March 2025 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN 29 ly want people to pump groundwater to harvest the nitrogen out of the groundwater. This allows them to credit for that in their application and put less fertilizer on their crops.” Water management projects within NRDs cover a variety of topics beyond groundwater management, including flood control, canal and pipeline projects and water quality, which includes the Nitrogen Reduction Incentive Act. “NRDs help producers with a lot of different aspects of water management,” explains Roy Stewart, who recently retired as the director of the Upper Elkhorn NRD where he was on the board for more than 40 years. “They measure the nitrates in the water and help out with rural water districts by educating the people on how to cut back on nitrogen use. NRDs do cost share on water filtration and reverse osmosis for people who can’t get on a rural water system.” The NRDs will help producers sample soil and monitor their irrigation water for nitrate levels. By monitoring nitrate levels already available in the water, producers can potentially decrease input costs by scaling back on commercial fertilizer. “In the ‘60s the thought was more fertilizer, higher yields, more profit,” Stewart says. “Well, that’s how the nitrates got down to where they’re at; they went beyond the root zone, which means they can make their way into the drinking water. We’ve been making progress on people recognizing the impact of this issue, but I’m told that it will be six generations before we ever pump the excess back out of the ground.” As water allocations have become more conservative over the years, NRDs have helped producers adapt along the way. From using soil probes to helping monitor chemigation and fertigation application, local districts provide tools to help producers succeed. Outside of the many water projects, NRDs can help producers by cost-sharing livestock wells and tanks as well as building interior cross fences and re-seeding native grasses on killed acres. With more than half of Nebraska being diversified grazing lands that are utilized by livestock and wildlife, rangeland management and soil health are a top priority. NRDs provide a variety of educational opportunities for producers as well as students. The next generation can learn how to test water, enter an environmental quiz bowl, attend a conservation and natural resources camp or enter the range judging and land judging competitions. NRD and Producers “I think across agriculture, just due to the economic pressure, you’re seeing more and more people looking at optimizing all of their inputs, and the Natural Resources Districts are here to help people accomplish that while helping them to improve the quality of water and natural resources around them,” Fanning says. Your local NRD may cover multiple counties in your area. Their focus is on managing, developing and protecting the water and soil natural resources in your area. Should you have any questions regarding water and irrigation, trees and wildlife habitats, or rangeland management specific to your area, they are a great resource to reach out to. “You couldn’t paint Nebraska with one brush and deal with the natural resources or environmental issues of any area of the state as well as you can when that’s managed and determined locally,” Fanning says. “By having a local board that dictates what our priorities are and how we’re going to address them, it becomes more efficient and successful.” For more information on Nebraska’s NRDs and how their programs can benefit your operation, visit nrdnet.org. Contact information for each NRD can be found there as well as their own specific website. ~NC~ Nebraska’s 23 NRDs cover the entire state.
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