observation well 104 in fig. 2C). For the October 

1992 to January 2010 period, a large area of cumulative waterlevel rises of 10 ft or more occurred throughout much of the 

study area, and a large area of rises of 20 ft or more occurred 

in the northern and center parts of the study area and in a small 

area in T. 25 S., R. 2 W. (fig. 22). Almost all the wells in the 

study area had cumulative water-level rises from October 1992 

to January 2010 (fig. 22). The average cumulative water-level 

change in the study area from October 1992 to January 2010 

was a rise of about 8.7 ft.

Recharge from precipitation contributed to the overall 

water-level rises seen throughout the study area (fig. 22) from 

October 1992 to January 2010 because annual precipitation 

during 1993–2009 averaged about 2 in. greater than the longterm (1940–2009) annual average precipitation of 31.52 in. 

(fig. 2A). Decreased city pumpage during 1993–2009 (fig 2B) 

contributed to the water-level rises of 10 ft or more between 

October 1992 and January 2010 that occurred throughout 

most of the central part of the study area and extended beyond 

to the northwest and east (fig. 22). During 1993–2009, city 

pumpage from the Equus Beds aquifer, which occurs primarily in the central part of the study area, decreased by about 

one-half from about 38,600 to 19,700 acre-ft or from about 60 

percent to about 32 percent of Wichita’s usage (fig. 2B). Some 

of the city wells in the northern part of the central part of the 

study area were not pumped in late 2009 because of a pipeline 

break (Richard Robinson, written commun., city of Wichita, 

March 18, 2010), which contributed in part to the water-level 

rises seen in this area. An important factor in the decreased 

city pumpage from the aquifer was increased use of Cheney 

Reservoir by the city of Wichita as a water-supply source. 

Changes in irrigation pumpage did not contribute to the overall rise from October 1992 to January 2010 because irrigation 

pumpage increased from about 22,500 acre-ft in 1993 to about 

25,200 acre-ft in 2009 and was as much or more during most 

of the intervening years (fig. 2B). Irrigation pumpage varied 

considerably from year to year because of climatic variations, 

so reduced irrigation pumpage could contribute to rises in 

some years. Artificial recharge of about 3,300 acre-ft occurred 

during 1997–2002 at the Equus Beds Recharge Demonstration 

Project sites (fig. 1) and about 2,600 acre-ft during 2007–09 at 

the Phase 1 recharge sites for a total of about 5,900 acre-ft (fig. 

2B). This small amount of artificial recharge relative to irrigation and city pumpage also contributed to the water level rises, 

but principally in the vicinity of the recharge sites. A numerical groundwater-flow model can provide a more definitive 

accounting of the causes of these water-level rises.

Cumulative Change Since Beginning of LargeScale Artificial Recharge

The Equus Beds ASR project began large-scale artificial 

recharge at the six Phase 1 recharge sites (fig. 23) in March 

2007. The January 2007 water-level measurements made in 

the Equus Beds historic observation and areal index wells 

were the last set before the beginning of Phase 1 recharge. 

Therefore, a map of water-level changes from January 2007 

to January 2010 would be expected to show the cumulative 

effects of large-scale artificial recharge in addition to the other 

hydrologic factors that changed between those times (fig. 23). 

This map shows almost all wells in the study area experienced 

small cumulative water-level rises since the beginning Phase 1 

recharge (fig. 23). Cumulative water-level changes from January 2007 to January 2010 ranged from a decline of less than 

2 ft at a well about 2 mi west of artificial recharge site RB-2 

to rises of more than 8 ft in the northern part of the study area 

(fig. 23). The cumulative water-level changes from January 

2007 to January 2010 commonly were rises of more than 4 ft 

in the northern and central parts of the study area and rises of 

less than 4 ft in the rest of the study area (fig. 23). The average 

cumulative water-level change in the study area from January 

2007 to January 2010 was about 3.2 ft. 

Recharge from precipitation during 2007–09 contributed 

to the overall rises seen throughout the study area because 

precipitation averaged about 6 in/yr greater than the long-term 

annual average (fig. 2A). Decreased city pumpage, which went 

from about 20,800 acre-ft in 2007 to about 19,700 acre-ft in 

2009, contributed to the rises in and near the central part of the 

study area. The large rises of 10 ft or more seen in T. 23 S., R. 

2 W. in the central part of the study area probably are because 

a pipeline break prevented most of the city wells in this area 

from being used in late 2009 (Richard Robinson, written commun., city of Wichita, March 18, 2010). Irrigation pumpage 
28 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

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886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

104

886

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita personnel.

Depletion of storage volume in study area 

between August 1940 and October 1992 is 

283,000 acre-feet.

-34

-30

-32

-34

-36

-46

-32

-38

-36

-38

-40

-40

-42

0

0

-4

-6

-8

-8

-2

-6

-4

-2

-10

-10

-12

-14-16 -18

-20

-22 -24

-26

-28

-18 -20-22

-12

-24

-14

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-28 -26

-30

-32

-32

-34

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-36

-38

-40

-42

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-36

-30

-6

-4

-2

-2

-38

-44

-46

-40

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

!

Area of water-level decline !

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

 30 to less than 40 feet

 40 to less than 50 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

-14

Equus Beds historic observation well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

EXPLANATION

Little Arkansas River

Figure 21. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to October 1992 (modified from Aucott 

and Hansen, 2001).
Groundwater-Level Changes 29

"

"

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"

RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

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Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

104

886

Little Arkansas River

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

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30

4

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Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita personnel.

Recovery of storage volume in study area 

between October 1992 and January 2010 is 

183,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

!

!

EXPLANATION

Area of water-level recovery

 Less than 10 feet

 10 to less than 20 feet

 20 to less than 30 feet

 30 to less than 40 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

14

Equus Beds historic observation well

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 104

RRW-2 " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 

23 

S.

T. 

24

S.

T.

25

S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

Base from U.S. Geological Survey digital data, 1983, 1:100,000

Universal Transverse Mercator projection

Zone 14

Figure 22. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, October 1992 to January 2010.
30 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

"

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RENO COUNTY

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

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104

886

Sand Creek

Emma Creek

Creek

Middle Em

ma Creek

West Emma Creek

Arkansas River

Little Arkansas River

Kisiwa Creek

Emma

East

Halstead

Valley

Center

Sedgwick

Mount Hope

Burrton

Bentley

RB-2

RB-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

2

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97°37'30" 97°30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

R. 3 W. R. 2 W. R. 1 W.

T. 23 S. T. 24 S. T. 25 S.

0 1 2 3 4 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 KILOMETERS

EXPLANATION

Water-level measurements were made by 

city of Wichita and Equus Beds Groundwater 

Management District No. 2 personnel.

