Republican River

Red Willow County Commissioners tabled bids for new heater units at the Kiplinger Arena after questions arose over the disparity in two bids as well as questions about how the units would be paid for. Fair Manager Jiles Bowman explained that three entities are involved with expenses at the fairgrounds, the fair board, the Kiplinger Fund, and the Kiplinger Foundation, a private nonprofit corporation that is independent of the county. ...

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Whooping cranes and other birds would be harmed and the Republican River could be overrun with carp if a project is approved to bring Platte River water to the Republican Basin, according to the Audubon Nebraska conservation group. That’s nonsense, according to a Tri-Basin Natural Resources District official, who says all existing and future legal claims to Platte River water would be respected in the project...

CURTIS, Neb. -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District planned a special meeting at 12:45 p.m. today to review evidence for potential violations of the Nebraska Groundwater Management and Protection Act and MRNRD Rules and Regulations. The alleged violations were by Shirley Nisley, Ashtonfield LLC., Ulrich & Brown LTD, Virginia Brown and Merlin Brown, and Bryan Hauxwell and Ami Hauxwell...

CURTIS, Neb. -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District plans hearings and a special meeting later this month on more potential violations of groundwater regulations. A series of public hearings start at 9 a.m., Wednesday, Sept. 16, followed by a special meeting of the MRNRD board at 3:15 p.m. ...

CURTIS, Neb. -- Following a hearing Monday, the Middle Republican Natural Resources District has issued a cease and desist order and penalties against a McCook couple for violation of MRNRD Rules and Regulations and / or the Nebraska Ground Water Management and Protection Act...

LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska Sen. Dan Hughes said during a conference phone call this morning with McCook Chamber members that clean up of invasive species along rivers are good projects, and along the Republican River specifically help Nebraska comply with the 1943 three-state Republican River Compact...

LINCOLN, Neb. — Water supplies in the Republican River Basin and water volume available in Harlan County Reservoir mean that 2019 will not be a "water short" year in determining compliance with lawsuit settlements of the 1943 Republican River Compact that divvies up the river's virgin water among Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas...

CURTIS, Neb. — The need for a special meeting Monday afternoon of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors was eliminated when board member and board chairman Buck Haag submitted his resignation Sunday. MRNRD manager Jack Russell said early Monday afternoon, just past the Gazette’s press deadline, that Haag’s resignation is not official until the board acts upon it at its regular monthly meeting, on July 10...

LINCOLN, Neb. — The Nebraska Supreme Court on Friday rejected arguments that property ownership and groundwater access can be decoupled when ruling that most of the Rock Creek Augmentation Project property in Dundy County is exempt from property taxes...

McCOOK, Neb. — The legacy of newspaper founder and visionary conservationist Harry D. Strunk will be honored with a memorial at the corner of Norris Avenue and East H Street in McCook. While the concrete work is being done now, the 10x5-foot granite stone will be unveiled during McCook’s 2018 Heritage Days celebrations in September...

SMITHFIELD, Neb. — Most of the water passing through Nebraska moves slowly, taking its time meandering through the state. Water projects and regulatory policies take their time as well. About 10 years ago, then-State Sen. Mark Christensen of Imperial proposed a pipeline or channel of some sort to transport “excess” Platte River water south to the Republican River in order to help Nebraska deliver the right amount of water to Kansas as mandated in a 1943 Republican River Compact, thus avoiding costly lawsuits and Supreme Court battles.. ...

LINCOLN, Neb. – Today, the Governors and Attorneys General of Nebraska and Colorado announced their settlement of claims regarding Colorado’s past use of water under the Republican River Compact. A new agreement between the states was signed by Governor John Hickenlooper of Colorado and Governor Pete Ricketts of Nebraska in recent weeks. ...

LINCOLN, Neb. — A lawsuit filed by Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District (FCID) challenging water-management plans approved by the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Natural Resources Districts in the Republican Basin was dismissed Friday by the Nebraska Supreme Court...

WALLACE, Neb. — A water management cooperative is seeking wind and solar proposals for 20,000 acres of Lincoln County land being used to meet Kansas water demands under the Republican River Compact. Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement Project has more than 31 square miles of land that is being used for water management in Lincoln County, Nebraska. ...

