Kansas is taking a new approach to reducing sediment in the state’s reservoirs.
The state will pay landowners up to $50 a ton for the amount of sediment they keep out of the watershed leading to a state reservoir.
Kanopolis Reservoir, which has lost 39 percent of its water supply storage, is one of the four reservoirs included in the Kansas Reservoir Protection Initiative, as recommended by the Kansas Water Authority.
One stream in the Kanopolis Reservoir watershed, Oak Creek, which flows through the city of Ellsworth, is included in this initiative.
“This is a different project than we’ve done before,” said Pamela Hays, with the Ellsworth County Conservation District.
Previous projects have helped fund practices that prevent soil from entering the watershed, Hays said. This pays for projects that keep sediment from entering the stream.
At least $50,000 is targeted for the Oak Creek watershed, Hays said. The state has budgeted $900,000 for Kanopolis, Fall River, John Redmond and Tuttle Creek reservoirs. The first round of applications is due Friday, she said, but signups will be accepted throughout the year. Initial approvals are expected by the end of September.
(Read more: News – Salina Journal)