Recovery of storage volume in study area 

between January 2007 and January 2010 is 

67,000 acre-feet.

Artificial recharge began March 2007 at Phase 1 sites.

! Equus Beds historic observation well

" Equus Beds areal index well

RRW-2

Area of water-level recovery

 0 to less than 10 feet

Boundary of central part of study area

Line of equal water-level change—Dashed 

 where approximately located. Hachures

 indicate closed areas where the water-level 

 change is a smaller recovery than in the 

 surrounding area. Interval 2 feet

Boundary of study area

4

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2 !

104

Area of water-level decline

 Less than 10 feet " Phase 1 recharge site and identifier

Figure 23. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, January 2007 to January 2010.
Storage-Volume Changes 31

decreased from about 26,900 acre-ft in 2007 to about 25,200 

acre-ft in 2009 and contributed in part to the water-level rises 

during this period. The artificial recharge of about 2,600 acreft that occurred at the Phase 1 recharge sites during 2007–09 

also contributed to the 2007–09 water-level rises, but principally near the Phase 1 recharge sites. 

Storage-Volume Changes

Storage-volume change is defined for the purposes of 

this report as the change in saturated aquifer volume multiplied by the specific yield of the aquifer. A specific yield of 

0.2 has been used to compute the storage-volume change in 

the Equus Beds aquifer since Stramel (1956) first computed 

storage volume for the aquifer and is retained for this report as 

described in the Specific Yield section. The changes in storage 

volume since August 1940 for the selected time periods shown 

in table 1 were computed using computer-generated Thiessen 

polygons (Thiessen, 1911) that were based on the measured 

water-level changes at wells and the manually drawn lines of 

equal water-level change (figs. 7–20).

Storage-volume change for a period beginning at a time 

other than August 1940 (table 1) was calculated as the difference between storage-volume changes for August 1940 to the 

beginning of the selected time period and for August 1940 to 

the end of the selected time period. For example, the storagevolume change for January 2007 to January 2010 (table 1) 

was calculated as the difference between the storage-volume 

change for August 1940 to January 2007 and for August 1940 

to January 2010. The storage-volume changes since predevelopment (August 1940), since the period of maximum decline 

(October 1992), and since the beginning of the period of largescale artificial recharge (January 2007) are shown in table 1 

for the study area and the central part of the study area. The 

storage-volume changes since October 1992 as a percentage 

of the storage volume lost between August 1940 and October 

1992 are included in table 1 for both areas. Also included in 

table 1 are storage-volume changes since January 1993, the 

period of low water levels cited by the Equus Beds ASR Phase 

1 permit (Approval of Application to Appropriate Water Application File Nos. 45567 through 45571, 45576, 46081, and 

46578, Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water 

Resources, Topeka, Kansas, August 8, 2005, and February 19, 

2007). The storage-volume changes for the study area since 

August 1940 are shown graphically in figure 2C and figure 24 

for selected periods.

Following the maximum loss of storage that occurred 

from August 1940 to October 1992 in the study area (Hansen 

and Aucott, 2001), storage volume in the study area generally 

has continued to recover through January 2010 with some loss 

of recovery during years with less than average precipitation 

(for example, in 2003 and 2006) and subsequent to summer months where heavier pumping occurs (fig. 2A and 2C). 

Changes in storage volumes from August 1940 to January 

2010 in the study area and in the central part of the study area 

were -100,000 and -57,600 acre-ft, respectively (table 1). 

Water levels and storage volumes in January 2010 were similar to those seen in the late 1970s and early 1950s (fig. 2C). 

Cumulative Change Since Period of Maximum 

Decline

The storage-volume change in the study area for the 

period October 1992 to January 2010 represents a recovery of 

about 183,000 acre-ft or about 65 percent of storage previously lost between August 1940 and October 1992 in the study 

area (table 1). The storage-volume change in the central part 

of the study area for October 1992 to January 2010 represents 

about 101,400 acre-ft or about a 64-percent recovery of storage lost between August 1940 and October 1992 in this part 

of the study area (table 1). These are the largest post-October 

1992 recoveries to date in the study area and the central part of 

the study area (table 1). 

The change since 1993 of the components of irrigation and city pumpage and artificial recharge (table 2) can be 

totaled for a cumulative change for each component; these 

cumulative changes can be used for a comparison of the relative importance of these components during the 1993–2009 

period. These cumulative changes are an increase of about 

128,100 acre-ft for irrigation pumpage, a decrease of about 

256,500 acre-ft for city pumpage; and an increase of about 

5,900 acre-ft for artificial recharge. Irrigation pumpage, 

because it increased, did not contribute to the recovery of 

storage volume from October 1992 to January 2010. Artificial 

recharge and the decrease in city pumpage contributed to the 

recovery of storage volume, but artificial recharge’s contribution was more than an order of magnitude less. Recharge from 

excess precipitation contributed to the recovery of storage 

volume in this period because precipitation averaged about 

2 in/yr more than the annual long-term average of 31.52 in. 

(fig2A, table 2). 

Cumulative Change Since Beginning of LargeScale Artificial Recharge

The storage-volume change since the beginning of largescale artificial recharge (January 2007 to January 2010) of 

67,000 acre-ft in the study area represents a recovery of about 

40 percent of the storage volume lost between August 1940 

and January 2007 (table1). In the central part of the study area, 

the storage-volume change for this period is about 25,300 

acre-ft or about a 31-percent recovery of the storage-volume 

previously lost between August 1940 and January 2007 

(table 1). 

Decreases in irrigation and city pumpage and artificial 

recharge of about 2,600 acre-ft during 2007–09 contributed to 

the recovery of storage volume during this period. Recharge 

from precipitation also contributed to the recovery because 
32 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

Table 1. Storage-volume changes in Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, south-central Kansas, August 1940 to January 2010.

