LENRD approves a lower levy for fiscal 2016 budget

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District’s levy is down for the 2016 fiscal budget.  The board of directors set the levy on Thursday, September 10th, at the rate of 0.024061; down from last year’s rate of 0.025105 due to an overall valuation increase of 12.39% across the District.  The property tax request is $6,4,224,679. Homeowners living in a home valued at $100,000 within the District will pay $24.06 in property taxes for water quality and water quantity benefits such as groundwater management, flood control, and nitrate management; as well as erosion control, recreation, cost-share to landowners who apply for conservation practices, and many other benefits that protect our natural resources and improve the quality of life.

LENRD General Manager, Mike Sousek, said, “We have worked together to create this budget as a blueprint for the next fiscal year.  We have addressed our 12 responsibilities throughout the document and are focused on improving the quality of life for the citizens across our district.”

Water Meters: A management tool to protect existing users

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD) is discussing changes to their Groundwater Management Plan to more efficiently and effectively promote sound stewardship of groundwater.  These changes will help the LENRD in its mission to conserve, develop, and manage the water resources of northeast Nebraska.

While multiple changes to the Groundwater Management Plan are anticipated, the first proposed change is to require flow meters on all irrigation wells.  Once the meters are installed, the LENRD will consider allocations throughout the district.  Cost-share assistance for purchasing and installing flow meters is available this year.  The signup deadline is October 16th.  Producers are encouraged to visit their local NRCS office to take advantage of this opportunity.

Water meters are a valuable tool for the LENRD and producers for measuring water use.  The meters will provide data to better understand cropirrigation needs.  This data, along with UNL’s crop irrigation requirement research will be used to develop reasonable, allocations.  If allocations are in place, the meters will provide an equitable and impartial measurement for all irrigators.

Flow meters, allow for an accurate, standard measuring system from one producer to the next to measure groundwater use.  Meters willaccurately measure the volume of water being applied to help prevent over irrigation.

The goal of this program is to keep the district from implementing drastic changes to water policy during drought conditions.  The drought of 2012 prompted the district to make difficult decisions over a short period of time, addressing urgent water shortage conditions.  Having meters in place will allow the district to set allocations during times of drought.  Overall, this is the most fair and equitable management tool that  allows both producers and the LENRD to best manage our finite resource of water.  Water meters will allow the district to address water shortage concerns from year to year and keep the economic engine of northeast Nebraska running.

LENRD General Manager, Mike Sousek, said, "Using meters in not necessarily for managing groundwater under normal conditions, but planning for the infrequent challenges during extreme drought that will allow for protection of all existing uses, and in areas allow for the expansion of uses, providing continued economic benefit to the region, and maximizing the overall benefit for northeast Nebraska and improving the quality of life for its residents."

Tax levy hearing to be held Sept. 10

The LENRD will hold a Special Hearing to set the final tax levy for the 2015-2016 budget based on the budget approved at August meeting. The hearing will be held during the subcommittee meeting on Thursday, September 10th beginning at 7:00 p.m.  The proposed tax levy, based on the certified valuations of the district, is 2.40575 cents per $100 valuation. The previous 2014-2015 tax levy had been set at 2.51505 cents per $100 valuation.

Budget Hearing set for August 27th

The LENRD will hold its Fiscal Year 2016 Budget Hearing during its regular board of directors meeting this month.  The hearing is set for Thursday, August 27th beginning at 7:30 p.m.  Below are the draft copies of the budget documents.  The regular board meetings and hearings are always open to the public.

FY 2016 Budget - Draft

FY 2016 Supporting Documents - Draft

Acre Certification hearing to be held September 3

     On September 3 at 7:30 p.m. the LENRD will conduct its 4th Acre Certification hearing at the Lifelong Learning Center on the campus of Northeast Community College in Norfolk.

     The LENRD currently has 856 parcels for the hearing.  The Board will consider finalizing its determination of certified irrigated acres for those fields submitted.  Landowners do not need to be present at the hearing unless they feel the staff’s preliminary determination of the land is incorrect.

     The LENRD’s goal is to have Acre Certification completed in 2017 and after certification iscomplete, the LENRD will only allow irrigation on certified fields.  Staff will soon be mailing follow-up letters for those fields to be included in the hearing and a summary of the hearing process.  Staff is concentrating on the western half of the district and plans to have all certification letters sent out by May 2016.  If you have not received a certification letter do not be alarmed as staff are mailingletters one township at a time.  The LENRD intends to conduct hearings on a quarterly basis until the board has determined the final   certification for all irrigated land within the district

     The LENRD also has a new website to view all past certified acres and those preliminary certified acres that will be presented at the hearing.  You may view the parcels of land that will be included in this hearing by clicking on the link below.  The website has a map showing thelocations and information for each parcel.  Features include searching by map or tract information, Certification ID, Name, Parcel ID, and Well Registration.  Search results identify the owner contact information, Irrigation Source and Method, and the acres.

