Q Why can’t the National Weather Service install an automatic gauge that can read flood levels on the Cottonwood River? The river levels on the NWS Web site are not current, especially in the morning, because someone has to go to the river and manually read the gauge. Families near the river need to know its levels. If the river stands at 24 feet, I know Highway 99 will be open and we can get to town; if it stands at 25 or 26, I know the Kansas Turnpike will open its gates as an alternate way to get to Emporia. This is a big safety issue for families that live by the river. If Plymouth and Cottonwood Falls and Florence can have automatic gauges, why can’t Emporia?
A “If we had our choice here, we’d like to have automated gauges everywhere,” said John Woynick, meteorologist and hydrology program manager for the National Weather Service.
He said, however, that the weather service is not involved in installing automated gauges; it merely interprets the water-level figures and posts the forecasts through a link on its Web site.
The manual gauge at Soden’s Bridge currently is read by an employee of the David Traylor Zoo of Emporia, Woynick said.
Automated gauges are obtained through the U.S. Geological Survey and, occasionally, the Corps of Engineers, with cooperation from local or state units of government.
“The first thing is, someone would talk to me,” said Jim Putnam, hydrologist with the USGS in Lawrence.
The USGS can install two types of gauges. The simplest reads water level only; the second type of gauge also measures flow.
“By doing that, that information helps weather service forecasts, so they can route water, actual flow,” Putnam said.
The cost of automated gauges ranges from $15,000 to $18,000 or $20,000, including the cost of surveying, equipment and salaries.
The standard operation maintenance cost for a water-level only gauge is $5,000 per year. The cost for the gauge with flow measurements and stage discharge can be about $15,300.
Putnam said that a portion of the costs can be born through a “water cooperative program” that provides a percentage of matching funds for installation or operation.
“The rest of the funds have to come from some entity,” he said.
The cooperating entity can be a local or state governmental unit or the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
F Readers with questions on topics of local interest may send questions to Because You Asked, in care of The Emporia Gazette, Drawer C, Emporia KS 68801. Questions need to be signed, but names will not be revealed. Questions submitted anonymously will not be answered.