All good things must come to an end…at least temporarily. Darn you, winter!
The Papio NRD will close all access sites to the Elkhorn River for the season on November 1st. The access sites include Elkhorn Crossing Recreation Area, Graske Crossing, and the West Maple Road access site. The access sites will reopen April 1st. See you next season.
When corn is high, four-way intersections in rural counties can become dangerous. Tall crops often obstruct the line-of-sight needed at these intersections. The Papio NRD, along with Pheasants Forever, The Nebraska Environmental Trust, and Nebraska Game & Parks offer a cost-share program to improve safety while also providing a benefit to the ecosystem.
The Pollinator Safety Corners Program allows landowners to take one to three acres at a four-way rural intersection out of crop production and seeded into a mix of short, native grasses or pollinator habitat. Landowners receive 75% cost-share on seed mix. In addition, the program provides an annual payment of $250/acre for 5 years. Landowners within the 319 Papillion Creek Watershed receive $350/acre annually. Some participants even choose to install bee boxes on their safety corners.
With your participation, we can make these intersections safer for our communities and beneficial for pollinators. Contact Kalani Fortina in the Blair office at (402) 426-4782 ext. 101 or Kalani.Fortina@usda.gov for more information.
A roller crimper, an alternative mechanical method to terminate cover crops without herbicides, is now available for farmers in and around Washington County. By crimping cover crops and rolling them over like a blanket on a field, it can improve weed suppression and reduce moisture evaporation from the soil.
Grant funding from the EPA, Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE) and the Papio NRD for practices relating to water quality improvements enabled the recent acquisition of the roller crimper.
It’s available to local farmers for use at a low cost of $1/acre (to address routine maintenance). Farmers who may be hesitant about this practice are encouraged to try it on a few acres initially to make their own judgement and consider it a potential future investment.
To learn more about the roller crimper and cost-share on eligible conservation practices, contact Armando Zarco with the Papio NRD at 402-350-3695 or azarco@papionrd.org.
To schedule the roller crimper, contact Phil Kempcke at 402-533-3122 or Nate Kempcke at 402-278-0584 with Kempcke Seeds in Blair.
The Sarpy Wastewater Agency has informed the Papio NRD that the MoPAC Trail in/near Springfield will be closed until the end of the year. The trail will be closed from Capehart Road south to Fairview Road until December 31, 2022, due to the agency’s installation of a sanitary sewer line.
The closure will result in no access to/from the trail between these major street crossings. Anyone who would like to use the section of the trail from Capehart to the north (off the top of the map), or from Fairview to the south (off the bottom of the map) will be able to do so.
The entire length of the MoPac Trail along Hwy 31 stretching to and across the Lied Bridge is open for use.
The Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District (Papio NRD) and the City of Bellevue Public Works Department would like to remind all area residents that the Bellevue Loop Trail will remain closed until all remaining trail work and levee improvements on and around the trail are completed.
The levee and trail work are expected to be completed by the end of October. For public safety, residents are not to access the trail or levee until the Papio NRD has provided notice that it is open for public use.
Additionally, barricades are in place indicating the trail is closed. Residents are not to move or tamper with any barricades or other warning signs. The City of Bellevue Police Department will continue to monitor access points to the trail/levee construction site and may issue citations to trespassers. All of these measures are in place for the safety of the public.
We understand the public’s eagerness to use the trail and are working as quickly as possible to complete the levee system that will better protect the City of Bellevue and Offutt Air Force Base from another major flooding event. We thank the public for its cooperation and patience during the construction of this project.
The Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District today announced the promotion of Amanda Grint to assistant general manager.
Grint, formerly water resources engineer, has worked for the Papio NRD for 15 years. She fills the position following the sudden passing of Marlin Petermann in December. Petermann worked for the Papio NRD for 47 years, the majority as assistant general manager.
“While the circumstances under which this position became available are extremely tragic and unfortunate, the District pulled together and immediately started the interview process,” said John Winkler, general manager of the Papio NRD. “The District was quite fortunate to have extremely qualified and capable professionals apply for the position and it was a very competitive pool of applicants. We are very excited to work with Amanda in her new role and look forward to moving the District to new heights with her knowledge, expertise and experience,” said Winkler.
“I am honored to have been selected as assistant general manager for the Papio NRD,” said Grint. “It’s certainly a heartbreaking turn of events with the passing of Marlin. I’m grateful for the many things I learned from him and throughout my time at the District. I’m anxious to work on District projects on a deeper level that improve our communities and quality of life, such as flood mitigation, trails, conservation efforts, enhancing our natural resources, and forming public/private partnerships,” said Grint.
Grint received a Bachelor of Science in Biological Systems Engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She is a registered Professional Engineer, Certified Floodplain Manager, and member of the Association of State Floodplain Managers and Nebraska Floodplain and Stormwater Managers Association.
