Abstract

The Equus Beds aquifer in southwestern Harvey County and northwestern Sedgwick County was developed to supply water to the city of Wichita and for irrigation in 

south-central Kansas. Water-level and storage-volume decreases that began with the 

development of the aquifer in the 1940s reached record to near-record lows in January 

1993. Since 1993, the aquifer has been experiencing higher water levels and a partial 

recovery of storage volume. Potentiometric maps of the shallow and deep layers of the 

map show flow in both aquifer layers is generally from west to east. Water-level altitudes in the shallow aquifer layer ranged from a high of about 1,470 feet in the northwest corner of the study area to low of about 1,330 feet in the southeast corner of the 

study area; water-level altitudes in the deep aquifer layer ranged from a high of about 

1,440 feet on the west edge of the study area to a low of about 1,330 feet in the southeast corner of the study area. In the northwest part of the study area, water-levels can 

be up to 50 feet higher in the shallow layer than in the deep layer of the Equus Beds 

aquifer. Measured water-level changes for August 1940 to January 2011 ranged from a 

decline of 16.52 feet to a rise of 2.22 feet. The change in storage volume from August 

1940 to January 2011 was a decrease of about 104,000 acre-feet. This volume represents a recovery of about 151,000 acre-feet, or about 59 percent of the storage volume 

previously lost between August 1940 and January 1993. It also represents a recovery 

of about 63,000 acre-feet, or about 38 percent of the storage volume lost between 

August 1940 and January 2007. Major factors in these storage-volume recoveries are 

increased recharge from greater-than-normal precipitation and planned decreases in 

city pumpage that are part of Wichita’s Integrated Local Water Supply Plan; however, 

part of the recovery may be because city and irrigation pumpage probably decreased in 

response to greater-than-normal precipitation in the study area. Storage volume from 

July 2010 to January 2011 did not increase as it commonly does from July to January. The change in storage volume from July 2010 to January 2011 was a decrease 

of 10,300 acre-feet, probably because average precipitation in the study area during 

August 2010 through January 2011 was about 3.01 inches less than the August through 

January normal of 12.63 inches for the study area.

Introduction

Beginning in the 1940s, the Wichita well field was developed in the Equus Beds 

aquifer in southwestern Harvey County and northwestern Sedgwick County to supply 

water to the city of Wichita, which has been the largest city in Kansas since the mid1940s (Williams and Lohman, 1949; Gibson, 1998; U.S. Census Bureau, 2010). In 

addition to supplying drinking water for Wichita, the other primary use of water from 

the Equus Beds aquifer is crop irrigation in this agriculturally dominated part of southcentral Kansas (Rich Eubank, Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water 

Resources, oral commun., 2008). The decline of water levels in the aquifer was noted 

soon after the development of the Wichita well field began (Williams and Lohman, 

1949). As water levels in the aquifer decline, the volume of water stored in the aquifer 

decreases and less water is available to supply future needs. Since 1940, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the city of Wichita, has monitored these 

changes in water levels and the resulting changes in storage volume in the Equus Beds 

aquifer as part of Wichita’s effort to effectively manage this resource; this report documents these changes to January 2011. In 2007, the city of Wichita began using Phase I 

of the Equus Beds Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) project to increase the longterm sustainability of the Equus Beds aquifer through large-scale artificial recharge 

(City of Wichita, [2007?]). The ASR project uses water from the Little Arkansas 

River—either 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 (City of Wichita, [2007?]). The water from the Little Arkansas 

River is treated to drinking-water standards before being recharged to the aquifer (City 

of Wichita, [2007?]).

Hydrogeology of the Study Area

The approximately 165 square-mile (mi2) study area is located northwest of 

Wichita, Kansas in Harvey and Sedgwick Counties (fig. 1). It is bounded on the southwest by the Arkansas River and on the northeast by the Little Arkansas River. The land 

surface in the study area typically slopes gently toward the major streams from an altitude of about 1,495 feet (ft) in the northwest to a low of about 1,295 ft in the southeast. 

The central part of the study area (fig. 1), which covers about 55 mi2, is the historic 

center of pumping in the study area. The central part of the study area includes wells 

used to supply water to the city of Wichita and many wells used for irrigation (Kansas 

Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources, unpub. data, 2010). 

The Equus Beds aquifer consists of Quaternary-age deposits in the study area. 

Quaternary-age deposits in the study area primarily are alluvial deposits with some 

dune sand and loess (Myers and others, 1996). The alluvial deposits, known locally 

as the Equus beds, are as much as 250 ft thick in the study area (Leonard and Kleinschmidt, 1976). The Equus beds primarily consist 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 Equus beds 

generally has more fine-grained material than the lower and upper parts (Lane and 

Miller, 1965b, Myers and others, 1996). The approximately 700-ft-thick Permian-age 

Wellington Formation underlies the Equus beds in the study area and forms the bedrock confining unit below them (Bayne, 1956; Myers and others, 1996). 

The Equus Beds aquifer is the easternmost extension of the High Plains aquifer 

in Kansas (Stullken and others, 1985; Hansen and Aucott, 2001). The Equus Beds 

aquifer is an important source of water because of the generally shallow depth to the 

water table, the large saturated thickness, and generally good water quality. Storage 

volume (the amount of water available for use) of the Equus Beds aquifer in the study 

area in 2006 was estimated at about 2,100,000 acre-feet (acre-ft) (Hansen, 2007). 

Near the Arkansas River and in the western part of the study area, the water table can 

be less than 10 ft below land surface. Farther from the Arkansas River and near the 

Little Arkansas River, the water table can be at a greater depth (about 50 ft below land 

surface in January 2011), depending on the altitude of the land surface and the amount 

of water-level decline that has been caused by groundwater withdrawals. The saturated 

thickness of the Equus Beds aquifer within the study area ranges from about 75 ft near 

the Little Arkansas River to almost 250 ft near the Arkansas River where the lowest 

areas of the underlying bedrock surface occur (Spinazola and others, 1985). The Equus

Beds aquifer is considered to be an unconfined aquifer, but the presence of clay layers 

has resulted in semiconfined conditions in some areas (Spinazola and others, 1985; 

Stramel, 1967). 

These semiconfined conditions probably resulted in the substantial differences 

seen between the shallow and deep parts of the Equus Beds aquifer in water levels 

(Stramel, 1956) and water quality (Ziegler and others, 2010) in some parts of the study 

area. These substantial differences along with a need to monitor the effects of artificial 

recharge on the shallow and deep parts of the aquifer lead to the construction of separate potentiometric-surface maps of the shallow and deep layers of the aquifer. 

