Addressing Contaminated Groundwater and Promoting Environmental Stewardship in Wichita, Kansas — The Gilbert and Mosley Project Story

The City of Wichita, Kansas faced a significant environmental challenge when volatile organic compounds impacted a large volume of groundwater extending south of the downtown area to the Arkansas River. This contaminated groundwater posed a threat to human health and the environment and threatened to stagnate economic development as a result of the environmental liability concerns across the project area that encompasses about 3,850 acres and 8,000 parcels of residential, commercial, and industrial properties. The City, with CDM's assistance, investigated the contaminated groundwater, designed and built a groundwater treatment system to protect human health and the environment, and designed and built the Wichita Area Treatment, Education, and Remediation Center (WATER Center) to provide environmental education resources for the entire Wichita community. The City has turned an environmental liability that threatened human health into an environmental education resource for current and future generations.