LINCOLN, Neb. — A well drilling moratorium variance request has been up, and down, and up and down, through meetings, trials and court hearings — the latest before the Nebraska Supreme Court, which sent it back to the Furnas County District Court for further review...

LINCOLN, Neb. — On Friday, the Nebraska Supreme Court sided with a Furnas County District Court ruling that dismissed a case filed by Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District water users who claimed that water taken from them to help Nebraska comply with the 1943 Republican River Compact deprived them of economic benefits of their irrigated land...

McCOOK, Neb. -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors voted 11-2 Tuesday afternoon not to pay a $131,500 bill submitted to it by N-CORPE. Jack Russell, director of the MRNRD, told his board members during their monthly meeting Tuesday in McCook that he has "no justification" to bring the bill for operating expenses to his board. Board member Rick McConville of Indianola said he wants more information before paying the bill...

McCOOK, Neb. -- A new, 186-page book traces the history of the Republican Valley Conservation Association, a region-wide organization which spearheaded flood control and irrigation efforts in Southwest Nebraska, Northwest Kansas and Eastern Colorado...

Imperial, Neb. -- A lawsuit filed by Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District challenging water-management plans approved by the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and NRDs in the Republican Basin was dismissed Thursday. The surface-water irrigation district based in Cambridge argued that Integrated Management Plans (IMPs) approved by DNR and the NRDs violated the Republican River Compact, prevented more surface water use, denied it equal protection of the law and due process, and burdened interstate commerce. ...

BURLINGTON, Colo. -- Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska have reached a new agreement in a long conflict over water in the Republican River basin, the states announced Friday. State leaders signed resolutions following monthly negotiations that stretched over two years. The resolutions are intended to provide greater flexibility and certainty for all water users in the region...

MANHATTAN, KS -- Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska established an agreement this week in the longstanding conflict over water from the Republican River basin, as the Republican River Compact Administration signed two resolutions. Representatives from the three states have been meeting monthly for over two years, in an effort to change the approach and improve how they manage interstate water matters. ...

Dickens, Neb. -- The NCORPE augmentation project in Lincoln County has ceased Republican River Compact compliance operations for the spring of 2016, according to a news release from the organization. The pipeline's operation helps prevent an irrigation shutdown on approximately 300,000 acres in the Republican Basin, according to the release...

WASHINGTON - The Bureau of Reclamation has released the Republican River Basin Study, which identifies adaptation strategies that address water management challenges in the basin. This study, which includes a study area of 2.7 million acres of irrigated agriculture served primarily by groundwater supplies, represents an extensive collaborative effort among Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas...

TRENTON, Neb. -- Those who witnessed the 1935 Republican River Flood, or have stories about it, are encouraged to attend a presentation by Joy Hayden Sunday, Dec. 13, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the community building in Trenton. Hayden will give a slide show presentation on her recently published book, "The 1935 Republican River Flood," sign copies of her book and collect more stories if possible...

OBERLIN, Kan. -- Nebraska water experts developed three options in a three-state "WaterSMART" study funded in 2012 to help the state maintain compliance with 1943 Republican River Compact regulations and to maximize beneficial ground and surface water use in the river basin...

BEAVER CITY, Neb. -- Four Southwest Nebraska irrigators have filed a second class action lawsuit seeking monetary compensation for damages suffered in 2014 when Nebraska ordered water to bypass Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District's storage reservoirs and diversion dams...

McCOOK, Neb. -- The board of directors of the Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement Project will meet 10 a.m. Wednesday in room 213 of McMillen Hall, 1205 East Third Street, on the McCook Community College campus. NCORPE is a joint entity organized and existing under the Nebraska Interlocal Cooperation Act...

LINCOLN, Neb. -- A lawsuit by surface water irrigation farmers in the Republican River Basin will proceed to trial. Judge James Doyle IV issued his ruling in favor of the farmers, denying the State Department of Natural Resources motion to dismiss the case. The farmers contend the State took surface water that was actually available for them to use for 2013 crop production away from them and gave it to Kansas...

DICKENS, Neb. -- The NCORPE augmentation project in Lincoln County has ceased Republican River Compact compliance operations for 2015, after having prevented an irrigation shutdown on approximately 300,000 acres in the Republican Basin in 2014 and 2015, officials said...

MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Today, reflecting the continued spirit of cooperation, Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska, along with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, have reached an agreement that will ensure more certainty to the basin's water users in both Nebraska and Kansas. The agreement, signed through the Republican River Compact Administration (RRCA), was achieved through collaborative negotiations that began in January 2015 and will provide timely access to water for the 2015 irrigation season...

McCOOK, Neb. -- If changes in the accounting procedures of the Republican River Compact were "monetized," they could be worth up to $1 billion over the next 50 years. Jesse Bradley, department head of the Integrated Water Management Division of the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources in Lincoln, told those gathered for the annual Middle Republican Natural Resources District water conference in McCook Tuesday that the U.S. ...

HAYES CENTER, Neb. -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District will offer the Frenchman Valley Irrigation District $18 an acre foot to run irrigation water down the canal in a one-year study of groundwater recharge. The proposal, with a cap of $150,000, passed 9-2 at a MRNRD board meeting Feb. ...

IMPERIAL, Neb. -- The Upper Republican Natural Resources District, based in Imperial, Neb., has shut off its Rock Creek Water Augmentation Project and will rely now on the shared Lincoln County water project to offset the district's forecasted pumping in 2015...

MANHATTAN, Kan. -- Reflecting a new spirit of cooperation, Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska today have reached an historic agreement during a special meeting of the Republican River Compact Administration. Representatives of the states have signed a resolution, approving operational adjustments in 2014 and 2015 under the Republican River Compact that will benefit water users throughout the Basin and set the Administration on a course to find long-term solutions to persistent problems...

Imperial, Neb. -- An agreement reached Wednesday gives Nebraska 100 percent credit for augmentation water NRDs are pumping this year to maintain compliance with the Republican River Compact, and ensures water being stored in Harlan County Reservoir for compliance purposes won't go to waste...

McCOOK, Neb. -- The Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement Project canceled its meeting scheduled for Friday, Oct. 17, at McCook Community College. The meeting will be rescheduled at a later date and notice of the new meeting date will be published in this and other newspapers...

LINCOLN, Neb. -- With ongoing summer droughts in many states across the country, water scarcity continues to be a threat, shifting water regulation policies in some states to focus on more local management plans like Nebraska has. Nebraska's system of regulating water is managed at a local level with its 23 Natural Resources Districts (NRDs). ...

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Having enough water is an increasingly important issue for Nebraska farmers and city dwellers alike, but regulating water use is not something new for state policymakers. Nebraska has a long history of water law, and with the complex interplay of water rights, recent droughts and continued legal pressure from Kansas over the Republican River, state water laws have gone through many changes, with an increased emphasis on local control of water management...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- At its first meeting of the year, the Middle Republican NRD voted to set a hearing on a proposal to restrict ground water pumping to 15" for any year that is declared a compact call year. This will not affect the 5 year allocation and irrigation may resume with normal restrictions during regular allocation years. ...

CURTIS, Neb. -- After spending nearly a quarter of a century in North Dakota, a career-long conservationist is returning to his roots as manager of the Middle Republican Natural Resource District. Jack Russell, 57, takes over managerial responsibilities at the NRD office in Curtis on Thursday...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Water allocations for 2014 for Middle Republican Natural Resources District ground water irrigators may not be tighter than last year. Board member John Palic said during the MRNRD monthly meeting Dec. 10 in Curtis, "We won't know if they're looser until our January meeting."...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Red Willow Dam is back in business, ready to fully resume the all-important tasks of flood control, irrigation, and recreation for the people of the Tri-State Region of Nebraska, Kansas, and Colorado. Tired but happy, the project superintendent, Thor Shriver, spoke personally with the McCook Gazette on his way out of town. "The work is essentially complete," he said. "Only some fencing and seeding work is left to do."...