Methods

Aquifer Layers

For the purposes of this report, wells completed and screened in the Equus Beds 

aquifer were assigned to either the shallow or deep aquifer layer. These layer assignments were based on Equus Beds Groundwater Management District No. 2 (GMD2) 

aquifer zone designations and on well completion and screen depths. GMD2 has 

identified up to four aquifer zones (designated AA, A, B, and C, in order of descending 

depth) within the Equus Beds aquifer where there are competent clay layers separating 

them (Tim Boese, Equus Beds Groundwater Management District No. 2, written commun., 2009). The A, B, and C zones are similar to the upper, middle, and lower aquifer 

units defined by Myers and others (1996) and previously discussed in the “Hydrogeology of the Study Area” section. GMD2 monitoring wells generally are in clusters 

(closely spaced wells screened to different depths) with each well screened in a different aquifer zone. For this report, wells designated by GMD2 as completed in zones 

A or C were assigned to the shallow or deep aquifer layers, respectively; no wells 

designated as completed in zones AA or B were used in this study. The city of Wichita 

has clusters of historic and index monitoring wells. The shallower well in each historic 

or index well cluster was assumed to be in and assigned to the shallow aquifer layer; 

the deeper well in each cluster was assumed to be in and assigned to the deep aquifer 

layer. Ziegler and others (2010) used a depth of 80 ft as the dividing point between 

the shallow and deep parts of the Equus Beds aquifer. An analysis of the GMD2 and 

city of Wichita well clusters in the study area shows about 90 percent of the GMD2 

zone A wells and shallower historic and index wells were completed and screened to 

a depth of 80 ft or less, and about 90 percent of the GMD2 C zone wells and deeper 

historic and index wells were completed and screened to a depth of greater than 80 

ft. This indicates that the use of the 80 ft depth as the dividing point between aquifer 

layers was reasonable when assigning the city of Wichita historic monitoring wells not 

in clusters into either the shallow or deep layer of the Equus Beds aquifer and no other 

information was available.

Water Levels

Groundwater levels were measured from January 3 through January 24, 2011, at 

158 historic monitoring wells, 75 index wells, 2 ASR Phase 1 monitoring wells, and 

55 other monitoring wells. The historic monitoring wells have been used by the city of 

Wichita for monitoring water levels in the Equus Beds aquifer for years, many since 

the 1940s (Stramel, 1956). The index wells were installed in 2001 and 2002 to monitor the effects of artificial recharge on the water quality and water levels in the Equus

Beds aquifer and to determine if there are water-quality differences between the shallow and deep layers of the aquifer (Andrew Ziegler, U.S. Geological Survey, oral commun., September 2003). The ASR Phase 1 monitoring wells were installed to monitor 

the effects of recharge around the six ASR Phase 1 artificial recharge sites; only two of 

the wells around recharge site RB1 were measured in January 2011. The other monitoring wells were installed for GMD2 or are existing wells used by GMD2 to monitor 

the Equus Beds aquifer. Water levels in the historic monitoring wells were measured 

by city of Wichita personnel; water levels in the index wells were measured by GMD2 

personnel. Water levels in the Phase 1 monitoring wells are from USGS-maintained 

multi-sensor monitors that continuously collect physical properties, including waterlevel altitude. Water levels in the other monitoring wells were measured by GMD2. 

All agencies used standard water-level measurement techniques that are similar to 

USGS methods described in Cunningham and Schalk (2011). The historic monitoring 

well data are on file, in paper and electronic form, with the city of Wichita’s Water and 

Sewer Department in Wichita, Kansas; the index and other monitoring well data collected by GMD2 are stored in the Kansas Geological Survey’s (KGS’s) Water Information and Storage and Retrieval Database (WIZARD) (Kansas Geological Survey, 

2011); and well data collected by the USGS are stored in the USGS’s National Water 

Information System (NWIS) database (U.S. Geological Survey, 2011b). The waterlevel data used in this report from the historic monitoring wells, the index wells, ASR 

Phase 1 monitoring wells, and the other monitoring wells also are stored in NWIS. 

Average daily surface-water-altitude measurements from data collected by sensors at six USGS streamflow-gaging stations on the Arkansas and Little Arkansas 

Rivers (fig. 1) were used to estimate the surface-water altitude along these streams. 

Because the groundwater-level measurements used for the shallow aquifer layer were 

collected over several days, each streamflow-gaging station’s average surface-water 

altitude for the day at the midpoint of the groundwater-level measurement period was 

used (U.S. Geological Survey, 2011b). These measurements were used along with the 

groundwater-level measurements in the construction of the shallow layer potentiomentric-surface map created for this report.

Water-Level Altitudes

The January 2011 water-level altitudes depicted in the potentiometric-surface 

maps of the shallow and deep layers of the Equus Beds aquifer were calculated by 

subtracting the depth to water below land surface in a well from the altitude of land 

surface at the well. Land-surface altitudes are those stored for the wells in NWIS or 

WIZARD or determined from the National Elevation Dataset (NED) (U.S. Geological Survey, 2009). Monitoring wells used in this report were divided into two groups 

to describe differences between the water levels in the shallow and deep layers of the 

aquifer. The well was assigned to the shallow or deep layer of the Equus Beds aquifer based on the layer in which the bottom of the well’s casing or screened interval 

occurred (as described in the “Aquifer Layers” section). The 201 wells assigned to the 

shallow layer of the aquifer range in depth from 7 to 135 ft in depth, with about 

95 percent of the wells 80 ft or less in depth. The 89 wells assigned to the deep layer 

of the aquifer range in depth from 50 to 285 ft in depth with about 95 percent of the 

wells greater than 80 ft in depth. 

Average daily surface-water-altitude measurements from data collected by sensors at six USGS streamflow-gaging stations on the Arkansas and Little Arkansas 

Rivers (fig. 1) were used to estimate the surface-water altitude along these streams. 

These measurements were used along with the groundwater-level measurements in the 

construction of the potentiomentric-surface map of the shallow Equus Beds aquifer 

layer created for this report.

The January 2011 surface-water and groundwater-level altitudes were plotted on 

the potentiometric-surface map of their assigned aquifer layer and manually contoured. 

Where well clusters exist, the difference between water levels in the shallow and deep 

aquifer layers commonly was less than 2 ft (less than one-half the of the 5-ft contour 

interval used for the potentiometric maps) in the same well cluster. Therefore, where 

water-level data did not exist for one layer but did exist for the other layer and the surrounding well clusters indicated the water-level differences between the shallow and 

deep layers were small, the data from the other aquifer layer were used as supplemental data to guide the placement of the potentiometric-surface contours. The locations of 

points of groundwater diversions and the preliminary 2010 water-use associated with 

these points (Kansas Department of Agriculture, Division of Water Resources, unpub. 

data., May 2011) also were used to guide the location of the contours. 

Water-Level Change

The water-level change at a well since August 1940 was determined by subtracting the depth to water below land surface in January 2011 from the depth to water 

below land surface at the same well in August 1940. All wells used for the water-level 

change maps were historic monitoring wells or index wells. Of the 146 wells used 

for the water-level change map, only 33 had measured water levels for August 1940. 

If an August 1940 water-level measurement did not exist for a well in the study area, 

one was estimated from the August 1940 water-level altitude map of Stramel (1956) 

as modified by Aucott and Myers (1998). The August 1940 to January 2011 waterlevel-change values for the measured wells were plotted on the map and manually 

contoured. 