[Data on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas; --, not applicable; NA, not available]

End date of 

time period

Since 

August 1940 

(acre-feet)

Since 

October 1992 

(acre-feet)

Since 

October 1992 

(percent)

Since 

January 1993 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2006 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2007 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2007 

(percent)

Change in storage volume in the study area

January 1989 -209,000 -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1990 NA -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1991 -241,000 -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1992 NA -- -- -- -- -- --

October 1992 1 -283,000 -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1993 2 -255,000 5 +28,000 5 +10 -- -- -- --

January 1994 -192,000 +91,000 +32 +63,000 -- -- --

January 1995 -245,000 +38,000 +13 +10,000 -- -- --

January 1996 -210,000 +73,000 +26 +45,000 -- -- --

January 1997 3 -205,000 +78,000 +28 +50,000 -- -- --

January 1998 2 -176,000 +107,000 +38 2 +79,000 -- -- --

January 1999 1 -142,000 +141,000 +50 +113,000 -- -- --

January 2000 1 -126,000 4 +157,000 +55 +129,000 -- -- --

January 2001 4 -134,000 +149,000 +53 +121,000 -- -- --

January 2002 4 -142,000 +141,000 +50 +113,000 -- -- --

January 2003 4 -159,000 4 +124,000 5 +44 +96,000 -- -- --

April 2003 5 -153,000 5 +130,000 5 +46 +102,000 -- -- --

July 2003 5 -197,000 5 +86,000 5 +30 +58,000 -- -- --

October 2003 5 -186,000 5 +97,000 5 +34 +69,000 -- -- --

January 2004 5 -170,000 5 +113,000 5 +40 +85,000 -- -- --

April 2004 5 -147,000 5 +136,000 5 +48 +108,000 -- -- --

July 2004 5 -166,000 5 +117,000 5 +41 +89,000 -- -- --

October 2004 5 -158,000 5 +125,000 5 +44 +97,000 -- -- --

January 2005 5 -143,000 5 +140,000 5 +49 +112,000 -- -- --

April 2005 5 -131,000 5 +152,000 5 +54 +124,000 -- -- --

July 2005 5 -137,000 5 +146,000 5 +52 +118,000 -- -- --

October 2005 5 -131,000 5 +152,000 5 +54 +124,000 -- -- --

January 2006 5 -127,000 5 +156,000 5 +55 +128,000 -- -- --

April 2006 -135,000 +148,000 +52 +120,000 -8,000 -- --

July 2006 -180,000 +103,000 +36 +75,000 -53,000 -- --

October 2006 -182,000 +101,000 +36 +73,000 -55,000 -- --
Storage-Volume Changes 33

Table 1. Storage-volume changes in Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, south-central Kansas, August 1940 to January 2010.—

Continued

[Data on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas; --, not applicable; NA, not available]

End date of 

time period

Since 

August 1940 

(acre-feet)

Since 

October 1992 

(acre-feet)

Since 

October 1992 

(percent)

Since 

January 1993 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2006 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2007 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2007 

(percent)

Change in storage volume in the study area—Continued

January 2007 -167,000 +116,000 +41 +88,000 -40,000 -- --

April 2007 -161,000 +122,000 +43 +94,000 -34,000 +6,000 +6

July 2007 -123,000 +160,000 +57 +132,000 +4,000 +44,000 +26

October 2007 -154,000 +129,000 +46 +101,000 -27,000 +13,000 +8

January 2008 -141,000 +142,000 +50 +144,000 -14,000 +26,000 +16

April 2008 -135,000 +148,000 +52 +120,000 -8,000 +32,000 +19

July 2008 6 -134,000 +149,000 +53 +121,000 -7,000 +33,000 +20

January 2009 7 -111,000 +172,000 +61 +144,000 +16,000 +56,000 +34

July 2009 -124,000 +159,000 +56 +131,000 +3,000 +43,000 +26

January 2010 -100,000 +183,000 +65 +155,000 +28,000 +67,000 +40

Change in storage volume in the central part of the study area

January 1989 NA -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1990 NA -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1991 NA -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1992 NA -- -- -- -- -- --

October 1992 1

-159,000 -- -- -- -- -- --

January 1993 2

-154,000 5 +5,000 5 +3 -- -- -- --

January 1994 NA NA NA NA -- -- --

January 1995 NA NA NA NA -- -- --

January 1996 NA NA NA NA -- -- --

January 1997 3 -123,000 +36,000 +23 +31,000 -- -- --

January 1998 2 -110,000 +49,000 +31 2 +44,000 -- -- --

January 1999 1 -96,300 +62,700 +39 +57,700 -- -- --

January 2000 1

-70,600 4 +88,400 3 +56 1 +83,400 -- -- --

January 2001 4 -78,900 +80,100 +50 +75,100 -- -- --

January 2002 4

-77,100 +81,900 +52 +76,900 -- -- --

January 2003 4 -83,400 4 +75,600 +48 +70,600 -- -- --

April 2003 5 -84,400 5 +74,600 5 +47 +69,600 -- -- --

July 2003 5 -89,300 5 +69,700 5 +44 +64,700 -- -- --

October 2003 5 -92,300 5 +66,700 5 +42 +61,700 -- -- --
34 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

Table 1. Storage-volume changes in Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, south-central Kansas, August 1940 to January 2010.—

Continued

[Data on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas; --, not applicable; NA, not available]

End date of 

time period

Since 

August 1940 

(acre-feet)

Since 

October 1992 

(acre-feet)

Since 

October 1992 

(percent)

Since 

January 1993 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2006 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2007 

(acre-feet)

Since 

January 2007 

(percent)

Change in storage volume in the central part of the study area—Continued

January 2004 5 -89,900 5 +69,100 5 +43 +64,100 -- -- --

April 2004 5 -83,600 5 +75,400 5 +47 +70,400 -- -- --

July 2004 5 -86,900 5 +72,100 5 +45 +67,100 -- -- --

October 2004 5 -86,200 5 +72,800 5 +46 +67,800 -- -- --

January 2005 5 -82,700 5 +76,300 5 +48 +71,300 -- -- --

April 2005 5 -80,500 5 +78,500 5 +49 +73,500 -- -- --

July 2005 5 -74,300 5 +84,700 5 +53 +79,700 -- -- --

October 2005 5 -74,300 5 +84,700 5 +53 +79,700 -- -- --

January 2006 5 -68,900 5 +90,100 5 +57 +85,100 -- -- --

April 2006 -72,300 +86,700 +55 +81,700 -3400 -- --

July 2006 -78,300 +80,700 +51 +75,700 -9,400 -- --

October 2006 -86,700 +72,300 +45 +67,300 -17,800 -- --

January 2007 -82,900 +76,100 +48 +71,100 -14,000 -- --

April 2007 -84,800 +74,200 +47 +69,200 -15,900 -1,900 -2

July 2007 -75,300 +83,700 +53 +78,700 -6,400 +7,600 +9

October 2007 -81,100 +77,900 +49 +72,900 -12,200 +1,800 +2

January 2008 -78,400 +80,600 +51 +75,600 -9,500 +4,500 +5

April 2008 -75,600 +83,400 +52 +78,400 -6,700 +7,300 +9

July 2008 5

-71,200 +87,800 +55 +82,800 -2,300 +11,700 +14

January 2009 6

-66,600 +92,400 +58 +87,400 +2,300 +16,300 +20

July 2009 -64,100 +94,900 +60 +89,900 +4,800 +18,800 +23

January 2010 -57,600 +101,400 +64 +96,400 +11,300 +25,300 +31

1

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen and Aucott (2001).

