Lincoln (NE) April 19, 2018 – Lower Platte South Natural Resources District (NRD) Board Member Jeremie Kerkman has resigned his seat on the Board of Directors, due to moving out of Subdistrict 6.  The resignation was announced at Wednesday’s regular meeting of the board and took effect on April 19th.  NRD Board members must reside in the subdistrict they represent.  Board Chair Ray Stevens thanked Kerkman for his service to the NRD.

Kerkman was appointed to the NRD Board in July of 2015 and was elected to the seat in 2016.  He was elected Treasurer of the board in 2017 and 2018.  Stevens appointed a nominating committee that included directors David Landis, Sarah Wilson and Don Jacobson to recommend a current board member to take over as Treasurer.  The board will hear the recommendation and elect a new Treasurer in May to serve the remainder of the calendar year.

The NRD will begin searching to appoint a replacement for Kerkman immediately.  Subdistrict 6 includes, generally, a portion of northwest Lincoln from just east of the airport to 27th Street and from West Alvo Road south to Cornhusker Highway.  A detailed subdistrict map is available at LPSNRD.org.  Subdistrict 6 residents interested in being considered to fill the vacancy for the remainder of 2018 must be a registered voter and submit a letter of application and qualifications by Thursday, May 10th to:

Board of Directors
Lower Platte South NRD
P O Box 83581
Lincoln, NE   68501-3581

or email to LPSNRD [at] LPSNRD.org.

The NRD hopes to fill the vacancy no later than the June 20th regular meeting of the board.  Selected candidates will be interviewed by the Executive Subcommittee of the NRD Board, which will then make a recommendation to the full Board.  The appointee may run for election to the seat this November in the General Election.  The term for the vacant seat expires at the end of 2020.  Nebraska election laws provide two ways to run for the vacancy in November and both require pre-registration with the Secretary of State’s office.  Petitioning will actually get a candidate’s name on the ballot and circulated petitions must be filed with the Secretary of State’s office by September 4th. Candidates can also register with the Secretary of State’s office as a write-in candidate at least ten days prior to the November 6th General Election.

The NRD Board was also briefed on 2017 ground water activities when it met on Wednesday.  A draft of the NRD’s Ground Water Management Plan Annual Report is available at LPSNRD.org, and a final report will follow soon.

  Resources Coordinator Dan Schulz told the board the NRD:

Collected 242 samples from wells and tested them for quality.  None of the district’s recognized ground water reservoirs averaged above Phase II trigger levels for ground water management due to elevated nitrate concentrations. 
Recorded 276 water levels to monitor quantity.  The average level of wells measured in each ground water reservoir had increased or declined less than two feet in the spring of 2017, compared with the year prior.  Spring 2018 measurements are pending.
Cost-shared on the decommissioning of 18 wells, increasing the total number of wells decommissioned in the district to 987, since 1990
Continued studies of the vadose zone (above the water table) at about 20 sites throughout the district
Received reports of water usage in the district totaling 3.9 billion gallons, with 58% of that used for irrigation.

Eastern Nebraska Water Resources Assessment (ENWRA) Coordinator Katie Cameron also updated the board on ENWRA projects, annual finances and future plans as the group continues efforts to map the district’s geology using aerial electromagnetic equipment.  Additional mapping flights by helicopter in the Lower Platte South NRD is expected around January of 2019.  ENWRA is made up of six NRD’s in about the eastern one-fourth of Nebraska, including the Lower Platte South NRD.  ENWRA was formed in 2006, with a goal of mapping the area’s geologic framework and eventually helping to create a water budget for the region.

In other action, the Board of Directors:

Approved rates and agreements to continue NRD cost-sharing for kindergarten through third grade Discovery Habitat Hikes at Pioneers Park and for student participation in the Prairie Immersion Program at Pioneers Park and Spring Creek Prairie
Approved contracts with the Lincoln Journal Star for printing and delivery of the district’s “Know Your NRD” newsletter ($49,000) and for print and online advertising ($18,000)
Approved cost-sharing with ten landowners on terrace projects to improve water quality
Approved the sale of 0.25 wetland credits from the NRD’s Blue Heron Wetland Bank to Schmidt Ag Inc/Dell Schmidt ($20,000)
Approved Joint Funding Agreements with the Nebraska National Guard and USGS to install and operate stream gauges for the Platte River Chute Real Time Water Quality Monitoring Project
Approved cost-sharing with the Willow Springs Homeowners Association to rehabilitate the Willow Springs Dam in the Holmes Lake Watershed, not exceed $8,575