Do you folks think areas in eastern Kansas like Overland Park, KS will run out of water? (Kansas City: house)

[AlexZaz.]

Hello, we are moving to Kansas City but we are looking into Overland Park and our dream house is over there. Do you think they will face water issues? I heard that Kansas is facing a water issue but I would think the Kansas City area would face it better. I'm posting this in the Kansas forum too.

[sub]

No.
They typically get 42 inches of rain a year, above the national average. That’s quite a lot.
I don’t see that changing.

[GraniteStater]

Most areas of Kansas will be facing a poor long-term outlook for water as average temperatures increase, and drought becomes much more common and severe. Kansas City metro area will have less overall issues, but a high likelihood exists that water rates will be increasing substantially over time as infrastructure ages along with other factors.

[Okey Dokie]

The majority of the Kansas City area gets their water from the Missouri River. It’s not drying up any time soon. I’ve lived here over 50 years, and the only times I recall any sort of water conservation issues was during the 1993 flood when the water treatment plant was threatened, and maybe a couple extremely dry summers (in the 80s) where the demand was greater than the treatment plant could keep up with.

Granite Stater is right, though, that water rates are increasing due to infrastructure replacement.

If you’re in love with Overland Park, have you looked in Missouri north of the river? You can get a lot more bang for your buck up here.

[SunGrins]

No. I get 11 annual inches of rain. If they get 42 inches that's like a flood here. There are big rivers there, as well.

[4everMissouri]

I doubt it.

[KC_Retiree]

Originally Posted by Okey Dokie

The majority of the Kansas City area gets their water from the Missouri River. It’s not drying up any time soon. I’ve lived here over 50 years, and the only times I recall any sort of water conservation issues was during the 1993 flood when the water treatment plant was threatened, and maybe a couple extremely dry summers (in the 80s) where the demand was greater than the treatment plant could keep up with.

Granite Stater is right, though, that water rates are increasing due to infrastructure replacement.

If you’re in love with Overland Park, have you looked in Missouri north of the river? You can get a lot more bang for your buck up here.

I would not be so optimistic about the Missouri River. It's not drying up but as the climate warms, most of what is left of the glaciers in its headwaters are disappearing as are permanent snowfields. Most of the snow cover in the mountains, which sustains the Missouri during the hot and dry summer months, is starting to disappear in Colorado (and hence the Platte River tributary) and Wyoming by early July and now and by late August in Montana. The Missouri and its tributaries do not pick up significant volumes of water crossing the Plains so some kind of reduction in flow similar to what is seen in western watersheds like the Colorado River is predictable for the eastern Rocky Mountain watersheds and that includes the Missouri River. I doubt, however, if any of that makes a difference on where someone would choose to live in Kansas City.

[VietInKC]

Seeing that you are coming from Phoenix, I think the outlook looks a lot better in the Midwest in general