December 28, 2016 at 5:00 PM - Water Committee Meeting
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1. UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Rationale:
No unfinished business from the last Water Committee meeting.
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2. REGULATORY
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2.A. GROUND WATER MANAGEMENT AREA
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2.A.1. Variance Request in the Hydrologically Connected Area (Limited Development Area)
Rationale:
The District received one new application for an expansion of 27 acres from an existing well. |
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2.A.2. Variance Requests in the Non-Hydrologically Connected Area (Normal Development Area)
Rationale:
No new update.
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2.A.3. Variance Requests in the Restricted Development Areas
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2.A.3.a. Variance Request by Martin Erickson
Rationale:
Mr. Erickson has talked to Bret Schomer about his variance conditions for his new well and irrigated acres in NE1/4, Section 20, T14N, R7E of the Swedeburg subarea, which is also in the Restricted Development area. Mr. Erickson may attend a future Water Committee meeting to discuss these.
Attachments:
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2.A.4. Well Permit Program
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2.A.4.a. Well Permits Approved
Rationale:
Four new permits were approved since the last Committee meeting.
The total number of approved permits for 2016 is 28. Location of Approved Well Permits for 2016: Correct as of 12/28/2016
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2.A.5. Special Quantity Subareas
Rationale:
SQS #1 (Butler-Saunders) There are 30 irrigation wells in this area. 25 of these have a flow meter; the other five wells were not used in 2016. All 25 flow meter reporting forms have been returned.
SQS #2 (Platte-Colfax) Staff has continued checking flow meters and measuring water levels. Flow meter cost-share applications continue to be received in the mail each day. Flow meter reporting forms are also being returned – 226 have been received so far. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are 9 landowners for a total of 11 well and pivot sites that have not installed flow meters in the SQS #2 area (see attached list). Staff is proposing mailing letters informing them of our cost share program, that an acre inch penalty has been added for not installing meters during the summer of 2016, and encouraging meters to be installed by March 15th. Meters not installed by that date could be issued cease and desist orders. Two of these sites are part of our GWEL network.
Recommended Motion(s):
*Letters will be mailed to the nine well owners of 11 irrigation systems informing them of our cost share program, to install flow meters by March 1, 2017, that an acre-inch penalty will be imposed, and cease and desist order could be issued after the March 1st deadline if meters are not installed Passed with a motion by Board Member #1 and a second by Board Member #2.
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2.A.6. Lower Platte River Basin Water Management Plan Coalition (LPRBC)
Rationale:
No new update
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2.A.7. Voluntary Integrated Water Management Plan - LENRD and LPNNRD
Rationale:
No new update
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2.A.8. Cost Share Programs
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2.A.8.a. Irrigation Well Sample Kits
Rationale:
A total of 348 irrigation kits were mailed in 2016 with 84 water samples collected since Labor Day. All sample results have been mailed to producers.
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2.A.8.b. Flow Meter Cost Share
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2.A.8.b.1. Question on Flow Meter Cost Share Program
Rationale:
Currently we have at least 5 well sites that supply water to two pivots each. The landowners have applied for cost share on each pivot and each site requires an 8 inch meter. If the LPNNRD cost shares on both meters it will cost an additional $3,850 for these 5 meters. After much discussion Committee members felt that the LPNNRD should only fund one meter per irrigation system, as stated in the mailing to producers outlining the cost share program.
Recommended Motion(s):
*To allow only one payment per irrigation system (well) for the Flow Meter Cost Share Program Passed with a motion by Board Member #1 and a second by Board Member #2.
Attachments:
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2.A.8.b.2. Flow Meter Cost Share in SQS #2
Rationale:
At the November 30, 2016 Water Committee, motion was made to fund GWEL cooperator wells at $1,000 per 8 inch meters ($770 from WSF and $230 from LPNNRD = $1,000) and at $749 per 6 inch meters ($577 from WSF and $172 from LPNNRD = $749) As of December 28, 2016, we have received a total of 141 applications. Several of these still need to be inspected to insure that the meter is installed properly. Five well sites have applied for 2 meters each, but following motion of the Water Committee, only one meter per irrigation system will receive funding. Therefore, for the January 9, 2017 Board Meeting, we will have a total of 55 cost-share applications to approve.
