ARCA 2015 Annual Meeting Exhibits

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Introduction Southwest Kansas Groundwater Management District#3's(GMD3) application for a Plan of Study(POS)was selected through the Bureau of Reclamation's (Reclamation) Basin Study Program. Therefore GMD3 and Reclamation have partnered to develop a POS for a full Basin Study to evaluate water quality issues in the Arkansas River Basin from John Martin Reservoir in Colorado to Garden City, Kansas. The Basin Study would be carried out under Reclamation's WaterSMART Program pursuant to the authority and mandates of the Secure Water Act(SWA), Subtitle F (P.L. 111-11). Under the SWA, Reclamation can partner with entities in the 17 Western United States to: (1)evaluate projections of water supply and demand within a basin, including an assessment of the risks associated with climate change; (2)analyze how existing water and power infrastructure and operations will perform in the face of increasing demands; (3)develop adaptation and mitigation strategies to meet future demands; and (4)conduct trade-off analyses and make recommendations on strategies to secure present and future water supplies. Detailed information about the requirements of WaterSMART Basin Studies can be found at: http://www.usbr..,zov/watersmart/bsp/index.html Through the Basin Study Program, Reclamation works in partnership with state and local entities and in collaboration with basin stakeholders to conduct comprehensive studies to define options for meeting future water demands in river basins where imbalances in supply and demand or other issues exist. This POS describes the need for an effort to address water quality issues and concerns in the area and discusses the preliminary objectives of a full Basin Study. In addition,the POS details the potential Basin study tasks to be undertaken. Study Objectives Colorado and Kansas, as well as others are currently working on these issues, however collaboration and coordination between the entities is minimal. Therefore the overarching objective of the proposed Arkansas River Basin Study is to provide a vehicle for the study partners and stakeholders in Colorado and Kansas to develop tools and gather information to assist them to collaboratively develop water management alternatives that enhance water utility and water quality in the Study Area. GMD3 is actively seeking study partners to participate in a full Basin Study and the addition of study partners would require further discussion of tasks and objectives listed in the POS. Description of the Study Area The Arkansas River is the sixth longest river in the United States and a major tributary to the Mississippi-Missouri system. The Arkansas River Basin is the largest river basin within Colorado with over 28,000 square miles of drainage area. The basin covers 27 percent of the surface area of the state. The headwaters of the Arkansas River begin near 2