Landowners in Lyon, Coffey and Greenwood counties have a longer window to apply for involvement in the Kansas Reservoir Protection Initiative.
The state program offers financial assistance in what are deemed priority watersheds, and it’s designed to get landowners to implement certain conservation practices — gully repair, reduced tillage and cover crops are main focal points — and thus lower the amount of sediment going into federal reservoirs. This initiative involves “targeted sub-watersheds” above reservoirs like John Redmond Reservoir, which has lost over 40 percent of its water storage because of silt, despite a dredging project several years ago, and Fall River Reservoir, which has lost almost 40 percent of its capacity due to sediment.
Landowners can contact their local county conservation district or Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy coordinator to apply. The application window closes Sept. 8.
