What We Do

The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers staff at Kanopolis Lake manages the lake to provide benefits to the nation in areas of Flood Damage Reduction, Recreation, Fish and Wildlife Management, Water Supply and Water Quality Improvement.

The Corps manages the 3400 acre Kanopolis Lake and an additional 11,000 acres of land around the lake open for public hunting.

The staff conducts dam safety inspections and maintains the dam and outlet works. Corps employees make water release changes to the Smoky Hill River in coordination with the Kansas City District Water Management Section.

Two parks around the lake are managed and maintained by the Corps of Engineers. These parks include roads, utility systems, campsites, beaches, boat ramps, and picnic shelters.

Many maintenance activities are contracted to the private sector. Mowing, trash collection, fee collection, facility cleaning and vegetation management are just a few of the activities that are performed by private contractors for the Corps. The Corps manages the contracts to insure that the services are provided for visitors to the lake.

The Corps of Engineers manages the natural resources of Kanopolis Lake through several techniques. Many of the lands around the lake have been restored to native tall grass prairie plants and other areas restored to native forest.

Other activities by the Corps include public relations, visitor services, real estate management, emergency services, collection of weather data, tree planting, prairie management, wildlife food plot management, rescue and recovery operations, park patrol, buoy maintenance and management of concession leases.