Kansas water use in 2018
5,183,645 acre-feet reported across 26,497 points — 1% below the 1990–2023 average.
5,183,645Acre-feet
26,497Points reporting
3,061,194Acres irrigated
-1%vs 34-yr average
What 2018 was
Kansas reported 5,183,645 acre-feet in 2018, against a 1990–2023 average of 5,214,505. Reported use follows the weather far more than anything else, so a single year says more about rainfall than about policy — which is why every page on this site shows the whole series rather than a comparison between two years.
The count of points reporting any use was 26,497. That number moves far less than the volume does, in 2018 as in every other year.
Which counties used the most in 2018
| County | Acre-feet | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Douglas | 1,772,758 | 34.2% |
| Finney | 241,609 | 4.7% |
| Stevens | 201,296 | 3.9% |
| Kearny | 166,788 | 3.2% |
| Seward | 165,620 | 3.2% |
| Meade | 164,367 | 3.2% |
| Gray | 155,494 | 3.0% |
| Haskell | 154,251 | 3.0% |
| Grant | 103,116 | 2.0% |
| Sedgwick | 99,974 | 1.9% |
| Ford | 95,222 | 1.8% |
| Wyandotte | 91,944 | 1.8% |
| Stanton | 91,643 | 1.8% |
| Edwards | 90,089 | 1.7% |
| Stafford | 87,288 | 1.7% |
| Sherman | 82,706 | 1.6% |
| Pratt | 79,551 | 1.5% |
| Thomas | 71,873 | 1.4% |
| Reno | 68,383 | 1.3% |
| Pawnee | 60,685 | 1.2% |
| Sheridan | 54,283 | 1.0% |
| Kiowa | 53,500 | 1.0% |
| Harvey | 44,921 | 0.9% |
| Barton | 44,530 | 0.9% |
| Morton | 43,930 | 0.8% |
By management district in 2018
| District | Acre-feet | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Outside any district | 2,548,049 | 49.2% |
| Southwest Kansas GMD 3 | 1,599,623 | 30.9% |
| Big Bend GMD 5 | 442,794 | 8.5% |
| Northwest Kansas GMD 4 | 284,440 | 5.5% |
| Equus Beds GMD 2 | 174,862 | 3.4% |
| Western Kansas GMD 1 | 133,879 | 2.6% |