Kansas Tap Water Quality
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Overview
Eastern Kansas cities drink treated river and reservoir water (Wichita blends Cheney Reservoir with Equus Beds aquifer wells; Kansas City-area systems use the Missouri and Kansas Rivers), and all the large systems meet federal standards. Western Kansas depends on the declining Ogallala aquifer.
Recurring issues are agricultural: nitrate exceedances in small groundwater systems, atrazine pulses in reservoirs after spring planting, and naturally occurring uranium and selenium in pockets of western groundwater. Wichita's aquifer storage project also guards against a legacy industrial plume east of the wellfield.
Common Contaminants in Kansas
The most common health-based violation, concentrated in small ag-area groundwater systems
Spring runoff peaks in some reservoir systems; annual averages stay within limits
Naturally occurring in parts of western Kansas groundwater; affected systems blend or treat
Violations & Compliance
Wichita, Topeka, and the Johnson County systems are consistently compliant. Violations cluster in small western and central systems for nitrate and radionuclides, with consolidation and new wells the usual fixes.
City Water Reports in Kansas
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources & References
The safety rating and guidance on this page draw on the following sources. See our full methodology.
- •US EPA Safe Drinking Water Act regulations
- •EWG Tap Water Database
- •The utility's most recent Consumer Confidence Report (CCR)
- •WHO Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality