At the University of Kansas we do research that is applied to specific situations in Kansas and the region as well as basic research with general applicability all over the world. The most extensive and economically important aquifers in Kansas are the High Plains Aquifer, the Dakota Aquifer and the major alluvial valleys. The major areas of ground-water research in Kansas can be broken down into three classes: Aquifer characterization and management, ground water quality, and ground-water/surface-water interaction. The bulk of ground-water research at the University of Kansas is carried out by three groups: The Department of Geology, the Kansas Geological Survey and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. In addition, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Water Resources Division maintains a regional office in Lawrence and is involved in a number of ground-water research projects.

the study of major Kansas aquifer systems regarding quantity and quality issues (including the hydrogeochemistry of stream-aquifer interaction) through the use of modeling and geographical information systems; combining watershed and stream-aquifer models, calibrating and applying them for management purposes to resolve water and land use problems; study of seasonal and longer-term changes in shallow-groundwater chemistry at various sites; the study of rock chemistry using the laser-ablation microprobe in the KU Plasma Analytical Laboratory; study of the sources of trace elements in formation waters from deep sedimentary basins; nitrate in Kansas groundwater including extent of contamination and delineation of sources; study of the attenuation rates and transformation mechanisms of herbicides in water/soil ecosystems; the study of pathogen migration through vegetated versus non-vegetated near-surface soils (around feed lots); investigation of the role of microbial community structure on nitrogen cycling in contaminated groundwater systems.