Recommended Motion(s):
*To approve total flow meter cost share payment of $42,056 for the 55 applications as attached to the Water Committee Minutes with $41,194 to be reimbursed from the Water Sustainability Fund grant and $862 from LPNNRD for the 4 LPNNRD Groundwater Energy Network cooperator wells Passed with a motion by Board Member #1 and a second by Board Member #2.
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2.A.9. Bellwood Phase 2 Area
Rationale:
2016 is the fourteenth year for this Phase 2 Area. Phase 2 information packets with order were mailed to producers in June, before the start of irrigation. This area was reduced from 32 sections to 21 sections in 2015.
Annual Fertilizer Application Reports are being received. Steve Semin brought his reports to the LPNNRD office and hand delivered them to Oaklund. |
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2.A.10. Richland - Schuyler Phase 2 Area
Rationale:
2016 is the first year of this Phase 2 Area. There are 45 registered active irrigation wells in the ten sections of this new area on the north edge of the current Phase 3 area.
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2.A.11. Richland - Schuyler Phase 3 Area
Rationale:
2016 is the first year of this Phase 3 Area. This Phase 3 area went into effect September 1, 2015. The 55 sections of this area first went into a Phase 2 Area in 2004.
Annual Fertilizer Application Reports are being received.
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2.A.12. LPNNRD Operator Certification
Rationale:
2017 Certification Classes for Nitrogen and Water Management
No online requests since the last Committee meeting. |
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2.A.13. Certifying Acres in Dodge County
Rationale:
Poole has been working with Schomer on updating the acre certification database with the District wide variances that have been recently approved by the Board. Poole will likely return to finishing Dodge County in early 2017.
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2.B. CHEMIGATION
Rationale:
No new update. For 2016 we have 478 renewals and 95 new permit applications for a current total of 573. In 2015 we had a total of 515 chemigation permits.
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2.C. LIVESTOCK WASTE PERMITS
Rationale:
The LPNNRD has received one livestock permit modification from DEQ since the last Water Committee meeting.
Description of permit modification of existing permit. Two bedded barns are proposed with the elimination of 6.7 feed lot acres, so the total operation will be reduced from 70.8 acres to 64.1 acres.
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3. GROUND WATER PROGRAMS
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3.A. DECOMMISSIONED WELL PROGRAM
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3.A.1. Well Estimates
Rationale:
One new well has been reviewed and approved by Gottschalk for decommissioning since the last Committee meeting.
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3.A.2. Plugged Wells
Rationale:
No wells have been plugged, reviewed, or ready for cost share payment approval this month. |
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3.B. LOWER PLATTE NORTH NRD GROUND WATER STUDIES
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3.B.1. Eastern Nebraska Water Resources Assessment (ENWRA)
Rationale:
Angle and Oaklund met with Katie Cameron on December 20, 2016 concerning future plans for LPNNRD and ENWRA. Water staff feel that future AEM flights should focus on confined aquifers or were aquifers are thought to be thin and of limited arial extent. This would mean the Prague and Swedeburg subareas and later the Uplands of Saunders County east of the Todd Valley, the Platte River uplands north west of Fremont, and the rest of the Shell Creek watershed outside the current SQS #2 subarea. Cameron felt that with the next WSF grant request period that ENWRA should apply for one large grant with several NRD's involved.
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3.B.2. Platte and Elkhorn River Valley Integrated Water Monitoring
Rationale:
No new update |
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3.B.3. Lower Platte River Consortium
Rationale:
The last meeting of the Lower Platte River Consortium was held at LPSNRD on December 15, 2016. Topics covered were WSF grant, BOR grant, and comments on the Plan which are due by January 10, 2017.
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3.C. GROUND WATER ENERGY LEVELS
Rationale:
Angle gave a power-point presentation with a summary of the GWEL in our District up to the Fall 2016 readings (see attached pdf file). The presentation will be given as the educational program at our January board meeting.
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4. OTHER
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4.A. GMDA ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Rationale:
Ft. Worth Conference is in less than two weeks on January 9-11, 2017. |
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4.B. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC
Rationale:
Mary Wotipka attended the Committee meeting but made no comments. The Water Committee adjoined at 6:50 pm.
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