Storage-Volume Change

Change in storage volume for the purposes of this report is defined as the change 

in saturated aquifer volume multiplied by the specific yield of the aquifer. Specific 

yield is the ratio of (1) the volume of water a rock or soil will yield by gravity to 

(2) the volume of rock or soil (Lohman and others, 1972). 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 noted 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. 

The change in storage volume from August 1940 to January 2011 was 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 waterlevel change. Thiessen polygons apportion the water-level change at each well and the 

estimated value at points representing the lines of equal water-level change to the area 

around the wells and points. The volume of storage change was computed by summing 

the area of each Thiessen polygon multiplied by the water-level-change value associated with the Thiessen polygon, and then multiplied by the specific yield. To determine 

the storage-volume change since August 1940 in the whole study area and in the central part of the study area, the computation was done for the Thiessen polygons within 

each of these areas. 

Changes in storage volume for periods that do not begin with August 1940 were 

calculated as the difference between changes in storage volume 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 change in storage volume for January 1993 to January 

2011 was calculated as the change in storage volume for August 1940 to January 2011 

minus the change in storage volume for August 1940 to January 1993. 

Precipitation

Precipitation for the study area for 2010 and 2011 was estimated as the arithmetic 

average of precipitation for the five Cooperative weather stations in or near Halstead, 

Hutchinson, Mount Hope, Newton, and Wichita (station numbers 143366, 143930, 

145539, 145744, and 148830, respectively; fig. 1). Values for normal precipitation currently (2011) used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 

are the averages for 1981–2010 (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 

2011c). Standard normal (annual or monthly) precipitation data for weather stations 

in or near Hutchinson, Mount Hope, Newton, and Wichita, the representative normal 

precipitation data for the weather station near Sedgwick (Cooperative station number 147313; fig. 1), and the pseudonormal precipitation data for the weather station 

near Halstead reported by NOAA were averaged to determine the normal precipitation for the study area. Standard normal precipitation values were not available for 

either the Sedgwick or Halstead weather station because collection of precipitation 

data at Sedgwick was discontinued in 2004 and precipitation data were not collected 

at Halstead before 2001. As described by NOAA, a representative normal is “scaled 

or based on filled values to be representative of the full period of record” for stations 

where the observed record is incomplete (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011d). A pseudonormal is based on linear combinations of the normals from 

neighboring stations and is used where the station’s record is missing data, commonly 

because the station did not begin until after the start of the normal period (National 

Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011b). Normal annual precipitation for 

the study area is about 32.14 inches (in.). This is similar to the long-term (1940–2010) 

average annual precipitation of 31.52 in. that was estimated for the study area by Hansen and Aucott (2010).

Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume

Groundwater-level declines can result from a combination of factors, with the 

primary factors in the study area being pumpage and decreased recharge resulting from 

less-than-normal precipitation. Droughts and other periods of less-than-normal precipitation tend to decrease the amount of recharge available and increase demand for, and 

thus pumpage of, groundwater, resulting in increased water-level declines. Periods 

of greater-than-normal rainfall tend to increase the amount of recharge available and 

decrease the demand for, and thus pumpage of, groundwater, resulting in water-level 

rises. If the water-level declines or rises are large enough, they may locally alter the 

direction of groundwater flow. An annual cycle of water-level declines and rises generally occurs in the study area. Typically, the largest water-level declines occur during 

the summer or fall when agricultural-irrigation and city pumpage are greatest (Aucott 

and Myers, 1998). This cycle of annual water-level declines and rises is reflected in 

the annual fluctuations in the water levels in wells shown in figure 2. The consistently 

large seasonal water-level fluctuations (commonly from 5 to 20 ft) in well 104 probably are caused by agricultural-irrigation pumpage. 

Record to near-record water-level declines in the Equus Beds aquifer occurred in 

October 1992 and January 1993 (Aucott and Myers, 1998; Hansen and Aucott, 2001). 

Although the maximum recorded decline in storage volume in the Equus Beds aquifer 

occurred in October 1992, the January 1993 storage-volume decline is used for comparison purposes to minimize the effect of seasonal factors (Hansen and Aucott, 2001). 

Recent reports have indicated that since January 1993, higher water levels have been 

recorded in the Equus Beds aquifer because of near-normal to greater-than-normal precipitation and decreased city pumpage (Aucott and Myers, 1998; Hansen and Aucott, 

2001, 2004, 2010; Hansen, 2007, 2009a, 2009b, 2011). Pumpage for agricultural 

irrigation, which can vary as much as 40 percent from year to year, tended to decrease 

in years of greater-than-normal precipitation and increase in years of normal to lessthan-normal precipitation (Hansen, 2007; Hansen and Aucott, 2010); thus, decreased 

pumpage for agricultural irrigation likely contributed to the higher water levels only in 

years of greater-than-normal precipitation. Water levels in wells in the study area have 

continued to remain relatively high (fig. 2), indicating this period of higher water levels that began in 1993 continued through January 2011. Large-scale artificial recharge 

by the city of Wichita, which began in 2007, probably contributed to the continuation 

of these higher water levels near the recharge sites (Hansen and Aucott, 2010).

Potentiometric Surfaces of the Shallow and Deep Aquifer Layers, 

January 2011

The potentiometric-surface contours of the shallow and deep layers of the Equus

Beds aquifer (figs. 3 and 4, respectively) indicate movement of water in the aquifer is 

generally from west to east across the area. Water-level altitudes in the shallow aquifer 

layer range from a high of about 1,470 ft in the northwest corner of the study area to 

a low of about 1,330 ft in the southeast corner of the study area. Water-level altitudes 

in the deep aquifer layer range from a high of about 1,440 ft on the west edge of the 

study area to a low of about 1,330 ft at the southeast corner of the study area. Where 

the potentiometric-surface contours bow out to the west (for example, from the southeast to northwest corners of T. 24 S., R. 2 W. on fig. 3) or are hachured (for example, 

near wells EB10A and IW05A on fig. 3 and near wells EB14C, 42D, 46D, and 50D 

on fig. 4), they indicate areas where the water levels are lower than in the surrounding 

area, probably because of pumping at nearby wells. The potentiometric contours in the 

northwest part of the study area on the map of the shallow layer of the aquifer have 

a different orientation and water-level altitudes up to 50 ft higher than the contours 

in the same area on the map of the deep layer of the aquifer. These differences probably are caused by thicker clay layers in this area reducing the hydraulic connection 

between the shallow and deep layers of the aquifer. No obvious effects of artificial 

recharge can be seen on the potentiometric surfaces of either of the shallow or deep 

aquifer layers (figs. 3 and 4), probably because no artificial recharge had occurred at 

any of the ASR Phase 1 sites since November 2010 (U.S. Geological Survey, 2011a). 