An Eastern Nebraska group, the Lower Platte River Consortium, is encouraging the public to start now in proactively conserving water. Projections show that warmer temperatures and below normal precipitation are expected to continue through at least May and June.
We all rely on Platte River flows. The Platte River is the lifeline for the state of Nebraska. A majority of the population relies on groundwater from wells, which are replenished by the Lower Platte River, including the communities of Omaha, Lincoln, and Fremont. The Platte River also provides habitat for fish and wildlife, recreation, and recharges wells for irrigation in the Platte River valley.
Weather has a big impact on Platte River flows. Contributing factors include runoff from rainfall within the basin and snowpack in the Rocky Mountains near Denver, Colo., and Laramie and Casper, Wyo. Nebraska has experienced an unusually dry fall and very mild winter, with little snow and rainfall. Current conditions in the state are dry, including lower levels of moisture in the soil.
River flows can decrease to the point where the river will not adequately replenish the wells. Flows in the Platte River are currently adequate to recharge our wells; what those flows will be like later if dry conditions continue is unknown.
Current long-range predictions through May and June indicate above normal temperatures, and below normal precipitation for the state. Dry and warm conditions will have an impact on the amount of water in the Platte River that is available for its various needs and uses.
Given the current dryness, the group asks for the public’s assistance now, knowing it is dry, to use only what you need. If dry conditions persist, the group will communicate this and ask additional assistance from the public to conserve water.
“The consortium will continue to work together to monitor and share information with the public as we progress into these spring and summer months,” states Paul Zillig, General Manager of the Lower Platte South NRD. “Our group recognizes the need to be more proactive and communicate with the public so we can all work together to ensure conservation. We need to start now conserving water, knowing that current long-term forecasts are telling us it’s going to get warmer, and we won’t have much rain.”
The Nebraska Department of Natural Resources has launched an online dashboard available to the public that displays real-time information that the department monitors and collects throughout the state. The dashboard includes current up-to-date drought conditions, common drought indicators, and the streamflow projection for Platte River at Ashland. The data reflects the conditions throughout the Lower Platte basin and the entire state. The dashboard also provides important links to other local and national climate-related resources. The department will continue to closely monitor streamflow conditions throughout the summer.
To view the dashboard, visit the Department of Natural Resources’ site: (dnr.nebraska.gov/water-planning/lower-platte-river-basin).
The Lower Platte River Consortium will continue to monitor the conditions and its entities will work with individuals and communities to conserve water as necessary.
About the Consortium
Formed in 2016, the consortium consists of six different entities (agencies) that monitor and rely on the Lower Platte River for their water supply. These agencies include:
It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the passing of our colleague, friend, and mentor Marlin Petermann. Marlin worked for the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District for 47 years, the majority as assistant general manager. To say Marlin was passionate about his job is a vast understatement. He loved his work and many times was the last one to leave the office. Time spent at one’s desk does not always equate dedication, but for Marlin that certainly was the case.
Marlin had an important job that directly impacted each of us and our communities on many levels, especially public safety. A most recent example is the flood of 2019. Marlin, his team, and our various emergency management partners made critical decisions before, during, and after the flood that not only helped minimized the immediate destruction, but quickly put in motion strategies that would further reduce damage to vital infrastructure and communities, such as Offutt Air Force Base and the City of Bellevue.
This time of year, Marlin would be gearing up to monitor the Platte and Elkhorn rivers for potential ice jams. It’s probably fair to say these rivers were probably his “second home” due to his time spent overhead via helicopter, as well as on the ground. Again, for the sake of public safety.
Marlin worked tirelessly with local, county, state, and federal governments and created countless public/private partnerships that not only made our communities safer and enhanced our quality of life through his work with many District programs, such as flood mitigation, trails, conservation efforts, etc., while enhancing our natural resources along the way.
Marlin was well known and highly respected by all he worked with…and with good reason (too many to count). He was a Papio NRD institution. He truly was.
Marlin had a beautiful family and we ask that you join us in keeping his wife Cynthia, children, and grandchildren in your thoughts.
In order to further limit the spread of COVID-19 and protect the health and welfare of our employees the Papio NRD offices are closed to the general public. Only visitors that have an appointment and those involved in the normal operation of the office, such as the postal service, UPS, Fed Ex, and other deliveries, will be allowed to enter the building until further notice.
If you would like to make an appointment with a Papio NRD staff member or need more information, please call 402-444-6222 Ext. 0.
During the Papio NRD board meeting on December 12, 2019, independent auditor, berganKDV, gave the District a clean financial bill of health in its FY 2019 audit report.
The full report, along with Papio NRD financial statements and supplemental information, can be found here.
