Upper Big Blue NRD Awarded Water Quality Grant 

YORK, NE--For the past several years, the Upper Big Blue NRD Water Department staff have been conducting free water testing for nitrates for District citizens who drop off samples at the NRD headquarters. Now this service will get a boost from a Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality 319 Grant. "The Upper Big Blue NRD has been awarded a grant for $1,300 for the purchase of test vials and testing supplies to further its mission of protecting lives, protecting property, and protecting the future," stated Marie Krausnick, NRD Water Department Manager. "We take our work very seriously. It is important to us that we continue to have safe and clean drinking water for our District citizens," continues Krausnick. "After all, our own families drink the same water too." In calendar year 2014, the Upper Big Blue NRD analyzed 241 free walk-in samples.

In addition to the walk-in samples, the NRD has a Fall Domestic Water Quality Sampling Program which is a network of domestic sites throughout the District that NRD staff collect every September/October for analysis. Each year, the Upper Big Blue NRD processes over 500 domestic and irrigation water samples for nitrate using a HACH Spectrophotometer. Recognizing that all wells are not constructed identically, the NRD began offering a Domestic/Irrigation Walk-In Sampling Program and a Fall Domestic Water Quality Sampling Program over 15 years ago. 

The NRD rules and regulations address water quality, specifically targeting nitrate contamination. The NRD works to educate its residents on groundwater nitrate and its sources. Because District staff process all the samples in-house they are able to provide quick results to the well owner. "We take great pride in informing, educating and promoting safe drinking water in the Upper Big Blue NRD," stated Rod DeBuhr, Assistant General Manager. "We are very grateful for the grant from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. This 319 grant will help sustain the program and keep citizens safe."

The Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District (NRD) protects lives, property and the future of this area through a wide-range of stewardship, management and education programs-from flood control to groundwater quality and quantity monitoring, from irrigation management to outdoor recreation and more. Activities and projects of the Upper Big Blue NRD are reviewed and approved by a locally elected board of directors. The Upper Big Blue NRD is one of 23 Natural Resources Districts across the state.