June 30, 2022 at 8:30 AM - Operations Committee Meeting

Rationale:  There is nothing to consider for unfinished business.

Rationale:  Regarding the Wanahoo wetland renovation, DU is submitting for a different grant that has a better match ratio, which is due in July. If the new grant application fails, they will fall back on the original NAWCA grant. DU's private funds staff person thinks he can raise some private funding for this project to assist.

Rationale:  O & M staff have been inspecting and doing maintenance on watershed dams on cooler days. Clearing dead pines at Czechland Lake, moving broken concrete to eroded areas.
TJ Sabatka has harvested 2 beavers from Cottonwood 8-A, we owe him $125. We also have a new beaver problem on a Swedeburg Dam. 

Rationale:  Nothing new to report. Developing plans/specs to bid by end of summer.

Rationale:  Rieschick Drilling is completing the reconditioning of seven relief wells. According to what they experience when pumping before and after, they have gained volume or well capacity. We hope to have data by Board meeting. Pictures attached.
When we have data on how successful this process has been, we need to discuss with Olsson's on how many wells we want to clean in the new fiscal year for budget purposes.
The contract for these seven is $63,600.

Rationale:  Through FEMA's 428 Program we purchased a couple of chainsaws, ordered a Flow Meter for monitoring the relief wells on the Wanahoo Dam, and a Bobcat. We had to submit a scope change for a John Deere tractor for shredding because we stepped it up a size for more horsepower.

Rationale:  Last Board meeting we approved paying our annual contribution of $30,000 to the Weed Group for spraying invasive noxious plants along the rivers and tributaries. A question was asked about cost. Last year NE-IA Helicopters was paid $65,361 for 205 acres covered. Pay is based on hours of spraying and the amount of herbicide used. It comes out at $318/acre. Our contribution also assisted with surveying the rivers for noxious weeds. Any funds not spent are carried over.
This year the spraying will be rebid.

Rationale:  We have not received any applications or requests for payment.

Rationale:  For the month of May, the District received $18,128.50 in park permit revenue. The year by year break down of annual permit sales is listed below.
 

Month	Monthly Total	YTD
May 2022	$14,877.50	$52,110.50
May 2021	$14,032.50	$62,595.00
May 2020	$29,177.50	$67,110.00
May 2019	$15,597.50	$55,095.00

Rationale:  For the month of May, the District received $20,720.50 in camping revenue. The year by year comparison is listed below.
 

Month	Month Total	YTD
May 2022	20,720.50	43,809.14
May 2021	18,148.57	50,833.79
May 2020	29,202.83	54,667.95
May 2019	13,572.47	27,160

Rationale:  During the month of June, the building was rented 17 times, with 3 NRD events. Revenue for the month was $720. There are 4 weekend openings between now and the end of the year, otherwise all Saturdays and Sundays are booked.
 

Rationale:  June’s KTIC Radio ad is to inform producers who need to renew their Nitrogen certification can attend the 4Rs Nutrient Stewardship Field Day at ENREC on July 19 or take an online test.
The Wahoo Newspaper e-ad will be available next month as they now have a staff member trained to switch it out for us.
July’s ads will feature the upcoming variance deadlines.
 

Rationale: 

FACEBOOK	Total Reach	Engagements	Followers
June 1-28	7,325	413	1,384
May	5,222	279	1,372
April	16,785	863	1,360

 

TWITTER	Total impressions	Engagements	Followers
June 1-28	3,114	140	372
May	2,140	112	367
April	9,962	481	365

Total reach/impressions show how many people saw the post/tweet. Engagements include likes, comments, shares/retweets and link clicks.

Top Posts on Facebook and Twitter:
• Stay at Pork Chop Island - 2051/72
• Summer events flyer - 1049/350
• 50 Years Open House flyer - 977/593
• Drought monitor update/link to Lower Platte River Consortium dashboard - 132/972
• June’s Coffee Lakeside flyer - 352/237

If you are on Facebook or Twitter, please like, follow, share, or retweet the Lower Platte North NRD posts!
 

WEBSITE	Users	Traffic Channel	Top Pages	Devices
June	1,833	Organic 69.2% Direct 19.1% Referral 10.1% Social 1.6%	Lake Wanahoo Home Czechland Outdoor Recreation Downloads	Mobile 60.67% Desktop 37.7% Tablet 1.64%
May	2,228	Organic 67.2% Direct 21% Referral 9.7% Social 2.1%	Lake Wanahoo Home Czechland Outdoor Recreation Contact	Mobile 59.83% Desktop 38.91% Tablet 1.26%
April	1,484	Organic 63.7% Direct 22% Referral 12.2% Social 2.1%	Lake Wanahoo Home Czechland Forestry Staff	Mobile 55.35% Desktop 42.69% Tablet 1.95%

Traffic channels: organic traffic means they use a search engine then choose an option that includes lpnnrd.org, direct traffic means they type in lpnnrd.org directly (or have it bookmarked), and referral traffic is any other traffic not from a search engine or social (such as a link from another site).

