Wichita outlines drought plan as Cheney Reservoir nears record low; new treatment plant and reuse projects highlighted

Gary Janice, director of public works and utilities for the City of Wichita, told the Valley Center City Council on May 6 that the region is coping with a historically severe drought centered on low storage at Cheney Reservoir and that new infrastructure and reuse programs are intended to reduce the risk of more severe water restrictions.

Janice said Cheney Reservoir was “almost 8 feet below normal pool” and that November rains had temporarily prevented an even lower record. He described a four-stage drought response plan adopted by the Wichita City Council after the 2013 drought and said the region moved into stage 2 watering restrictions last August, limiting outdoor watering to one day per week by contract for Wichita’s wholesale customers, including Valley Center.

The nut of Janice’s presentation was that investments already made and projects coming online will increase flexibility in the short and medium term and could help avoid harsher restrictions. Janice highlighted three elements: (1) recharge and aquifer storage in the Equus Beds (now about 92% full), (2) a new, larger Wichita water treatment plant that is in performance testing and expected to be fully operational by year’s end, and (3) expanded wastewater reuse and recycling, including industrial reuse and potential direct potable reuse studies.

Janice said the Equus Beds aquifer recharge program — using injection wells and recharge basins — has built credits that allow more groundwater use in some years. He described the new treatment plant as “state of the art,” noted it will allow the city to treat more groundwater than the older plant, and said he expects the city to take possession of the facility in “the next 60 to 90 days” with full operation before the end of the year.

On reuse, Janice pointed to an existing arrangement that sends about 1 million gallons per day of treated effluent to an industrial customer (Spirit) since 2015 and to a newly launched purple-piped hydrant program that offers nonpotable treated effluent free to contractors. He said Wichita discharges roughly 25 million gallons per day from its main treatment plant to the river — roughly half the city’s typical 50 million gallon daily demand — and described capturing and treating that flow for direct reuse as a long-range goal that could dramatically reduce drought-driven restrictions.

Janice also addressed options that are not viable: he said shuttering or pumping from El Dorado Reservoir is not feasible in a sustained regional drought because conveyance costs and limited water rights would deplete that source quickly. He said dredging Cheney would be prohibitively expensive — estimated roughly at $100 million in a quick estimate — for a marginal gain (he characterized it as only buying about a month and a half of additional supply).

Council members asked about costs and who would pay for purple-pipe extensions to serve businesses; Janice said the business model varies case by case and noted Spirit paid for its connection but receives the water for a substantially reduced rate. He also warned that the city’s goal is to stay out of stage 3, which would eliminate all outdoor watering — residential and commercial — and would begin to affect businesses.

Janice urged conservation and a cultural change around landscape watering, praised Wichita’s rebate programs and partnerships with Kansas State and Sedgwick County Extension, and said Wichita staff will pursue regulatory and legislative work with KDHE and the state to enable larger-scale reuse projects.

The presentation provided context for Valley Center because Wichita is a wholesale water supplier to the region: Janice said Wichita serves about 500,000 people across 11 wholesale customers (eight cities and three rural water districts), and that Derby and Valley Center will benefit from additional regional supplies as new local plants and reuse projects come online.