Papio NRD Hosts North East Land Judging Competition

More than 600 high school students from 30 area schools competed in the Northeast Area Land Judging Competition on Wednesday, October 2^nd, in Blair, Nebraska, to test their knowledge of soil structure and land evaluation.

The Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District (Papio NRD) hosted the annual competition on an acreage in Blair where students assessed physical features of the soil, such as texture, permeability, thickness, wetness, slope, erosion, depth, and organic matter.

Land judging enables participants to learn how to recognize the physical attributes of soil, determine land capability for crop production, and evaluate management practices needed for proper stewardship.

Eight teams (West Point, Norfolk, Wisner-Pilger, Lyons-Decatur Northeast, Tekamah-Herman, Pierce, Oakland Craig, and North Bend) and one individual, Aubree Schlueter of Logan View, advance to the state land judging competition in Norfolk, Nebraska, on October 16^th, 2024.

The competition was sponsored by the Papio NRD in partnership with the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Owls of Nebraska: Our Final Chalco Summer Series Session

Meet Finn, our owl ambassador, learn all about owl adaptations and dissect owl pellets at our final Chalco Summer Series session. Free fun for the whole family.

Schedule of Events

August 3 at 6 p.m.
Owls of Nebraska

The presentation will take place at the Natural Resources Center at Chalco Hills Recreation Area in Omaha (8901 S. 154th Street).

Registration is required to attend and our last series filled up quickly. Please register for the free event at this link .

Free Seedlings For Public in Celebration of Arbor Day

The Papio NRD is giving away FREE seedlings in celebration of Arbor Day 2020!

Now is the perfect time to plant a tree, get your hands dirty, and take part in this year’s state-wide Tree-A-Thon. The goal? Bring the community together to appreciate and positively contribute to nature by planting more than 3,200 trees.

Here’s all you have to do: PICK UP. PLANT. POSE.

I. PICK UP your bur oak seedlings at the following locations any day of the week from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. (while supplies last):

Papio NRD – 8901 S. 154th St., Omaha (box below flagpole outside Visitor’s Center)
Heron Haven – 11809 Old Maple Rd, Omaha (under informational kiosk behind Nature Center)
Papio NRD Blair Field Office – 1060 Wilbur St, Blair (outside main office doors)

II. PLANT your seedling in a yard, field, or even in a pot or bucket.

III. POSE: Take a photo while planting your tree and post it on our Facebook page with the hashtag #treeselfie for a chance to win free prizes.

Help us celebrate trees!

The Papio NRD is proud to join Beyond School Bells and other dedicated partners in this project: Arbor Day Foundation, Audubon Nebraska, Nebraska’s Natural Resources Districts, Nebraska Forest Service and University of Nebraska.

Open House to Discuss Papio Creek Basin Flood Risk Management Study

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Omaha District, in cooperation with the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District, will be hosting a public open house to share information about the Papillion Creek B asin flood risk management study. The study is working to develop alternatives to reduce flood risks and improve public safety within the Papillion Creek Basin in Douglas, Sarpy and Washington counties. The purpose of the open house is to discuss alternatives under consideration in the study. Alternatives include: 1) reservoir construction at dam site 10 on Thomas Creek, 2) reservoir construction at dam site 19 on South Papillion Creek, 3) levee modifications on the Big Papillion Creek, Little Papillion Creek, and West Papillion Creek, 4) channel modifications on the Big Papillion Creek, Little Papillion Creek, West Papillion Creek, and South Papillion Creek, and 5) nonstructural solutions throughout the study area.

The open house will be held on Tuesday, July 23 from 5:30-7:30pm at Mammel Hall at the University of Nebraska Omaha, 6708 Pine Street, Omaha, NE. At the meeting, a formal presentation will begin at 6pm followed by an open house where the public, media and other interested stakeholders will have an opportunity to ask questions and provide comments on the alternatives under consideration.

Calling All Creative, Nature-loving Students – It’s NACD Poster Contest Time

Previous NACD Poster Contest Submissions

Aren’t these posters incredible…and inspiring? They were drawn by K-12 students who illustrated their love of natural resources in previous NACD poster contests for the chance to have their art displayed as part of a national conservation outreach initiative and win monetary prizes.

2018 NACD Poster Contest

Get your colored pencils and crayons ready! We are now accepting entries for the 2018 NACD Poster Contest. This year’s theme is “Watersheds – Our Water, Our Home.”

The Nebraska Association of Resources Districts (NARD) along with Nebraska’s Natural Resources Districts provide K-12 students with an opportunity to express their thoughts about water, soil, and related natural resource issues.

Interested? Of course you are. For details at-a-glance regarding the poster contest, the blue infographic provides a quick run-down. For more in-depth information, such as contest rules, filling out the entry form (which you definitely want to do), etc., please do the following:

How to Enter the NACD Post Contest

– Fill out the entry form on the NARD website.

– Attach the completed entry form to the back of your poster (tape, glue, staples, etc).

– Mail your poster to:

Austen Hill, Education Programs Supervisor
Papio NRD
8901 S. 154th Street
Omaha, NE 68138

Better hurry, the contest entry deadline is November 14^th.