2

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Aucott and Myers (1998).

3

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Aucott and others (1998).

4

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen and Aucott (2004).

5

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen (2007).

6

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen (2009a).

7

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen (2009b).
Sustainable Yield 35

precipitation during 2007–09 was about 6 in/yr greater than 

the long-term average. The greater percentage storage-volume 

recovery during this period in the whole study area (about 

40 percent) than in the central part of the study area (about 

31 percent) may be in part because of decreased irrigation 

pumpage. Decreases in irrigation pumpage, which affect the 

whole study area, tend to be more closely linked to greaterthan-average precipitation than are the more managementdriven decreases in city pumpage, which occur almost exclusively in the central part of the study area. If artificial recharge 

increases and becomes similar in magnitude to the changes 

in city and irrigation pumpage, it would become a significant 

component of storage-volume change. During periods of lessthan-average precipitation, artificial recharge could become 

a more important component; however, reduced streamflow 

during periods of less-than-average precipitation may limit 

the ability of the city to artificially recharge the aquifer using 

water from the Little Arkansas River.

Sustainable Yield

The Equus Beds aquifer in the study area has experienced 

periods of substantial water-level decline and recovery. These 

changes in water levels and the resulting changes in storage 

volume have been a function of variations in natural recharge, 

evapotranspiration, well withdrawals, stream aquifer interactions, and movement of water within the aquifer into and out 

of the area. Artificial recharge quantities, although currently 

(2010) small compared to other water-budget components, are 

expected to increase in the future.

Sustainable yield is the development and use of groundwater in a manner that can be maintained for an indefinite time 

without causing unacceptable environmental, economic, or 

social consequences (Alley and others, 1999). An important 

characteristic of an aquifer’s sustainable yield is the amount of 

groundwater that can be withdrawn from the aquifer on a longterm basis with limited adverse depletion of the groundwaterstorage reserve. Typically, a complex hydrologic computer 

model would be constructed to evaluate sustainable yield (for 

example, Myers and others, 1996; Burns and McDonnell, 

2008). 

Simple empirical approaches also can be used to estimate 

sustainable yield, provided that historical data describing 

groundwater withdrawals and aquifer storage exist. Such data 

are available for the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area and 

are shown in table 2. Table 2 shows annual estimates of the 

two primary components of groundwater withdrawals (irrigation and city pumpage) as well as a measure of aquifer storage, 

which is shown in the table as the departure from the 1940 

storage volume.

The data in table 2 can be used to estimate sustainable 

yield with two different methods. In the first method, multiyear time periods (1989–95, 1999–2001, 2002–04, 2005–07) 

were identified during which the change in aquifer storage 

was minimal; the criterion for a minimal storage change was 

defined as a change in volume less than 5 percent of the annual 

pumpage. The average annual total pumpage values and precipitation departure from long-term average for the period of 

minimal net aquifer storage change are noted in table 3.

The results in table 3 show that sustainable yields 

varied between 52,500 and 65,400 acre-ft/yr and averaged 

56,600 acre-ft/yr during periods of minimal storage-volume 

change. An interesting result is that the highest sustainable 

yield value is estimated for the driest period. This may indicate that water demands were higher during the driest years 

-300,000

-250,000

--200,000

-150,000

-100,000

-50,000

0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

STORAGE-VOLUME CHANGE, IN ACRE-FEET

August

1940

to

January

1957

August

1940

to

January

1970

August

1940

to

October

1992

August

1940

to

January

2007

August

1940

to

January

2010

October

1992

to

January

2010

January

2007

to

January

2010

Figure 24. Comparison of 

storage-volume changes in 

the study area for selected 

periods.
36 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas Table 2.

Average annual precipitation, irrigation and city of Wichita annual pumpage, annual artificial recharge, and aquifer storage-volume changes in the study area near 

Wichita, south-central Kansas, 1988-2009.[Precipitation data from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Kansas State Climatologist; pumpage data from Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources and city of Wichita; artificial recharge data from city of Wichita; storage-volume data on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas; NA, not available; --, not applicable]

Year of

precipitation 

and irrigation and city 

pumpage

Average 

annual precipitation in 

study area1

(inches)

Irrigation 

annual pumpage in study 

area

(acre-feet)

City of Wichita 

annual pumpage in study 

area 

(acre-feet)

Sum of

irrigation and

city of Wichita 

pumpage in

study area 

(acre-feet)

Annual 

artificial 

recharge2

(acre-feet)

Change in 

irrigation 

pumpage from 

1993 baseline 

(acre-feet)

Change in city 

pumpage from 

1993 baseline 

(acre-feet)

Annual

aquifer storagevolume change 

in study area3

(acre-feet)

Aquifer 

storage-volume 

change in study 

area since 

August 1940

(acre-feet)

Month and 

year of end

of storagevolume 

change

period

1988 20.25 NA 35,800 NA -- NA NA NA -209,000 January 1989

1989 30.67 28,100 38,500 66,600 -- NA NA NA NA January 1990

1990 25.04 34,200 37,500 71,700 -- NA NA NA -241,000 January 1991

1991 25.29 36,800 38,200 75,000 -- NA NA NA NA January 1992

1992 34.40 20,100 40,000 60,100 -- NA NA NA 4-255,000 January 1993

1993 38.17 22,500 38,600 61,100 -- 0 0 63,000 -192,000 January 1994

1994 25.30 33,800 34,200 68,000 -- 11,300 -4,400 -53,000 -245,000 January 1995

1995 35.91 28,300 27,100 55,400 -- 5,800 -11,500 35,000 -210,000 January 19961996 30.26 28,900 27,100 56,000 -- 6,400 -11,500 5,000 5-205,000 January 1997

