Study: NRD worth millions to area economy

CURTIS, Neb. -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District has contributed $363 million to the area and is responsible for 819 jobs, according to a recent economic impact study.

Headquartered in Curtis, the MRNRD is responsible for the protection of the Natural Resources and assists landowners in planning, funding and applying conservation practices.

A sustainable natural resource base is important to the long term economic well-being of the MRNRD.

The MRNRD's study found that without the work of the MRNRD, the surrounding communities would have been without an estimated $363 million to the local economy in 2012.

To put it in perspective, that's 819 fewer jobs within the MRNRD alone, which is greater than the total population of Hayes County.

Without irrigation, local irrigation companies would have been at risk for losing significant business and farmers would have lost an average of $509 an acre.

That's a crucial amount of money lost for a family of farmers trying to make ends meet according to the study.

The MRNRD urges its surrounding communities to find out the facts about irrigation. According to the Economic Impact study, the economic benefit shows irrigation helped create and support dozens of nonfarm-related jobs.

This includes new jobs in several areas ranging from building new hospitals, gaining more doctors and dentists, nursing and care facilities, banking, food service, retail, real estate, whole-sale trade businesses and increasing truck transportation. The advantage of using irrigation is enough to buy every person who lives in the five-county area 373 tanks of gas.

If additional data and/or questions arise regarding methodology, feel free to contact Decision Innovation Solutions at 515.257.6077 or Sylvia Johnson from the MRNRD at www.mrnrd.org or call the office at 308-367-4281.