Where water-levels in the shallower wells differ from those in the deeper wells 

in the same cluster, it may indicate there is a vertical component of flow within the 

aquifer. A downward vertical gradient may be indicated where the water levels are 

higher in the shallower wells than in the deeper wells within a cluster; an upward 

vertical gradient may be indicated where the water levels are lower in the shallower 

wells than in the deeper wells within a cluster. Within 36 of the 84 clusters in the study 

area, the water-level differences in January 2011 between the shallower and deeper 

wells were 1 ft or less and probably do not indicate a substantial vertical component 

of flow. However, within 48 of the 84 clusters in the study area, the shallower water 

levels were more than 1 ft higher than in the deeper wells, indicating that a downward 

component of flow in the aquifer may have been common during January 2011. In 17 

of the 84 clusters in the study area, the water levels ranged from about 6 to about 28 

ft higher in the shallower wells than in the deeper wells in January 2011. These larger 

differences may indicate that at these clusters the two aquifer layers probably are not 

well connected.

Water-Level Changes, August 1940 to January 2011

Water-level changes from August 1940 to January 2010 are shown in figure 5. 

Water levels were measured in the historic monitoring wells by city of Wichita personnel on January 3, 2011, and from January 11 through 20, 2011; water levels were measured in the index wells by GMD2 personnel on January 20 and 21, 2011. Water-level 

changes from August 1940 to January 2011 ranged from a decline of 16.52 ft at well 

12B in the central part of the study area to a rise of 2.22 ft at well 118 near the Little 

Arkansas River in the northern part of the study area (fig. 5). Water-level declines 

of 10 ft or more occurred in much of the central part of the study area (fig. 5), probably because of pumping in this area and decreased precipitation. Precipitation during 

August 2010 through January 2011 at the five weather stations in and near the study 

area (Halstead, Hutchinson, Mount Hope, Newton, and Wichita; fig. 1) ranged from 

about 8.90 in. at Mount Hope to about 10.62 in. at Hutchinson and averaged about 

9.62 in. (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011a and 2011c; Kansas 

State Research and Extension, 2011; and Mary Knapp, State Climatologist, written 

commun., July 19, 2011). Precipitation in the study area during August 2010 through 

January 2011 averaged about 3.01 in. less than the study-area normal of 12.63 in. for 

August through January (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011c). 

The small water-level rises in the southwest and northeast parts of the study area 

(fig. 5) may be because of decreased pumpage in these areas or infiltration from 

the nearby streams. No obvious effects of artificial recharge are documented at the 

Phase 1 sites in this report, probably because artificial recharge last occurred in 

November 2010, only at the four northern Phase 1 sites, and totaled only 20 acre-ft. 

Previous to November, artificial recharge last occurred in August 2010 (U.S. Geological Survey, 2011a).

Storage-Volume Change, January 2011

The storage volume decreased in the study area from August 1940 to January 

2011 by about 104,000 acre-ft (fig. 2, table 1). Storage-volume amounts in January 

2011 were similar to those seen in the 1970s (fig. 2). The storage volume in the study 

area in January 2011 was about 10,300 acre-ft less than in July 2010, and about 4,000 

acre-ft less than in January 2010 (table 1). From August 1940 (just before Wichita 

began pumping water from the study area) to January 1993 (when near-record low 

water levels and storage volumes occurred in the study area because of a combination of drought conditions and increased usage), storage volume decreased by about 

255,000 acre-ft in the study area (Aucott and Myers, 1998). The change in storage volume from January 1993 to January 2011 represents a recovery of about 151,000 acre-ft 

(table 1) or about 59 percent of the storage volume previously lost from August 1940 

to January 1993. From August 1940 to January 2007 (when the last set of water-level 

measurements were made before large-scale artificial recharge began), storage volume 

decreased by about 167,000 acre-ft (table 1). The change in storage volume from January 2007 to January 2011 represents a recovery of about 63,000 acre-ft, or about 

38 percent of the storage volume previously lost from August 1940 to January 2007. 

Most of these recoveries probably can be attributed to planned decreases in city 

pumpage (Warren and others, 1995) and to reduced irrigation pumpage and increased 

recharge associated with increased precipitation (Hansen and Aucott, 2010). Since 

March 2007, when Wichita began large-scale artificial recharge, about 2,869 acre-ft 

(about 934 million gallons) of water have been artificially recharged into the aquifer 

through the six Phase 1 recharge sites shown in figure 3 (U.S. Geological Survey, 

2011a). Hansen and Aucott (2010) documented the amount of artificial recharge is 

relatively small compared to the amount of the city and agricultural-irrigation pumpage from the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area for the same period. 

The commonly observed increase in storage volume from July to January did 

not occur from July 2010 to January 2011 when storage volume in the study area 

decreased by about 10,300 acre-ft (table 1). Reduced recharge and increased pumpage 

associated with less than normal precipitation during this period is the probable cause. 

Although the annual precipitation in the study area for 2010 of 32.12 in. was just 

0.02 in. less than normal, precipitation from August 2010 through January 2011 was 

about 3.01 in. less than the study-area normal of 12.63 in. for August through January 

(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011a and 2011c; Kansas State 

Research and Extension, 2011; and Mary Knapp, State Climatologist, written commun., July 19, 2011). 

The change in storage volume in the central part of the study area (where Wichita 

city wells are located) from August 1940 to January 2011 was a decrease of about 

57,100 acre-ft (fig. 2, table 1). Storage volume in the central part of the study area in 

January 2011 was about 500 acre-ft more than in January 2010 and about 1,100 acre-ft 

less than in July 2010 (table 1). From January 1993 to January 2011, storage volume 

in the central part of the study area increased by about 96,900 acre-ft (table 1) or about 

63 percent of the storage volume previously lost from August 1940 to January 1993. 

From January 2007 (just before large-scale artificial recharge began) to January 2011, 

storage volume in the central part of the study area increased by about 25,800 acre-ft 

or about 31 percent of the storage volume previously lost from August 1940 to January 

2007. Major factors in the recovery in storage volumes seen in the study area and the 

central part of the study area (table 1) are increased recharge from greater-than-normal 

precipitation and planned decreases in city pumpage that are part of Wichita’s Local 

Integrated Water Supply Plan (City of Wichita, [2007?]; Hansen and Aucott, 2010; 

Warren and others, 1995); however, part of the recovery may be because city and 

irrigation pumpage decreased in response to greater-than-normal to normal annual 

precipitation. Annual precipitation in the study area during January 2007 to January 

2011 averaged about 36.18 in. or about 4.14 in. greater than normal (National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011a, and 2011c).

References

Aucott, W.R., and Myers, N.C., 1998, Changes in ground-water levels and storage in 

the Wichita well field area, south-central Kansas, 1940–98: U.S. Geological Survey 

Water-Resources Investigations Report 98–4141, 20 p.

Aucott, W.R., Myers, N.C., and Dague, B.J., 1998, Status of ground-water levels and 

storage in the Wichita well field area, south-central Kansas, 1997: U.S. Geological 

Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 98–4095, 15 p.