1997 33.60 25,200 22,500 47,700 400 2,700 -16,100 29,000 4-176,000 January 19981998 36.26 31,300 18,600 49,900 900 8,800 -20,000 34,000 6-142,000 January 19991999 37.06 27,300 19,900 47,200 1,000 4,800 -18,700 16,000 6-126,000 January 20002000 30.91 33,800 20,900 54,700 300 11,300 -17,700 -8,000 7-134,000 January 20012001 26.53 39,000 17,700 56,700 600 16,500 -20,900 -8,000 7-142,000 January 20022002 31.41 36,600 19,300 55,900 100 14,100 -19,300 -17,000 7-159,000 January 20032003 31.55 39,200 22,800 62,000 -- 16,700 -15,800 -11,000 8-170,000 January 20042004 36.15 24,900 23,900 48,800 -- 2,400 -14,700 27,000 8-143,000 January 20052005 36.91 29,500 23,600 53,100 -- 7,000 -15,000 16,000 8-127,000 January 20062006 25.43 33,600 23,100 56,700 0 11,100 -15,500 -40,000 -167,000 January 2007

2007 36.20 26,900 20,800 47,700 1,100 4,400 -17,800 26,000 -141,000 January 2008

2008 41.08 24,600 19,900 44,500 1,000 2,100 -18,700 30,000 9-111,000 January 2009

2009 35.33 25,200 19,700 44,900 500 2,700 -18,900 11,000 -100,000 January 2010
Sustainable Yield 37

1 Annual average precipitation for 1988–2009 is the arithmetic average of the annual precipitation from the following precipitation stations (cooperative station identifier in parentheses): Hutchinson 

(143930), Mount Hope (145539), Newton (145744), Sedgwick (147313) , Halstead (143366), and Wichita (148830). Used precipitation data for Sedgwick for 1988–2002 and for Halstead for 2003–2009; other stations were operated for the entire 1988–2009 period. Long-term (1940–2009) average annual precipitation for the study area is 31.52 inches.

2 Artificial recharge during 1997–2002 from Equus Beds Aquifer Recharge Demonstraion project; artificial recharge during 2006–09 from Phase 1 of the Equus Beds Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) 

project.

3 Annual storage-volume change computed as the change from August 1940 to the end of the period of interest minus the change from August 1940 to the beginning of the period of interest. For example, 

the storage-volume change for 1993 (-62,500 acre-feet) was computed as the storage-volume change from August 1940 to January 1994 (-192,000 acre-feet) minus the change from August 1940 to January 1993 (-255,000 acre-feet).

4 Storage-volume change previously reported by Aucott and Myers (1998).5 Storage-volume change previously reported by Aucott and others (1998).6 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen and Aucott (2001).7 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen and Aucott (2004).8 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen (2007).9 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen (2009b).

Table 3. Average annual total pumpage, aquifer storage-volume change, and precipitation in the study area near Wichita, south-central Kansas, for selected time periods.[Pumpage data from Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources and city of Wichita; storage-volume data on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas; precipitation data from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Kansas State Climatologist]

Time

period1

Average 

annual total 

pumpage2

(acre-feet)

Aquifer storagevolume change 

since August 

1940 at beginning of period 

(acre-feet)

Aquifer storagevolume change 

since August 

1940 at end of 

period 

(acre-feet)

Net aquifer 

storage-volume 

change 

(acre-feet)

Ratio of net 

aquifer storagevolume change 

to average 

annual total 

pumpage 

(percent)

Average 

annual 

precipitation 

(inches)

Average 

of annual 

precipitation 

departure 

from longterm annual 

average3

(percent)

1989–95 65,400 -209,000 -210,000 -1,000 -1.5 30.68 -2.7

1999–01 52,900 -142,000 -142,000 0 0 31.50 -.1

2002–04 55,600 -142,000 -143,000 -1,000 -1.8 33.04 4.82005–07 52,500 -143,000 -141,000 2,000 3.8 32.85 4.2

Average 56,600

1 Time period selection criterion is net aquifer storage-volume change that is less than 5 percent of average annual total pumpage.2 Total pumpage is the sum of groundwater pumpage from the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area for municipal use by the city of Wichita and 

for agricultural irrigation.

3 Long-term (1940–2009) average annual precipitation in the study area is 31.52 inches.
38 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

and that total withdrawals did not exceed the sustainable yield 

level.

In the second method of calculating sustainable yield, 

the annual total (irrigation plus city) pumpage and change in 

storage volume values for 1993 through 2009 from table 2 

were plotted in relation to each other (fig. 25). Annual values 

of pumpage and storage-volume change were not available 

for the years before 1993. A linear regression of these data 

was estimated and a sustainable yield value of about 57,500 

acre-ft/yr was determined from the regression line as the total 

annual pumpage value (PUMP) where the annual change 

in storage (dSV) was zero. The data spread in figure 25 is 

substantial as indicated by the coefficient of determination 

(R2 = 0.26). Particularly notable are outliers corresponding to 

the largest flood (1993) and drought (2006) years and a major 

flood/drought transition year (1994). This indicates that lag 

times in the system make individual annual data points by 

themselves unreliable for a sustainable yield analysis. However, the similarity of the sustainable yield estimates from the 

two empirical methods (56,600 and 57,500 acre-ft/yr) provide 

confidence in the validity of the analysis.

In 2009, permitted groundwater-irrigation pumpage was 

about 45,600 acre-ft/yr and permitted municipal pumpage 

was about 31,400 acre-ft/yr for a permitted total of these two 

major uses in the study area of about 77,000 acre-ft/yr (Kansas 

Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources, 

unpub. data, April 2010). This amount of pumpage greatly 

exceeds the average amount of water available for withdrawal 

(about 57,000 acre-ft/yr) that would have minimal effect on 

storage. Effective water management—including additions 

to the water budget such as artificial recharge from Wichita’s 

Equus Beds ASR project—can help produce the most water 

for beneficial use in a more sustainable manner. 

Summary

A part of the Equus Beds aquifer in southwestern Harvey 

County and northwestern Sedgwick County was developed 

to supply water to residents of Wichita and for irrigation in 

south-central Kansas. Groundwater pumpage for city and agricultural use caused water levels to decline in a large part of 

the aquifer northwest of Wichita. In 1965, the city of Wichita 

began using water from Cheney Reservoir in addition to water 

from the Equus Beds aquifer to meet the city’s increasing 

demand for water. Irrigation pumpage in the area increased 

substantially during the 1970s and 1980s and contributed to 

the water-level declines. Water-level declines reached their 

maximum to date in October 1992. Long-term water-level 

declines can be attributed to groundwater pumping; however, 

changes in precipitation (and thus recharge to the Equus Beds 

aquifer) also have affected groundwater levels. Proposals to 

artificially recharge the Equus Beds aquifer have been made 

since the 1950s to meet future water-supply needs and to 

protect the aquifer from the intrusion of saltwater from natural 

and human-related sources to the south and west. In 2007, the 

city implemented Phase 1 of the Equus Beds Aquifer Storage 

and Recovery (ASR) project for large-scale artificial recharge 

of the aquifer. 