CAMBRIDGE, Nebraska -- Smarting from the loss of 40,000 acre feet of water during the 2013 irrigating season, farmers from the Frenchman-Cambridge Irrigation District are giving consideration to a class action lawsuit to protect their interests. More than 100 F-CID irrigators gathered Friday at the Cambridge Community Building for a briefing by Dave Domina, a veteran attorney with extensive experience in the water field...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- A representative of the Twin Platte Natural Resources District urged members of the Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement Project to "get a CPA on board" to keep track of the finances for the N-CORPE project that is designed to augment flows into the Republican and Platte rivers and ensure Nebraska's compliance with two inter-state water agreements...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- At Tuesday's Board meeting, the Middle Republican NRD directors approved a budget for the 2013-14 financial year. The proposed $34,402,150 budget was based on a total levy rate of .037550 and an occupation tax rate of $10 per acre. The board voted to adopt a budget with a tax levy rate of .034141 which is the levy rate of the 2012-13 financial year. The change removes about $100,000 from Ground Water Management funds...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- At their monthly meeting Tuesday evening, Middle Republican Natural Resources District board members got an update on activities on the Lincoln County farm whose irrigation water eventually will augment flows into the Republican River and on into Kansas...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors asked director Dan Smith to rewrite his proposed budget for 2013-14 with a tax levy of $.037597. That's approximately $30,000 less than the budget Smith proposes for next year, and $240,000 more than last year's budget...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- The Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (Department) has begun to open surface water appropriations in the Republican River Basin after previously issuing closing notices for the Republican River Compact on Jan. 1, 2013. These openings follow on earlier administration by the Department building on management actions taken by the local natural resources districts in the basin. ...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Middle Republican Natural Resources District directors Tuesday evening reviewed a preliminary 2013-14 budget that almost doubles last year's property tax levy and increases the occupation tax by 53 cents. Early estimates show that the district's valuation could increase from $2,606,471,003 to $2,750,000,000, although some board members feel that the valuation could be closer to $3 billion when it's officially certified Aug. 20...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Sen. Mark Christensen will likely shelve his priority bill until next session after failing to gather enough support for it to pass. The bill, LB 522, sought compensation for surface water irrigators when they were prohibited from irrigating by the Department of Natural Resources...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors approved a bond for permanent financing of a project to increase stream flows in the Republican and Platte rivers. At Tuesday's Board meeting, the directors gave formal approval to the Bond Resolution authorizing the issuance of the district's Limited Obligation Occupation Tax Supported River Flow Enhancement Bond, Series 2013...

ALMA, Nebraska -- The Nebraska Department of Natural Resources has reached a tentative agreement with the Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District. As a part of this agreement, the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources will discontinue the required releases of water being made from Harlan County Reservoir in exchange for a commitment from Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District that their use of the water will not harm Nebraska's efforts to comply with the Republican River Compact. ...

ALMA, Nebraska -- Water is being released to Kansas from Harlan County Reservoir as part of Nebraska's ongoing efforts to comply with the three-state Republican River Compact. This action came after Kansas ultimately could not agree on a plan that would have allowed Kansas water users access to this water during future irrigation seasons...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Nebraska senators debated a bill on the state's long-term water management for a second time before moving it with amendments Monday. Legislative Bill 517, introduced by Sen. Tom Carlson of Holdrege, would create a task force to address the long-term sustainability of state water resources. About 20 years ago, people thought there was an unlimited supply of water, Carlson said...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- The Nebraska Department of Natural Resources has released new draft rules and methods that it plans to utilize in its annual evaluation of availability of hydrologically connected water supplies. This annual evaluation is aimed at ensuring that streamflow water supplies for existing groundwater and surface water uses are protected into the future. ...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Nebraska farmers might be reimbursed for surface water taken by the state with a bill advanced by Nebraska lawmakers Tuesday. The bill (LB522), sponsored by Sen. Mark Christensen of Imperial, advanced on a 27-0 vote with amendments. Senators plan to continue to amend this bill, however, before it moves to select file and final passage...

LINCOLN, Nebraska (AP) -- Farmers in the Republican River Basin could get paid by the state if Nebraska cuts off their access to surface water, under a bill that won first-round approval Tuesday from lawmakers. The bill was advanced in the midst of drought fears and repeated legal battles involving the Republican River. Lawmakers voted 27-0 to move the bill through the first of three readings...

IMPERIAL, Nebraska -- The Upper Republican Natural Resources District, based in Imperial, Nebraska, has purchased additional irrigated farmland to offset additional pumping on its Rock Creek augmentation project. The Imperial Republican reports that URNRD officials knew they would need to retire more irrigated acres after increasing the number of wells on the Rock Creek project, and the board has now purchased 1,900 acres from Wilder Farms in southwest Dundy County for $8.25 million...