Bayne, C.K., 1956, Geology and ground-water resources of Reno County, Kansas: 

Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 120, 130 p., available at http://www.kgs.ku.edu/

General/Geology/Reno/index.html.

City of Wichita, [2007?], Wichita area future water supply—a model program for other 

municipalities: Wichita, Kansas, accessed March 24, 2009, at http://www.wichita.

gov/CityOffices/WaterAndSewer/ProductionAndPumping/ASR/FutureWaterSupply.

htm.

Cunningham, W.L., and Schalk, C.W., comps., 2011, Groundwater technical procedures of the U.S. Geological Survey: U.S. Geological Survey Techniques and 

Methods, 1–A1, 151 p.

Gibson, Campbell, 1998, Population of the 100 largest cities and other urban places in 

the United States—1790–1990: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division Working 

Paper No. 27 accessed January 10, 2010, at http://www.census.gov/population/www/

documentation/twps0027.html.

Hansen, C.V., 2007, Status of ground-water levels and storage volume in the Equus

Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2003–January 2006: U.S. Geological 

Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5321, 34 p., available at http://pubs.

usgs.gov/sir/2006/5321/.

Hansen, C.V., 2009a, Status of ground-water levels and storage volume in the Equus

Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, July 2008: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific 

Investigations Map 3075, map scale 1:84,480, available at http://pubs.usgs.gov/

sim/3075/.

Hansen, C.V., 2009b, Status of groundwater levels and storage volume in the Equus

Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2009: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific 

Investigations Map 3087, map scale 1:84,480, available at http://pubs.usgs.gov/

sim/3087/.

Hansen, C.V., 2011, Status of groundwater levels and storage volume in the Equus

Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, July 2010: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific 

Investigations Map 3159, map scale 84,480, available at http://pubs.usgs.gov/

sim/3159/.

Hansen, C.V., and Aucott, W.R., 2001, Status of ground-water levels and storage volume in the Wichita well field area, south-central Kansas, 1998–2000: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 00–4267, 27 p.

Hansen, C.V., and Aucott, W.R., 2004, Status of ground-water levels and storage volume in the Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2000–January 2003: 

U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 03–4298, 36 p., 

available at http://pubs.usgs.gov/wri/wrir034298/.

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 Information Report 2010–5231, 42 p.

Juracek, K.E., and Hansen, C.V., 1995, Digital maps of the extent, base, top, and 1991 

potentiometric surface of the High Plains aquifer in Kansas: U.S. Geological Survey 

Open-File Report 95–758, map scales 1:500,000 and 1:1,000,000.

Kansas Geological Survey, 2011, WIZARD water-level database: Kansas Geological 

Survey database accessed March 3, 2011, at http://www.kgs.ku.edu/Magellan/WaterLevels/index.html.

Kansas State Research and Extension, 2011, Precipitation Summary: Kansas State 

University Weather Data Library, accessed July 19, 2011, at http://www.ksre.ksu.

edu/wdl/precipdata.htm.

Lane, C.W., and Miller, D.E., 1965a, Geohydrology of Sedgwick County, Kansas: 

Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 176, 100 p., available at http://www.kgs.

ku.edu/General/Geology/Sedgwick/index.html.

Lane, C.W., and Miller, D.E., 1965b, Logs of wells and test holes in Sedgwick 

County, Kansas: Kansas Geological Survey Special Distribution Publication 22, 

175 p.

Leonard, R.B., and Kleinschmidt, M.K., 1976, Saline water in the Little Arkansas 

River Basin area, south-central Kansas: Kansas Geological Survey Chemical Quality Series 3, 24 p.

Lohman, S.W., and others, 1972, Definitions of selected ground-water terms—

 Revisions and conceptual refinements: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Supply 

Paper 1988, 21 p.

Myers, N.C., Hargadine, G.D., and Gillespie, J.B., 1996, Hydrologic and chemical 

interaction of the Arkansas River and the Equus Beds aquifer between Hutchinson and Wichita, south-central Kansas: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources 

Investigations Report 95–4191, 100 p., available at http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/wri954191.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2008, Climatological data, 

annual summary, Kansas, 2007: Asheville, North Carolina, v. 121, no. 13, 41 p.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2009, Climatological data, 

annual summary, Kansas, 2008: Asheville, North Carolina, v. 122, no. 13, 41 p.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2010, Climatological data, 

annual summary, Kansas, 2009: Asheville, North Carolina, v. 123, no. 13, 41 p.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011a, Climatological data, 

annual summary, Kansas, 2010: Asheville, North Carolina, v. 124, no. 13, 41 p.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011b, Monthly precipitation 

averages for western South Dakota and Wyoming: Rapid City, South Dakota, 

National Weather Service Weather Forecasting Office, accessed October 31, 2011, 

at http://www.crh.noaa.gov/unr/?n=precipitation_averages.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011c, NOAA’s 1981–2010 climate normal: Asheville, North Carolina, National Climatic Data Center, accessed 

July 6, 2011, at http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/normals/usnormals.html.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2011d, Readme file for NOAA’s 

1981–2010 climate normal: Asheville, North Carolina, National Climatic Data 

Center, accessed October 13, 2011, at http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/1981-2010/readme.txt.

Spinazola, J.M., Gillespie, J.B., and Hart, R.J., 1985, Ground-water flow and solute 

transport in the Equus beds area, south-central Kansas: U.S. Geological Survey 

Water-Resources Investigations Report 85–4336, 68 p., available at http://pubs.

er.usgs.gov/publication/wri854336.

Stramel, G.J., 1956, Progress report on the ground-water hydrology of the Equus

beds area, Kansas: Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 119, part 1, 59 p.

Stramel, G.J., 1967, Progress report on the ground-water hydrology of the Equus

beds area, Kansas 1966: Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 187, part 2, 27 p.

Stullken, L.E., Watts, K.R., and Lindgren, R.J., 1985, Geohydrology of the High 

Plains aquifer, western Kansas: U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Report 85–4198, 86 p., available at http://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/

wri854198.

Thiessen, A.H., 1911, Precipitation averages for large areas: Monthly Weather 

Review, v. 39, p. 1,082–1,084.

U.S. Census Bureau, 2010, Table 4—Annual estimates of resident population for incorporated places in Kansas, April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2009 (SUBEST2009-04-20): U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division, accessed January 27, 

2010, at http://www.census.gov/popest/cities/SUB-EST2009-4.html.

U.S. Geological Survey, 2009, National Elevation Dataset (NED): Sioux Falls, South 

Dakota, U.S. Geological Survey Earth Observation and Science (EROS) Center, 

available at http://nationalmap.gov/elevation.html.

U.S. Geological Survey, 2011a, Highlights of Equus Beds Groundwater Recharge 

Project: U.S. Geological Survey Kansas Water Science Center, Lawrence, Kansas, accessed July 5, 2011, at http://ks.water.usgs.gov/studies/equus/equus_hilites.

html#HDR1.

