Turning on a faucet and having clean water is something most don’t think twice about but having that easy access is something the staff at the McPherson board of Public Utilities are always thinking about. Chris Unruh, a project manager with BPU says, “There’s a lot that really goes into supplying safe drinking water, being able to provide water for recreational purposes and continue to provide that reliability.” Right now the city is pulling more water from its main source, the Equus Bed aquifer, than is sustainable long term according to BPU general manager Josh Bedel. “The Kansas geological survey did a study years ago and they calculated a safe yield of 10,000 acre feet a year and currently we’re sitting close to 12,000 acre feet a year,” said Bedel. He says water levels are declining about half a foot each year.
Source: KAKE – News
