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Nebraska NRD Board: Lower Platte South, Dist 4

Natural Resources Districts were created to solve flood control, soil erosion, irrigation run-off, and groundwater quantity and quality issues. The NRD board members set their own priorities and develops their own programs to best serve local needs.

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    Gary R Aldridge
    (NON)

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    Martin Nader
    (NON)

Biographical Information

What specific solutions will help improve water quality and quantity, and reduce soil erosion in the NRD?

What measures can the NRD take to manage watersheds for both drought and excess rainfall events?

How can the NRD assure public access to recreation where flood control projects have attracted developers?

Education B. S. ED EIU; M.A. U. ILLINOIS
Current Public Office, dates held DIRECTOR LOWER PLATTE SOUTH NRD SUB 4. CY 2017 - PRESENT
THIS WILL BE A MULTIJURISDICTIONAL APPROACH. A NRD ACTING ON ITS OWN CAN NOT 'SOLVE' THIS ISSUE. QUANTITY: TOO MUCH TOO LITTLE. ALAS NATURE IS A PLAYER. LPS WORKS W/OTHERS TO TRACK WATER FLOW IN PLATTE RIVER AND OTHERS UPSTREAM. LPS HAS ASSISTED COMMUNITIES WHERE A BUSINESS HAS A NEED FOR HUGH QUANTITIES OF WATER. LPS USES A PERMITTING PROCESS TO PROVIDE FOR BOTH. TERRACES FARMING CONTROL SEDIMENT AND WATER RUN OFF. A PLUS FOR FARMING AND NONFARMING NEIGHBORS. QUALITY: SEDIMENT CONTROL IS USEFUL IN WATER CLEANLINESS. IMPOUNDMENT STRUCTURES ARE USEFUL AS SEDIMENT BASINS. LPS OFFERS RESIDENTIAL WATER TESTING ON AN ONGOING BASIS AT NO COST. A NRD WILL USUALLY FOCUS ON GROUND WATER. OTHERS FOCUS ON SURFACE WATER ISSUES.
LPS PARTNERS WITH SEVERAL TO 'MANAGE' WATERSHEDS.

THE ONE FACTOR LPS CAN NOT MANAGE IS NATURE. FORECAST IS A PLAYER BUT IT IS NOT MANAGEMENT.

DROUGHT: TO LITTLE. LPS WORKS WITH OTHER NRD TO FIND A POTENTIAL SOURCE OF POTABLE WATER. THIS IS A SEARCH GENERALLY UPSTREAN PLATTE RIVER BASIN. THOSE WHO SUCK GROUNDWATER ARE PERMITTED. THIS TO TRACK AND CONTROL WATER USE. STREAM GUAGES W/ARMY CORP PLACED IN PLATTE AND OTHERS TRACKS WATER VOLUME AND FLOW.

FLOODING: TOO MUCH. KEEP CHANNELS OPEN AND CLEAR. OBSTRUCTIONS WILL IMPEDE FLOW AND CAUSE PROBLEMS. LPS AND OTHERS ARE AT WORK FOR YEARS TO ADDRESS DEAD MANS RUN FLOODING IN LINCOLN. LPS CONTROLS AND/OR OWNS IMPOUNDMENT STRUCTURES. THESE ARE INSPECTED TO INSURE INTEGRITY.

LPS IS NOT IN THE BUSINESS OF FRUSTRATING DEVELOPMENT.

THERE ARE ANY NUMBER OF PLAYERS THAT HAVE A STAKE IN WATER DEVELOPMENT ISSUES. ANY NRD HAS PRIORITIES IN WATER USE. FIRST: USE FOR RESIDENTIAL PURPOSES. THEN PUBLIC SAFETY IE FLOOD CONTROL. DEVELOPERS WOULD COME SOMEWHERE DOWNSTREAM.

LPS OWNS A NUMBER OF LAKES THAT OFFER RECREATIONAL ACTIVITIES. ALL OF THESE ARE RURAL - REMOVED FROM LARGE METROPOLITAN AREAS.

ANOTHER 'RECREATION' WOULD BE TRAILS. ALL LPS TRAILS ARE LOCATED OUTSIDE OF A CITY, IE IN RURAL AREAS. IT SEEMS NEITHER NRD LAKES OR TRAILS WILL COMPETE WITH OR BE AFFECTED BY DEVELOPERS.

LAKES AND TRAILS ARE DEDICATED EXPRESSLY TO LPS.

Education BA, University of Minnesota; MA, PhD, University of Nebraska; M.Ed., Western Governors University
Simply acknowledging that water quality and quantity are issues of importance will be contributions to the public good. There is a willful ignorance that is pervasive in our society to deny ecological realities. We need to safeguard our natural resources to protect everyone. Private interests, however, wish to convince the public that we can exploit and extract as much as we want without consequences. The public interest must be placed above private profits.
We need to make sure that we have an infrastructure ready to deal with both extremes. We need measures in place to deal with flood prevention and drought. Water conservation is just as important as water dispersal.
The NRD must ensure that the public can access public lands while ensuring that public access does not interfere with the NRD's responsibility to protect natural resources for all residents.