U.S. Geological Survey, 2011b, National Water Information System (NWISWeb): 

U.S. Geological Survey database accessed April 13, 2011, at http://waterdata.usgs.

gov/ks/nwis/.

Warren, D.R., Blain, G.T., Shorney, F.L., and Klein, L.J., 1995, IRP—a case study 

from Kansas: Journal of the American Water Works Association, v. 87, no. 6, 

p. 57–71.

Williams, C.C., and Lohman, S.W., 1949, Geology and ground-water resources of a 

part of south-central Kansas, with special reference to the Wichita municipal water 

supply: Kansas Geological Survey Bulletin 79, 455 p.

Ziegler, A.C., Hansen, C.V., and Finn, D.A., 2010, Water quality in the Equus Beds 

aquifer and the Little Arkansas River before implementation of large-scale artificial recharge, south-central Kansas, 1995–2005: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific 

Investigations Report 2010–5023, 143 p.

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

Aucott and Myers, 1998).

Figure 2. Water-level altitudes in monitoring wells 104 and 886 and Equus Beds aquifer 

storage-volume change in the study area and the central part of the study area (waterlevel-altitude data are from Stramel (1956, 1967) and data collected by city of Wichita that 

are on file with U.S. Geological Survey in Lawrence, Kansas; storage-volume changes are 

from Stramel (1956, 1967), Aucott and Myers (1998), Aucott and others (1998), Hansen and 

Aucott (2010), Hansen (2011), and unpublished data on file with U.S. Geological Survey in 

Lawrence, Kansas). Locations of monitoring wells are shown in figures 1 and 5.

#

#

!

!

"

"

)

)

)

)

)

)

Marion

County

Harvey

County

Sedgwick

County

Kingman

County

McPherson

County

Rice

County

Reno

County

West Emma Creek

Middle Emma Creek

East Emma Creek

Sand Creek

EmmaCreek

Cheney Reservoir

Arkansas River

Little

Arkansas

River

North Fork Ninnescah

River

Turkey Creek

? ? ? ?

Kisiwa Creek

143930

145539

145744

147313

143366

148830

148830

Wichita

Hutchinson Newton

Park City

Hesston

Bel Aire

Valley Center

Halstead

Sedgwick

Mount 

Hope

Burrton

Andale

Bentley

07144200

07144100

07143672

07143665

07143375

07143330

104

886

97°45' 97°30' 97°15'

38°15'

38°

37°45'

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

Universal Transverse Mercator

Zone 14 North

0 2 4 6 8 10 MILES

0 2 4 6 8 10 KILOMETERS EXPLANATION

)

"

#

Study area

Approximate boundary of Equus Beds 

 aquifer—Queried where uncertain. 

 (modified from Juracek and Hansen, 1995; 

 Stullken and others, 1985; Stramel, 1967)

Precipitation station and identifier

Demonstration project artificial recharge site

Phase 1 artificial recharge site

U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging 

 station and identifier

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2

07143375

Approximate extent of 

High Plains aquifer in 

Kansas (from Juracek 

and Hansen, 1995)

Index map

KANSAS

98°

Boundary of 

central part 

of study area

19401945195019551960

1965197019751980198519901995

2000

200520102012

1,300

1,440

1,310

1,320

1,330

1,340

1,350

1,360

1,370

1,380

1,390

1,400

1,410

1,420

1,430

Water-level altitude, in feet above North 

American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88)

-300,000

400,000

-200,000

-100,000

100,000

0

200,000

300,000

Storage-volume change, in acre-feet

Storage-volume 

change in study area

Water-level altitude

in well 104

Water-level altitude in well 886

Storage-volume change

in central part of study area

Figure 3. Potentiometric surface of the shallow layer of the Equus Beds aquifer, January 2011. Figure 4. Potentiometric surface of the deep layer of the Equus Beds aquifer, January 2011. Figure 5. Water-level changes in the Equus Beds aquifer in the study area, August 1940 to January 2011.

12B

11B

T.

25

S.

T.

24

S.

T.

23

S.

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

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

Universal Transverse Mercator projection 

Zone 14

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American

 Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 KILOMETERS

Little

Arkansas

River

Emma

Emma

West

Creek

Creek

Creek

Sand

Mount

Hope

Burrton

Bentley

Sedgwick

P32

P30

P29

118 3005

P35

3034

891

47B

109

EB19A

130

EB12A

EB18A

EB243A

EB11A

EB7A

41B

18B

26

1189

1173

1175

113

15B

19B 20B

133

29B

3041

P28

3035

3001

106

RB1-MS 

SHALLOW

103

101

EB22A

EB5A

EB56A

EB57A

EB4A

EB3A

3B 4B

2B

7B

878

886

5B

6B

3038 3037

8B

9B 16B

1190 853

17B

2084

2088

833

50B 49B

48B

45B

Patterson

110 3002

21B

112 22B

23B

839

24B 28B 25B

54B

55B

52B

114

53B

51B 3003 1171

842

840

30B

128D

32B 34B 35B

33B 307

36

124 1176

1174 1179

115

3044

3045

EB202A

EB142A

EB147A

EB141

EB203A

3030 816

38B

37B

39B

40B

117

815

126

810

3050R

Arkansas

River

102

1194

Kisiwa

1B

3004

870

Creek

13B

27B

P27

10B

46B

14B

120

31B

108

P31A

3036A

105

888

3032

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

IW01A

IW02A

IW08A

IW09A

IW14A

IW13A

IW18A

IW19A

IW24A

IW25A

IW30A IW31A

IW35A

IW33A

IW34A 

IW38A

IW36A

IW27A

IW28A

IW20A IW21A

IW22A

IW23A

IW10A

IW15A

IW16A

IW17A

IW11A

IW06A

IW12A

IW05A

IW03A

IW26A

IW04A

Valley

Center

42B

IW07A

Halstead

1187 1186

IW37A

IW29A

Boundary of 

study area

Boundary of central 

part of study area

Boundary of central 

part of study area Boundary of 

study area

"

"

"

"

"

"