Following record low water levels in October 1992, a 

period of water-level rises associated with generally greaterthan-average precipitation and decreased city pumpage from 

the study area that began in 1993 continued through January 

2010. During January 2010, the direction of groundwater flow 

in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area generally was from 

west to east, similar to prior to development of the aquifer in 

1940. Water-level changes since August 1940 for the period 

January 2006 to January 2010 ranged from a decline of more 

than 30 ft in July 2006 in the northern part of the study area 

-60,000

-50,000

-40,000

-30,000

-20,000

-10,000

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000

 ANNUAL CHANGE IN STORAGE VOLUME IN THE STUDY AREA (dSV),

IN ACRE-FEET PER YEAR

SUM OF IRRIGATION AND CITY OF WICHITA PUBLIC-SUPPLY GROUNDWATER

PUMPAGE IN THE STUDY AREA (PUMP), IN ACRE-FEET PER YEAR 

1993

1994 

2006

dSV = -2.3049 Pump + 132,539

When dSV = 0, Pump = 57,503

Pump equals estimated sustainable

yield when dSV = 0

R2 = 0.262

RMSE = 24,377

R2 is coefficient of determination

RMSE is root mean square error

Estimated 

sustainable

yield Figure 25. Statistical 

relation between storage 

volume and pumpage in 

the study area, 1993–2009. 

Outliers correspond to 

the largest flood (1993) 

and drought (2006) years 

and a major flood/drought 

transition year (1994).
References Cited 39

to a rise of more than 4 ft in July 2007 near the Little Arkansas River. Almost all wells in the study area had cumulative 

water-level rises from October 1992 ( period of maximum 

storage loss) to January 2010 and from January 2007 (beginning of large-scale artificial recharge) to January 2010. The 

average cumulative water-level change in the study area from 

October 1992 to January 2010 was a rise of about 8.7 ft; from 

January 2007 to January 2010 the average cumulative waterlevel change was a rise of about 3.2 ft. Increased recharge 

from precipitation that was greater than the long-term average 

and decreased city pumpage contributed to water-level rises 

seen from October 1992 to January 2010 and from January 

2007 to January 2010. City pumpage decreased from about 

38,600 acre-ft in 1993 to about 19,700 acre-ft in 2009 or from 

about 60 to 32 percent of Wichita’s usage. Annual precipitation during 1993–2009 averaged about 2 in/yr greater than the 

long-term average of 31.52 in.; precipitation during 2007–09 

averaged about 6 in/yr greater than the long-term average. Irrigation pumpage increased from about 22,500 acre-ft in 1993 

to about 25,200 acre-ft in 2009 and was as much or more during most of the intervening years; thus it did not contribute to 

the water level rises seen from October 1992 to January 2010. 

Irrigation pumpage varied considerably from year to year; 

reduced irrigation pumpage could contribute to water-level 

rises in some years. Artificial recharge of about 5,900 acre-ft 

also contributed to the water level rises, but principally in the 

vicinity of the recharge sites.

The storage-volume change in the study area from 

October 1992 to January 2010 represents a recovery of about 

183,000 acre-ft or about 65 percent of storage previously lost 

between August 1940 and October 1992. The storage-volume 

change in the central part of the study area from October 1992 

to January 2010 represents a recovery of about 101,400 acreft or about 64 percent of storage previously between August 

1940 and October 1992. These are the largest post-October 

1992 storage-volume recoveries to date in the study area 

and central part of the study area. Artificial recharge and 

the decrease in city pumpage contributed to the recovery of 

storage volume, but artificial recharge’s contribution was 

more than an order of magnitude smaller. Irrigation pumpage, 

because it was an increase did not contribute to the recovery of 

storage volume from October 1992 to January 2010. Recharge 

from excess precipitation contributed to the recovery of storage volume in this period because precipitation averaged about 

2 in/yr more than the annual long-term average of 31.52 in.

Storage-volume recoveries for the period January 2007 to 

January 2010 were about 40 and 31 percent of the storage volume previously lost between August 1940 and January 2007 

in the study area and central part of the study area, respectively. Decreases in irrigation and city pumpage and artificial 

recharge of about 2,600 acre-ft contributed to the recovery of 

storage volume during this period. Recharge from precipitation also contributed to the recovery because precipitation during 2007–09 was about 6 in/yr greater than the long-term average. The larger percentage recovery of storage volume from 

January 2007 to January 2010 in the whole study area (40 

percent) as compared to central part of the study area (31 percent) may be in part because decreases in irrigation pumpage, 

which affect the whole study area, tend to be more closely 

linked to greater-than-average precipitation than are the more 

management-driven decreases in city pumpage, which occur 

almost exclusively in the central part of the study area. During 

periods of less-than-average precipitation, artificial recharge 

could become a more important component of storage-volume 

change; however, reduced streamflow during these periods 

may limit the ability of the city to artificially recharge the 

aquifer using water from the Little Arkansas River. 

The sustainable yield of the Equus Beds aquifer in the 

study area was estimated using two methods. In the first 

method, the sustainable yield was estimated as approximately equivalent to the average annual sum of irrigation and 

city pumpage for four periods when the change in storage 

volume was less than 5 percent of annual pumpage from 

the study area. Sustainable yield from this method ranged 

from 52,500 acre-ft/yr to 65,400 acre-ft/yr and averaged 

56,600 acre-ft/yr. The second method estimated a similar sustainable yield of 57,500 acre-ft/yr using a linear regression of 

the annual sum of irrigation and city pumpage with the annual 

change in storage volume. The sum of permitted annual irrigation (about 45,600 acre-ft/yr) and city (about 31,400 acre-ft/

yr) pumpage of about 77,000 acre-ft/yr greatly exceeds the 

average estimated sustainable yield of about 57,000 acre-ft/

yr. Effective water management, including additions to the 

water budget such as those from the Equus Beds ASR project, 

can help produce the most water for beneficial use in a more 

sustainable manner.