Social clicks: 28 from Facebook, 2 from Twitter.
Referral clicks: 103 from Game & Parks, 20 from Visit Nebraska, 16 from NARD.
 

Rationale:  The Lower Platte North NRD will have a booth at the Butler County Fair on July 14-17. It will not be manned the whole time.

We will have a float in the Saunders County parade on Thursday, July 28 at 5pm.

Rationale:  The Lower Platte North is hosting an open house to celebrate 50 years of Nebraska's NRDs! Friday July 1, 1pm - 4pm. Flyer is attached

Rationale: 

• The 1st Annual NRD Natural Resource Camp was a success. It was a week-long, 9am -11 am camp hosted at Lake Wanahoo. I had 4 boys attend (three 11 year olds and one 7 year old). We fished, caught toads, flipped boards, dip netted for macroinvertebrates, dissected owl pellets, went birding, and more. I'm hoping to do this again next year with multiple age groups for a couple of weeks in June. See attached pictures :)
• Coffee Lakeside on June 16th was over frogs and toads. 7 adults and 1 child attended.
• I postponed the trivia and game night due to sick kids. I'm hoping to reschedule it for July. 
• I attended the LEED educators workshop at Ponca State Park this week. This workshop provided educators with more activities and lessons to do with students of all ages by providing two full days of hands-on activities. It was a great opportunity to meet other educators and network with teachers in my district. This workshop was completely free of charge (transportation to and from was on my own). 
• Future events:
  • Coffee Lakeside July 7th: Plant ID walk and prairie ecosystem discussion. See attachment.
  • Wildflowers and Wine July 20th: Native bees and prairies; plant ID walk; Cellar 426 wine tasting. 
  • Trivia and game night, July 21st.

Rationale:  I'm gearing up for the upcoming school year. I'm working on new lesson plans and activities to take to classrooms across the district. As a reminder if your child, grandchild, niece, nephew, etc., would like me to visit their classroom or if you have some great contacts within the schools, please send me their information so I can start getting classroom visits on the calendar. Communication with schools has been a learning curve, especially with the turnover rates, so I can and will take all the extra help I can get to establish a connection. Some of the new lessons I will be offering are below:

• Follow the "yellow brick road": Did you know Nebraska is the nation’s largest producer of popcorn? Where does the corn grown in Nebraska go? In this presentation we will discuss the types of corn grown, what it’s used for, and how the Ogallala Aquifer plays a role in Nebraska being 3^rd in the nation for corn production.
• Water and You: Water plays an important role in our everyday lives. From brushing our teeth to washing our clothes, we use water every single day. In this lesson, students will learn about all the ways we use water; realize how much they depend on water; they will work with others to create a raindrop collage; and then identify ways to conserve water. 
• Conservation Case Studies:Are you a middle school or high school teacher looking to help your students understand a real-world problem from all angles? Choose from our list of conservation case studies that will use role playing and group discussion to understand each stake-holder's perspective, and how it takes all of us to make a difference. Do you have a specific case study in mind? Let’s talk!  
   

These are just a few new lessons we will offer. We have lessons and activities, from plants and wildlife to watersheds and recycling and everything in between. Lacey and I are working together to get a new education flyer ready to send out to the schools in our district by August 1st.

Rationale:  Attached is the amendment to our existing easement for the well/pumphouse in Colon.  This has been forwarded to the Village for review/signing.
Elliott is revising the monthly coliform (bacteria) sample site plan (SSP) to allow for easier access.  Currently we have two sites (out of five) that require RWD staff to enter the residence/business.  This has been an issue more than once where RWD could not access the sample site.  New/proposed sites are  all outside and would not require staff to enter homes/business.  New SSPs must be approved by state before they can go into effect.
Routine monthly sampling completed, meters read and bills in mail 6/30

Rationale:  The Village of Bruno was issued a formal violation from the State for chlorine residuals being below the threshold.  The Bruno RWD does not operate the Village and is not responsible for monitoring/sampling the Village's water.  The Bruno RWD has had lower than normal (still above threshold) levels of chlorine and contacted David City Water Dept. about the issue.  Dan Sobota, interim water supervisor, explained that they had been experiencing numerous issues with their chlorine injection system and was in the process of repairing/upgrading the system.
Routine monthly sampling completed, meters read and bills in the mail 6/30.