1,445

1,460

1,465

1,455

1,450

1,445

1,440

1,440

1,435

1,435

1,430

1,430

1,425

1,425

1,420

1,420

1,415

1,410

1,405 1,400

1,395

1,390

1,385

1,380

1,380

1,385

1,390

1,395

1,400

1,405

1,410

1,415

1,420

1,425

1,420

1,430

1,430

873

1,424.01

1,417.82

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1,413.19

1,411.95

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1,391.16

1,391.51

1,368.78

1,384.81

1,369.58

1,382.38

1,369.75 1,367.43 1,374.19

1,352.09

1,389.03 1,394.19

1,331.81 07144200

1,327

07143672

1,377

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RRW-1

RRW-3

RRW-4

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EB9A

EB8A

122

1,384.49

1,383.25

1,367.83

1,409.52

1,390.76

1,360.80

1,440.98

1,428.00

1,429.80

1,372.50

1,394.60

1,383.10

1,411.10 1,374.50

1,399.70

1,361.60 1,368.40

1,328.38

1,472.58

1,379.14

1,427.85 1,444.13

1,454.48

1,450.65

1,444.99 1,431.26

1,448.75

1,423.82

1,435.06

1,428.52

1,424.21

1,435.05

1,421.12

1,427.17

1,368.32

1,340.94

1,457.08

1,397.98

1,444.41

1,398.57

1,408.12

1,436.71 1,398.92

1,395.01

1,374.64 1,383.69

1,393.21 1,386.88

1,409.34

1,415.68

1,434.47

1,401.61

1,421.63

1,438.87

1,383.85

1,400.98 1,369.13

1,404.68

1,417.82 1,400.93 1,379.61

1,440.43

1,364.09

1,415.62 1,420.51 1,394.22

1,380.02

1,414.13

1,386.15

1,392.43

1,382.49

1,445.58

1,373.02 1,359.73 1,378.35

1,388.77

1,437.33

1,373.69

1,375.93

1,390.17

1,359.96

1,380.83

1,422.35

1,382.24

1,411.79

1,406.44

1,364.43

1,373.26

1,359.14

1,379.94

1,381.79 1,369.52 1,365.49 1,359.96

1,411.96

1425.75 1,366.78

1365.32

1,352.32

1,430.75

1,361.32

1,403.69 1,391.16 1,366.94 1,370.55 1,369.13 1,362.95 1,381.76 1,396.58

1,394.59

1,391.48

1,401.33 1,412.59

1,361.19 1,359.73 1,356.37 1349.89 1,388.82 1,382.81

1,391.94

1,363.53

1,394.53

1,361.31

1,376.32 1,362.54

1,345.34

1,355.68

1,358.23

1,383.13 1,370.49

1,355.28

1,356.27

1,375.36

1,344.87 1,381.07

1,363.07 1,358.15

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111

107

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EB16A

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EB15A

EB14A

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EB146A

EB208A

EB209A

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1,439.16

1,471.52

1,397.74

1419.28

1,405.05

1,431.58

1,428.09

1,400.96

1,368.65

1,418.38

1,381.17

1,426.97 1371.75

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1,412.31

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1,397.24

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1,356.16

1,382.62 1,348.02

1,347.06

1,356.54 1,366.22

1,385.81

1,400.22

07144100

1,343

RB-1

1,470

1,375

1,370

1,365

1,360

1,355

1,355

1,350

1,345

1,335

1,330

1,340

1,360

1,365

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1,379.61

EXPLANATION

"

Study area

Potentiometric contour—Shows altitude at 

which water level would have stood in 

tightly cased wells in the shallow layer of 

the Equus Beds aquifer, January 2011. 

Dashed where approximately located. 

Hachures indicate depression. Contour 

interval 5 feet. Datum is NAVD 88

U.S. Geological Survey surface-water gaging 

station—Station identifier shown above; 

water level, in feet above datum, shown 

below. Datum is NAVD 88

Approximate direction of groundwater flow

Phase 1 artificial recharge site and identifier

Monitoring wells in shallow layer of Equus

Beds aquifer—Well identifier shown 

above; water level, in feet above datum, 

shown below. Datum is NAVD 88

Historic or other monitoring well

Index monitoring well

# 07143672

1,377

Water-level measurements made by city of Wichita or Equus Beds 

Groundwater Management District No. 2 personnel, or collected by 

U.S. Geological Survey.

II IIIII

I IIII I III II III II

I I I I III II I I III I II I I I I II I

IIII IIIII

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l

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IIIIII

T.

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S.

T.

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S.

T.

23

S.

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

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

Universal Transverse Mercator projection 

Zone 14

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American

 Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 KILOMETERS

Little

Arkansas

River

Emma

Emma

West

Creek

Creek

Creek

Sand

Mount

Hope

Burrton

Bentley

Sedgwick

P30A

P35A

893

47D

EB12C

EB18C

EB243C

EB11C

EB7C

41D

P28A

RB1-MS 

DEEP

EB56C

7D

879

887

50D

49D

48D

45D

Patterson

51D

36D

EB202C

EB203C

37D 38D

39D

3050A

Arkansas

River

Kisiwa

Creek

P27A

10D

46D

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

IW01C

IW02C

IW08C

IW09C

IW14C

IW13C

IW18C

IW19C

IW24C IW25C

IW30C IW31C

IW35C

IW33C

IW34C 

IW38C

IW37C

IW36C

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IW28C

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Center

42D

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Boundary of 

study area

Boundary of central 

part of study area

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part of study area Boundary of 

study area

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RRW-4

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RRW-1

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RB-1

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1,433.00

1,366.90

1,397.70

1,425.40

1,395.60

1,422.24

1,431.05

1,425.78

1,420.89

1,423.76

1,422.69

1,433.71

1,420.04

1,426.46

1,366.14

1,434.27

1,437.42

1,391.25

1,410.91

1,401.72

1,441.14

14,15.57 1,394.06

1,404.96

1,446.89

1,383.56

1,437.66

1,399.73

1,400.53

1,382.68

1,375.22

1,381.24

1,429.25

1,392.63

1,360.23

1,357.42 1,354.78

1,353.03

1,342.02

1,362.57

1,417.00

1,380.80

1,420.59

1,414.33

1,353.55

1,410.03

1,409.72

1,360.31

1,366.71

1,383.90

1,367.74

1,409.67

1,390.81 1,348.00

1,419.40

1,377.40

1,356.10

1,419.28

1,396.37

1,404.28

1,424.11

1,427.75

1,399.82

1,368.32

1,411.28

1,381.02

1,426.94

1,381.92 1,370.83

1,393.69

1,410.04

1,424.85

1,393.69 1,358.83 1,382.42

1,410.24

1,381.93

1,420.63

1,358.04

1,362.98

1,370.85

1,367.61

1,346.92

1,356.54

1,364.99

1,373.72

40D

1,405

1,405

1,400

1,395

1,380

1,375

1,370

1,350

1,345

1,390

1,385

97°37'30" 30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

1,375

RRW-1

IW12C

1,368.32

506

1,380.80

EXPLANATION

"

Study area

Potentiometric contour—Shows altitude at 

which water level would have stood in 

tightly cased wells in the shallow layer of 

the Equus Beds aquifer, January 2011. 

Dashed where approximately located. 

Hachures indicate depression. Contour 

interval 5 feet. Datum is NAVD 88

Approximate direction of groundwater flow

Phase 1 artificial recharge site and identifier

Monitoring wells in shallow layer of Equus

Beds aquifer—Well identifier shown 

above; water level, in feet above datum, 

shown below. Datum is NAVD 88

Historic or other monitoring well

Index monitoring well

Water-level measurements made by city of Wichita or Equus Beds 

Groundwater Management District No. 2 personnel, or collected by 

U.S. Geological Survey.

T.

25

S.

T.

24

S.

T.