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Appendix 43

Appendix
44 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

USGS site

identification number Site name

Streamflow-gaging stations

7143330 Arkansas River near Hutchinson, Kansas

7143375 Arkansas River near Maize, 

Kansas

7143665 Little Arkansas River at Alta 

Mills, Kansas

7143672 Little Arkansas River at Highway 50 near Halstead, Kansas

7144100 Little Arkansas River near 

Sedgwick, Kansas

7144200 Little Arkansas River at Valley 

Center, Kansas

Equus Beds historic observation wells

374953097232601 25S 01W 35DAA 01

375039097234201 25S 01W 26DBD 01

375111097252701 25S 01W 27BBB 01

375118097273701 25S 01W 20CCC 01

375118097285301 25S 02W 24DDD 01

375204097252701 25S 01W 22BBB 01

375204097320001 25S 02W 22BBB 01

375210097232601 25S 01W 14DDD 01

375210097273702 25S 01W 17CCC 02

375210097305501 25S 02W 14CCC 01

375230097273702 25S 01W 17CBB 02

375250097295001 25S 02W 13BBC 01

375256097264001 25S 01W 17AAA 01

375256097274502 25S 01W 18AAA 02

375256097281102 25S 01W 18ABB 02

375256097330501 25S 02W 16BBB 01

375256097342701 25S 02W 18AAB 01

375303097252701 25S 01W 10CCC 01

375303097284501 25S 01W 07CCC 01

375303097394001 25S 03W 09CCC 01

375329097284502 25S 01W 07BCC 02

375348097292602 25S 02W 12BAA 02

375348097294201 25S 02W 12BBA 01

375348097302301 25S 02W 11ABB 01

375348097305602 25S 02W 11BBB 02

USGS site

identification number Site name

Equus Beds historic observation wells—Continued

375355097264001 25S 01W 05DDD 01

375355097273701 25S 01W 05CCC 01

375355097281901 25S 01W 06CDD 01

375355097284502 25S 01W 06CCC 02

375355097320101 25S 02W 03CCC 01

375355097333002 25S 02W 05DCD 02

375355097340302 25S 02W 05CCD 02

375356097352401 25S 03W 01DDD 01

375356097373601 25S 03W 03DDD 01

375415097295101 25S 02W 01CBB 01

375415097333802 25S 02W 05DBB 02

375421097285401 25S 02W 01ADD 01

375421097341102 25S 02W 05BCC 02

375441097243001 25S 01W 03AAA 01

375441097264001 25S 01W 05AAA 01

375441097292601 25S 02W 01BAA 01

375441097302301 25S 02W 02ABB 01

375441097310401 25S 02W 03AAA 01

375441097320901 25S 02W 04AAA 01

375441097341102 25S 02W 05BBB 02

375447097273701 24S 01W 32CCC 01

375447097295902 24S 02W 35DDD 02

375447097351601 24S 02W 31CCC 01

375448097405502 24S 03W 31DDD 02

375500097255101 24S 01W 33DBD 01

375513097295902 24S 02W 35ADD 02

375533097295901 24S 02W 35AAA 01

375540097274501 24S 01W 30DDD 01

375540097285401 24S 02W 25DDD 01

375540097303201 24S 02W 26CDD 01

375540097305602 24S 02W 26CCC 02

375540097320902 24S 02W 28DDD 02

375540097323402 24S 02W 28DCC 02

375540097344401 24S 02W 30DCC 01

Table A1. Streamflow-gaging stations and observation wells in the Equus Beds aquifer, south-central Kansas.

[USGS, U.S. Geological Survey]
Appendix 45

USGS site

identification number Site name

Equus Beds historic observation wells—Continued

375540097362301 24S 03W 25CCC 01

375540097394101 24S 03W 28CCC 01

375559097320902 24S 02W 28DAA 02

375625097273701 24S 01W 29BBB 01

375625097310402 24S 02W 27AAA 02

375625097331501 24S 02W 29AAA 01

375632097284501 24S 01W 19CCC 01

375632097295101 24S 02W 24CCC 01

375632097313702 24S 02W 22CDD 02

375633097355002 24S 03W 24DCC 02

375633097364002 24S 03W 23DDC 02

375639097384402 24S 03W 21DDA 02

375652097364002 24S 03W 23DAB 02

375658097320202 24S 02W 22BCC 02

375718097274501 24S 01W 19AAA 01

375718097284601 24S 01W 19BBB 01

375718097373801 24S 03W 22AAA 01

375724097295101 24S 02W 13CCC 01

375724097310501 24S 02W 15DDD 01

375724097330701 24S 02W 16CCC 01

375725097404802 24S 03W 17CCC 02

375744097321002 24S 02W 16DAA 02

375750097330701 24S 02W 16BCC 01

375810097284601 24S 01W 18BBB 01

375810097295101 24S 02W 13BBB 01

375810097310501 24S 02W 15AAA 01

375810097324301 24S 02W 16BAA 01

375810097334002 24S 02W 17ABB 02

375810097342101 24S 02W 18AAA 01

375811097373001 24S 03W 14BBB 01

375811097415502 24S 03W 18BBB 02

375817097274501 24S 01W 07DDD 01

375817097321002 24S 02W 09DDD 02

375817097330701 24S 02W 09CCC 01

375817097363201 24S 03W 11DDD 01

USGS site

identification number Site name

Equus Beds historic observation wells—Continued

375817097363204 24S 03W 11DDD 04

375817097365702 24S 03W 11DCC 02

375817097383701 24S 03W 10CCC 01

375836097330702 24S 02W 09CBB 02

375836097334002 24S 02W 08DBB 02

375843097321002 24S 02W 09ADD 02

375843097341302 24S 02W 08BCC 02

375843097363302 24S 03W 11ADD 02

375902097334802 24S 02W 08BAA 02

375902097341302 24S 02W 08BBB 02

375903097363302 24S 03W 11AAA 02

375903097373101 24S 03W 11BBB 01

375903097383701 24S 03W 10BBB 01

375909097273701 24S 01W 05CCC 01

375909097285401 24S 02W 01DDD 01

375909097300001 24S 02W 02DDD 01

375909097305701 24S 02W 02CCC 01

375910097352701 24S 03W 01DDD 01

375910097405802 24S 03W 06DDD 02

375929097320201 24S 02W 03CBB 01

375935097342102 24S 02W 06ADD 02

375955097284601 24S 01W 06BBB 01

375955097295201 24S 02W 01BBB 01

375955097351901 24S 02W 06BBB 01

380001097330001 23S 02W 33CCD 01

380001097341302 23S 02W 32CCC 02

380002097374001 23S 03W 34DDD 01

380002097401702 23S 03W 32DCC 02

380021097341302 23S 02W 32CBB 02

380048097362501 23S 03W 36BBB 01

380048097395202 23S 03W 32AAA 02

380054097310501 23S 02W 27DDD 01

380054097320301 23S 02W 27CCC 01

380054097334902 23S 02W 29CDD 02

380054097342202 23S 02W 30DDD 02

Table A1. Streamflow-gaging stations and observation wells in the Equus Beds aquifer, south-central Kansas.—Continued