     If you have any questions, contact Mike Murphy at the LENRD office 402-371-7313.

Public Hearing Policy

Procedures for Groundwater Management Area Rule 8 Hearings approved on July 23, 2015

Several producers that applied for and were denied expedited variances for good cause shown have requested to have the District hold Groundwater Management Area Rule 8 Hearings.  The LENRD Board of Directors approved a rule of procedures for conducting public hearings under Rule 8 of the Groundwater Management Area Rules & Regulations.  These procedures will be similar to those used for hearings to certify irrigated acres.

Rules of Procedure for Rule 8 Hearings

Chemigation permits due June 1st

Farmers planning to chemigate during the 2015 growing season must renew chemigation permits by June 1 to meet state deadline requirements.  Details.

Calling all Middle School Students! Want Adventure and Outdoor Learning? Sign up for ACE Camp!

Nebraska’s Natural Resources Districts are excited to offer Adventure Camp about the Environment (ACE) again this year! The NRDs are encouraging middle school students interested in the outdoors, to sign up for this educational and action-packed camp.  ACE is for students who have completed 6th, 7th and 8th grades in the 2014-2015 school year.

ACE is hosted at the State 4-H Youth Camp near Halsey, Nebraska, Sunday, June 14th through Wednesday, June 17th.  It’s organized by Nebraska Natural Resources Districts (NRDs).

The four-day adventure camp gives students an opportunity to dive into many different hands-on activities. Each activity educates our youth on Nebraska’s water resources, different soil types, trees in the forest, and range and grasslands. Students will also learn about the state’s wildlife and why it’s important to protect our natural resources.  ACE Camp gets kids outdoors and excited to explore the beautiful world around them.

That’s not all! Campers may be seen grinning ear to ear after experiencing other adventurous activities such as tubing, archery, zip line, water rockets, and the legendary water slide!  Campers will get to learn about possible careers in the area of natural resources from the professionals who work to conserve them every day.

Fees and registration are $190.00 per camper. Many NRDs offer scholarships for the four-day camp.  Contact your local Natural Resources District to see if assistance is available.  You’re encouraged to sign up early because space is limited. The registration deadline is May 31, 2015.

ACE is sponsored by Nebraska NRDs and Nebraska Association of Resources Districts Foundation.  Nebraska NRDs and the NARD partnered with several organizations to help make the camp a success including Nebraska National Forest, Bessey Nursery, Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, Nebraska Forest Service, Nebraska State 4-H Camp, Hooker County Turner Youth Foundation, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension, United States Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Services.

To find out more information about ACE or to get a copy of a registration form, download the brochure below or visit www.nrdnet.org or follow us on Facebook at Adventure Camp about the Environment.

• Poster
• Brochure

Public hearing to certify irrigated acres to be held May 28th

The LENRD is in the process of certifying irrigated acres across the 15-county district.  Once certification is finished, irrigation within the LENRD will be allowed only on acres classified as Certified Irrigated Acres.

An Irrigated Acre Certification Public Hearing will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 28th in the Lifelong Learning Center on the campus of Northeast Community College in Norfolk, to certify a selected group of irrigated acres within the LENRD.  Hearings will be held several times a year as the staff continues certifying irrigated acres across the district.  The parcels to be certified in May are listed below, or you can view the maps at the LENRD office:  601 E. Benjamin Avenue, Suite 101 in Norfolk.

Contact Mike Murphy at the LENRD office for more information at 402-371-7313.

Fields to Be Certified May 28

Certification Maps:

• Burt County
• Cedar & Wayne Counties
• Colfax & Dodge Counties
• Dixon & Thurston Counties
• Knox & Pierce Counties
• Madison & Platte Counties
• Stanton & Cuming Counties

Rules Change to Help Producers & Protect Groundwater

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD) Board of Directors met Thursday, April 23 for their monthly meeting.  During the meeting, a public hearing was held to receive public comment on the proposed changes to the LENRD’s groundwater management area rules and regulations.  After hearing testimony from several producers that wanted to develop new irrigated land, the Board approved the proposed changes to the rules.  The Board has been working with staff to modify the district’s rules to allow development of small tracts of land, up to 35 acres, through the district’s expedited variance process.

The new rule applies to producers who fall under either of two very specific categories.

LENRD General Manager, Mike Sousek, said, “The LENRD board felt it important to approve a good cause variance process to address two very specific scenarios which the district encountered during our acre certification process.  One scenario deals with discrepancies discovered with some approved standard variances and the other scenario deals with landowners who were caught in between the rule changes and, through no fault of their own, investments were made and they were not able to complete their irrigation plans.”

Producers who feel they may qualify for a variance under one of the categories should contact the LENRD to apply.  Cooperators will need to provide sufficient evidence that their scenario falls under the good cause variance umbrella.

