Southeast Nebraska residents should not be alarmed if they see a low-flying helicopter over areas of the Lower Platte South Natural Resources District (LPSNRD) in late March or early April.

Beginning at the end of March and lasting up to 3 weeks, instruments mounted below a helicopter will collect and record geologic measurements to learn more about buried aquifer materials (glacial sands and gravels, sandstones and other water-bearing units).

The LPSNRD and other members of the Eastern Nebraska Water Resource Assessment (ENWRA), a coalition of six NRDs in the eastern third of Nebraska have planned the flights with supplemental sponsorship from the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (NDNR).

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) will oversee the flights, process the data and information, and produce a final report. According to XRI, "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."

The helicopter will fly a grid-like pattern over parts of Butler, Saunders, Seward, Sarpy, Douglas, Lancaster, Cass, Otoe, Johnson, Nemaha, Richardson, Pawnee, and Gage Counties. These flights are a continuation of previous ENWRA flights conducted last October in northeastern Nebraska.

Scientific equipment is towed about 100 feet below the helicopter in a 'spider web' array and is designed to map geologic structures beneath the earth. The helicopter will be manned by experienced pilots who are specially trained for low-level flying with this equipment.

This scientific program is designed to study the area's water resources such as sand and gravel aquifers using an airborne perspective. It is part of an ongoing program of the agencies listed above to identify possible ground water locations to better manage the resource.

Editor: In the public interest and in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration regulations, the LPSNRD/ENWRA group is announcing this low-level airborne project. Your assistance in publicizing this information is appreciated. 

Contact Katie Cameron for more information at 402-476-2729 or at kcameron_enwra [at] lpsnrd.org.