[USGS, U.S. Geological Survey]
46 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

USGS site

identification number Site name

Equus Beds historic observation wells—Continued

380054097351901 23S 02W 30CCC 01

380113097341402 23S 02W 29CBB 02

380139097322701 23S 02W 28ABA 01

380139097341402 23S 02W 29BBB 02

380146097305701 23S 02W 23CCC 01

380146097352001 23S 02W 19CCC 01

380146097365101 23S 03W 23DCD 01

380146097394502 23S 03W 21CCC 02

380232097352801 23S 03W 24AAA 01

380232097373201 23S 03W 23BBB 01

380238097342301 23S 02W 18DDD 01

380239097395403 23S 03W 17DDD 03

380324097341502 23S 02W 17BBB 02

380324097352001 23S 02W 18BBB 01

380331097395402 23S 03W 08DDD 02

Equus Beds areal index wells

375115097294601 25S 02W 25BBAA01 IW-36A 

SHALLOW

375115097313601 25S 02W 22DCDC01 IW-35A 

SHALLOW

375116097274701 25S 01W 20CCCC01 IW-37A 

SHALLOW

375141097253801 25S 01W 21DAAA01 IW-38A 

SHALLOW

375247097300101 25S 02W 13BCBB01 IW-32A 

SHALLOW

375258097340601 25S 02W 17BBAA01 IW-30A 

SHALLOW

375300097255801 25S 01W 09DCDD01 IW-34A 

SHALLOW

375300097321101 25S 02W 15BBBB01 IW-31A 

SHALLOW

375326097274501 25S 01W 08CBBB01 IW-33A 

SHALLOW

375420097300201 25S 02W 02ADDA01 IW-28A 

SHALLOW

375434097321301 25S 02W 04AADA01 IW-27A 

SHALLOW

375445097274801 24S 01W 32CCCC01 IW-29A 

SHALLOW

USGS site

identification number Site name

Equus Beds areal index wells—Continued

375445097365404 24S 03W 35DCDD04 IW-25A 

SHALLOW

375446097390701 24S 03W 33DDCC01 IW-24A 

SHALLOW

375508097342401 24S 02W 32CBBB01 IW-26A 

SHALLOW

375604097363601 24S 03W 25BCCB01 IW-19A 

SHALLOW

375629097274801 24S 01W 29BBBB01 IW-23A 

SHALLOW

375629097293701 24S 02W 25BBAB01 IW-22A 

SHALLOW

375629097323501 24S 02W 21DCDC01 IW-21A 

SHALLOW

375630097342701 24S 02W 19DDDD01 IW-20A 

SHALLOW

375642097385304 24S 03W 21DDAA04 IW-18A 

SHALLOW

375748097363801 24S 03W 14ADDD01 IW-14A 

SHALLOW

375814097300001 24S 02W 13BBBB01 IW-17A 

SHALLOW

375814097324701 24S 02W 16BAAA01 IW-16A 

SHALLOW

375814097342701 24S 02W 18AAAA01 IW-15A 

SHALLOW

375815097385001 24S 03W 09DDDD01 IW-13A 

SHALLOW

375932097321301 24S 02W 03CBBB01 IW11A-2 SHALLOW

375958097300001 24S 02W 01BBBB01 IW-12A 

SHALLOW

375958097363801 24S 03W 02AAAA01 IW-09A 

SHALLOW

375959097344201 23S 02W 31DDCC01 IW-10A 

SHALLOW

380016097384901 23S 03W 34CBCB01 IW-08A 

SHALLOW

380051097330901 23S 02W 28CCDC01 IW-07A 

SHALLOW

380130097385002 23S 03W 27BCBB02 IW-04C 

DEEP

Table A1. Streamflow-gaging stations and observation wells in the Equus Beds aquifer, south-central Kansas.—Continued

[USGS, U.S. Geological Survey]
Appendix 47

USGS site

identification number Site name

Equus Beds areal index wells—Continued

380143097344201 23S 02W 30AAAB01 IW-06A 

SHALLOW

380144097371101 23S 03W 23DCCC01 IW-05A 

SHALLOW

380328097342501 23S 02W 17BBBB01 IW-03A 

SHALLOW

380329097363702 23S 03W 12CCCC02 IW-02C 

DEEP

380421097385002 23S 03W 03CCCC02 IW-01C 

DEEP

Table A1. Streamflow-gaging stations and observation 

wells in the Equus Beds aquifer, south-central Kansas.—

Continued

[USGS, U.S. Geological Survey]

Table A2. Precipitation stations in and near the study area, south-central Kansas.

[--, not applicable]

Precipitation station name Period of data used County

Cooperative 

station

identifier

Weather BureauArmy-Navy (WBAN) 

station identifier

Wichita WB Airport 1948 to 1954 Sedgwick 148828 13998

Wichita Municipal Airport and 

Wichita Mid-Continent Airport 1954 to 2010 Sedgwick 148830 03928

Sedgwick and Sedgwick 1 W 1938 to 2003 Harvey 147313 --

Halstead 3 SW 2003 to 2010 Harvey 143366 --

Newton 3 E 1938 to August 1951 Harvey 145744 --

Newton 2 SW August 1951 to 2010 Harvey 145744 --

Mount Hope 1938 to 2010 Sedgwick 145539 --

Hutchinson Municipal Airport 1948 to 1959 Reno 143926 13986

Hutchinson 10 SW 1959 to 2010 Reno 143930 --
48 Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas

Publishing support provided by: 

Rolla and Lafayette Publishing Service Centers

For additional information concerning this publication, contact:

Director, USGS Kansas Water Science Center 

4821 Quail Crest Place

Lawrence, KS 66049

(785) 842–9909

Or visit the Kansas Water Science Center Web site at:

http://ks.water.usgs.gov
Appendix 49
Hansen and Aucott— Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas—Scientific Investigations Report 2010–5231