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Page 1 of 2 <br /><_ return ..to original page <br />IHEHuTCHINS0NNEW,_m <br />online " <br />Advisory panel recommends plan to buy Circle <br />K <br />By Amy Bickel <br />The 7,000 -acre Edwards County ranch has made it through the first stages in a state plan to buy the ranch and retire its <br />water rights. <br />But despite two basin advisory committees recommending the purchase, state officials still have a long way to go before <br />securing the purchase of the ranch known as the Circle K - an effort that officials say would solve water problems in the <br />Middle Arkansas River subbasin. <br />And not that the basin advisory committee decisions came easy. <br />On Monday, the Upper Arkansas River Basin Advisory Committee met to discuss its recommendation. After a handful <br />of votes, the board voted 7 -2 in favor of a plan that would retire all the ranch's water rights. <br />A few weeks ago, the Lower Arkansas River Basin Advisory Committee did the same, passing a decision unanimously <br />that includes retiring most of the ranch's water rights, but leasing some circles for irrigation. <br />The recommendations now go to the Kansas Water Authority, said Susan Stover, an environmental scientist with the <br />Kansas Water Office. From there, negotiations begin with the ranch's owners, the cities of Hays and Russell. <br />"We've been studying this and discussing it and trying to get the appraisal for over a year now," said Stover, who added <br />that board members and officials were getting to a point where "Let's make something happen and move forward. Let's <br />make some decisions - should we try for this or not? And both BACs said, 'Yes, let's try for this.' " <br />The state's purchase of the Circle K has been in heated debate for more than a year. The state is interested in the land as <br />an effort to stabilize groundwater levels in the area and help the Arkansas River flow again from Kinsley to Great Bend. <br />The ranch has 57 irrigation wells, many within a few miles of the Arkansas River. The state's proposed plan would shut <br />down all but 1,000 acre feet of water - turning the sandy ranch into a recreational area for hunters, bird - watchers and <br />hikers. <br />And the ranch's cost to the state would be minimal. Kansas Wildlife and Parks, the agency that would take over the land, <br />could be reimbursed for up to 75 percent of the purchase of public hunting land through the federal government's excise <br />tax on firearms and ammunition. <br />The local groundwater management district, Big Bend No. 5, also is interested in partnering with the state to secure the <br />purchase. <br />However, the purchase has been controversial in Edwards County. Folks there say their already dwindling population <br />would be hurt economically without the revenue from irrigation. <br />http: / /www.dailynews. net/ hutchinson /cgi- bin/printerpage.pl 8/23/2004 <br />