23

S.

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

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

Universal Transverse Mercator projection 

Zone 14

Horizontal coordinate information is referenced to the North American

 Datum of 1983 (NAD 83)

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 MILES

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 KILOMETERS

Little

Arkansas

River

Emma

Emma

West

Creek

Creek

Creek

Sand

Mount

Hope

Burrton

Bentley

Sedgwick

P30A

P35A

41B

P28A

7B

878

Patterson

Arkansas

River

Kisiwa

Creek

P27A

HARVEY COUNTY

SEDGWICK COUNTY

IW01C

IW02C

IW08A

IW09A

IW14A

IW13A

IW18A

IW19A

IW24A IW25A

IW30A IW31A

IW35A

IW33A

IW34A 

IW38A

IW37A

IW36A

IW27A

IW-28A

IW29A

IW20A

IW21A IW22A IW23A

IW16A IW17A

IW11A

IW06A

IW12A

IW05A

IW03A

IW26A

IW04C

Valley

Center

42B

IW07A

Halstead

IW15A

IW10A

Boundary of 

study area

Boundary of central 

part of study area

Boundary of central 

part of study area Boundary of 

study area

"

"

"

"

"

"

" " "

"

!

!

"

"

"

" " "

!

" " "

" !

" !

"

"

"

" "

" "

"

P29A

IW32A

RRW-3

RRW-4

RRW-2

RRW-1

RB-2

RB-1

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

! !

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

!

"

"

"

"

"

"

"

-4

-4

-2

-6

-6

-8

-8

-10

-10

0

-10

-12

-14

+2

-16

-14

-2

-12

0

-12

-14

0

0

-2

-2

0

0

0

-12

-2

-2

-2

-4

-4

-4

-6

-6

-8

-8

-10

0

1B

8B

9B

5B

3B 4B

2B

6B

106

892

870 842

13B

16B

22B

25B 24B

23B

21B

20B

19B

18B

14B

12B

840

839

833

815

810

506

33B

31B

30B

101

55B

54B

53B

52B

51B

50B

49B

48B

46B 47B

45B

40B

39B

38B

37B

36B

35B

29B 32B 34B

28B

27B

26B

133

130

126

124

122

120

118

115

114

112

111

110

109

108

105

103

102

816

17B

15B

10B

11B

3032

P31A

3001

3035

3044

3041

3038

3034

3004

3002

1190

1187 1186

1179

1176

1175

2084

1189

1173

3050R

-7.93

-8.84

+0.45

-2.48 -1.62

-5.52

-9.84

-7.37

-5.00

-2.76

-1.01

-0.67

-1.14

-0.16

-1.80

-8.47

-7.75

-5.63

+0.25

-4.38

-0.10

+1.96

-7.50

-6.27

-6.39

-6.98

-4.49

-9.05

-5.66 -7.55

-5.94

-4.95

-5.78

-6.02

-7.26

-8.40

-9.54

-7.77 -9.72 -9.65

-3.88

-3.40

-2.30

-1.45

-4.37

-5.41

-9.76

-3.99 -1.66

-2.04

-5.85

-4.88

-3.86

-2.57

-3.20

-3.33

-3.45

-1.06

+2.22

-2.87

-2.94

-4.99

-0.96

-1.54

+0.80

-5.05

-6.78

-8.42

-0.14 --

-6.78

-9.10

-14.05

-13.60

-14.85

-14.92

-11.09

-11.42 -11.46

-10.76

-12.79

-10.14

-15.90

-10.95

-13.32

-16.52 -14.65

-11.90

-15.21 -15.60

-14.14

-14.25

-10.35

-10.48

-11.67

-11.34 -11.98

-10.65

-10.56

-12.99

-12.94

-11.93

-10.85

-11.21

-13.79

-15.35

-14.60

-12.40

--

-3.40

-3.93

-4.68

-3.01

-1.61

-5.50

-4.91 -2.90

-7.25

-8.19

-4.34

-3.42 -1.37

-3.33

-7.14 -9.56

-4.32

-2.20

-5.13

-5.15

-3.94

-1.85

-9.11

-3.50

-3.42

-8.15 -6.66

-7.62

-4.03

-2.33

-4.59

-11.19

-10.73

-12.72

-13.40

-11.05

104

-4.82

-12.11

-15.48

886

97°37'30" 30' 97°22'30"

38°

37°52'30"

-10

RRW-1

IW12A

-1.85

111

-0.96

EXPLANATION

"

Area of water-level decline:

 Less than 10 feet 

 10 to less than 20 feet

 Line of equal water-level change— 

Dashed where approximately located. 

Interval is 2 feet

Phase 1 artificial recharge site and identifier

Well hydrograph shown in figure 2

Monitoring wells in shallow layer of Equus

Beds aquifer—Well identifier shown 

above; water level, in feet above datum, 

shown below; --, no water-level 

measurement in January 2011. Datum is 

NAVD 88

Historic or other monitoring well

Index monitoring well

Water-level measurements made by city of Wichita or Equus Beds 

Groundwater Management District No. 2 personnel, or collected by 

U.S. Geological Survey.

Change in storage volume in study area between August 1940 and 

January 2011 is -104,000 acre-feet.

Table 1. Storage-volume changes in Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, southcentral Kansas, August 1940 to January 2011.

[Data on file with U.S. Geological Survey, Lawrence, Kansas.]

Time period

Storage-volume changes, in acre-feet

Study area "Central part of 

study area"

August 1940 to January 1993 1-255,000 1-154,000

August 1940 to January 2007 2-167,000 2-82,900

August 1940 to January 2010 2-100,000 2-57,600

August 1940 to July 2010 3-93,700 3-56,000

August 1940 to January 2011 -104,000 -57,100

January 1993 to January 2011 +151,000 +96,900

January 2007 to January 2011 +63,000 +25,800

January 2010 to January 2011 -4,000 +500

July 2010 to January 2011 -10,300 -1,100

1

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

2

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen and Aucott (2010).

3

 Storage-volume change previously reported by Hansen (2011).

Publishing support provided by: 

Rolla Publishing Service Center

For additional information concerning this publication, contact:

Director, USGS Kansas Water Science Center 

4821 Quail Crest Place, Lawrence, KS (785) 842–9909

Or visit the Kansas Water Science Center Web Site at:

http://ks.water.usgs.gov

Suggested citation:

Hansen, C.V., 2011, Status of groundwater levels and storage volume in the Equus

Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2011: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3192, 1 sheet.

For more information about USGS and its products:

Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS

World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov

Status of Groundwater Levels and Storage Volume in the Equus

Beds Aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2011

By

Cristi V. Hansen, 2011

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY

Prepared in cooperation with the

CITY OF WICHITA, KANSAS

SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATIONS MAP 3192

Status of groundwater levels and storage volume in the Equus Beds aquifer

Hansen, C.V., 2011, Status of groundwater levels and storage 

volume in the Equus Beds aquifer near Wichita, Kansas, January 2011