The district’s old rules didn’t allow for minor modifications when certifying irrigated acres.  Under the rule change, a new category, called a “Variance for Good Cause Shown” will be added to the District’s Expedited Variance Process.  Under this process, the General Manager is authorized to approve or deny applications to add irrigated acres for the situations described above, using a common sense approach.

Sousek added, “The LENRD board will continue to change and modify its groundwater rules and regulations in the future.  These changes will be determined as better science becomes available or when new issues arise, so the district can further develop more comprehensive management plans.  The goal of the LENRD is to promote groundwater development where it is sustainable, all while protecting current and future water users.” 

The new rule becomes effective on May 11th, 2015.

Groundwater Data from Helicopter Flights to be Presented April 13

Last October, many residents of Northeast Nebraska may have seen a helicopter making low-level flights over areas of the Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD).

Instruments mounted below a helicopter collected and recorded geologic measurements to learn more about buried sand and gravel aquifers.  The helicopter flew lines spaced approximately three-miles apart over much of Wayne, Pierce, Madison, and Stanton Counties.  Other flight lines were on the order of 12 miles apart and covered the remainder of the LENRD.

A presentation of the groundwater data collected will be given to the public on Monday, April 13that 7:00 in the Lifelong Learning Center on the campus of Northeast Community College in Norfolk.

The LENRD, along with the Eastern Nebraska Water Resources Assessment (ENWRA) the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (NDNR) and the University of Nebraska Conservation and Survey planned and sponsored the flights.

According to Katie Cameron, coordinator of ENWRA, the flights “will improve our understanding of the available ground water resource and potential ground water/surface water connections in an area of the state made more complex by the presence of glacial deposits.”

Exploration Resources International LLC. (XRI) has processed the data and will present the report on the 13th.  Cameron added, “This technology allows for fast data acquisition, upwards of 50 miles per hour, with exploration depth down to 900 feet below the land surface from the air.”

LENRD Water Resources Manager, Rick Wozniak, said, “This is one of the techniques we are using to help us understand more about the geology and groundwater resources across the district.”

Hearing on Proposed Amendments to Groundwater Management Plan

The LENRD will hold a public hearing during their April board meeting to address the proposed amendments to the rules and regulations of the district's Groundwater Management Plan. The hearing will be held on Thursday, April 23 in the Lifelong Learning Center on the campus of Northeast Community College in Norfolk at 7:30 p.m. The purpose of the hearing is to take public comment on the proposed amendments, which are available below as a PDF:

• Proposed Amendments
• Proposed Rules Changes

Report on Airborne Electromagnetic (AEM) survey in the Clarkson/Howells area

This project began in August 2013 to address the water resource concerns of the Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD) in the area between the towns of Clarkson and Howells.  This area experienced record groundwater declines during 2012 that caused the LENRD to look for additional information on the groundwater of the area.  Exploration Resources International (XRI) entered into an agreement with LENRD to undertake a hydrogeologic study of the area, using helicopter flights and electromagnetic equipment.  The report below is what they found.

Click here for a copy of the report

LENRD to hold public hearing on May 22

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District will hold a public hearing on Thursday, May 22 at 7:30 p.m. The hearing will be at the Lifelong Learning Center on the campus of Northeast Community College in Norfolk.  The purpose of the hearing is to take public comment on proposed amendments to the District's groundwater management area rules and regulations.  Click on the Water Resources page for the full document and proposed amendments.

LENRD Board continues to make tough decisions in managing goundwater

The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resources District (LENRD) Board of Directors held a special board meeting last week to address groundwater management.  The board decided not to allow new irrigated acres in 2014.  However, they will allow up to 400 acres in some areas where landowners are interested in completing a full circle for a pivot, up to 10 acres per project.  The 400 acres will be split, with 200 in the 10/50 area (area where groundwater is hydrologically connected to a stream or river), and 200 in the non-10/50 area;  this does not include land in the new groundwater quantity subareas in parts of Wayne, Madison, and Pierce Counties.

No supplemental irrigation wells or transfers will be allowed in 2014.  LENRD Board Chair, Joel Hansen of Wayne, said, “The board adopted several motions instructing the staff to research the possibility of future rule changes and to provide the proposals to the board by March 1^st.”  These changes would involve recommendations on supplemental wells, requiring flow meters on every irrigation well in five years, enabling the transfer of irrigated acres, and allowing more than 10 acres, if needed, to complete a pivot circle.

Hansen continued, “The staff recommendations will have to go through a process of subcommittee review and public hearing before the full board will decide whether to adopt new rules.”

The restrictions on new irrigation were recommended by staff to give the District time to develop management strategies for problem areas and for areas that may be able to support future development, as well as to delineate these areas.  Contact the LENRD office in Norfolk for more information.