Jackson County, MO Water Table Trend
Jackson County's groundwater trend, from USGS's own readings
Jackson County's long-term well puts the trend at 2.3 ft per decade, declining at a typical pace for a declining county, based on 74 measurements since 1996.
This is one representative well, not a county-wide survey, the same grain limit every page here discloses.
Jackson County's source well, in detail
Depth to water at the last reading was 16.6 ft below land surface. Readings span 1996-12-04 to 2026-03-16, 74 measurements from USGS well MO005-391236094170201 (Atherton), part of the National Water Information System. The qualifying bar and the OLS fit behind this trend are documented in the methodology guide.
How Jackson County compares nationally
Jackson County sits at rank 1206th of 1,449 ranked counties, ordered rising-to-declining, so a low number means a rising water table and a high one means fast decline. Jackson County, Missouri is home to about 727,362 people. See the fastest-moving counties guide for how Jackson County stacks up against the most extreme cases nationally.
If you own a well in Jackson County
A dropping water table means a residential pump has to reach deeper and work harder, which shortens its life. In Jackson County, that trend is real, not assumed: 2.3 ft per decade over 29 years.
Depth and quality are separate questions
This page answers a depth question, not a quality one. A well in Jackson County can be stable in depth and still worth testing for quality, or declining and still test clean, the two are measured separately, and only a direct test settles the second one.