Gov. Sam Brownback’s 50-year water plan is moving forward. A statewide conservation panel is being selected. The panel will investigate solutions for Kansas as a whole, while regional teams will look for local answers.
Hays is a success Brownback hopes to duplicate across the state reports the Kansas Health Institute. The north central community’s wells went dry in 1991. A comprehensive water-saving plan was developed. Fewer, more efficient wells were dug. Incentives for low-flow toilets, shower heads, high efficiency washing machine were provided by the city. New construction codes changed to include water conservation mandates. City leaders went into schools education the kids about water conservation. Now the community of 21,000 people uses about the same amount of water it did in 1970 when the population was about 15,000.
The Governor’s plan has four main themes:
· Water conservation
· Water management
· Technology and crop varieties
· Additional sources of supply