BILLINGS, Montana -- The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is responding to the order from the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources by directing the release of more than 13,000 acre-feet of water from four federally managed reservoirs. The release order includes releases from Swanson Lake (3,232 acre feet), Enders Reservoir (452 acre feet), Hugh Butler Lake, 1,984 acre feet) and Harry Strunk Lake (7,548 acre feet) totaling approximately 13,200 acre feet. ...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- Water continues to be a complicated issue for both Nebraska irrigators and legislators. Sen. Mark Christensen said this morning that he was receiving a lot of push-back pertaining to his priority bill, LB 522, and he welcomed local input on to how to proceed...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Saying the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation doesn't have a workable plan for meeting Kansas' demands under the Republican River Compact, the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources has ordered the release of all water stored in Nebraska reservoirs along the river since Jan. 1, 2013...

DUNDY COUNTY, Nebraska -- On Feb. 18, water flowed from the Upper Republican Natural Resources District's water augmentation project in Dundy County, Nebraska, into Rock Creek. The water will flow down the creek, through Rock Creek Lake, into the Republican River and ultimately into Kansas, helping Nebraska comply with Republican River Compact lawsuit settlements with Kansas and the URNRD make up for overuse in 2012 and projected pumping in 2013...

During a water management seminar in McCook this morning, Dan Smith, director of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District based in Curtis, Nebraska, explains the water augmentation project coordinated by the Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement Project (N-CORPE) and designed to help Nebraska comply with the 1943 Republican River Compact in the Republican River Basin and in the Platte River Basin with the 1977 Platte River Recovery Implementation Program. ...

At the meeting of the Frenchman Cambridge Irrigation District, the Bureau of Reclamation gave notice to all surface water users that they will withhold 20,000 acre feet of water (one acre, one foot deep) to pay Kansas for Nebraska's overpumping. During the last drought (2001 to 2007) there was not enough water in Trenton Dam to supply the meeker system canals. ...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Kansas deserves $5 million in damages from Nebraska, not the $80 million it had sought, according to a draft report released by the Maine attorney appointed to review the dispute. Kansas had sought injunctive relief, shutting off Republican Valley irrigation wells, in order to comply with the 1943 Republican River Compact, but Special Master William J. Katta denied the request...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors approved changes to the MRNRD's Ground Water Management Rules and Regulations following a public hearing and during their monthly meeting Tuesday, reducing irrigation pumping allocations for 2013 and setting penalties for overuse...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Irrigators in the Middle Republican Natural Resources District will not be required to make up for a shortage of about 9,000 acre feet of Republican River water that must be delivered to Kansas. Brian Dunnigan, director of Nebraska's Department of Natural Resources, on Tuesday designated 2013 as a "Compact Call Year," which means that the department's forecast procedures indicate potential non-compliance with the 1943 Republican River Compact (which divvies up the river's water among Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas) unless sufficient surface water and ground water controls and/or management actions are implemented.. ...

Why should farmers be paying closer attention to this plan to retire 15,000 acres of irrigated ground in Lincoln County? There is no guarantee this will avoid severe pumping restrictions. The land cost $83 million, $27 million estimated for the pumps and pipeline to put water into the Medicine Creek, and the pipeline going to the Platte River will cost about $20 million more. ...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Two Nebraska Irrigation Districts placed the state's water law policy at issue in filings made late Friday in the U.S. District Court. They seek a comprehensive decision on the right to waters in the Republican River Basin within Nebraska...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Local and state officials are preparing for a likely water shortage next year that would require extra conservation along the Republican River. Nebraska Department of Natural Resources deputy director Jim Schneider said Wednesday that his agency is in talks with Kansas and Colorado on ways to comply with the Republican River Compact. The water-sharing agreement among the states dates to 1943...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- If water is to run in a Republican River augmentation pipeline by June 2013, bids for construction of the pipeline will need to be opened by Jan. 3. The Nebraska Cooperative Republican-Platte Enhancement Project -- N-CORPE -- board approved the bid-letting process to build about 17 miles of pipelines from recently-purchased farmland in southern Lincoln County to the Republican and Platte rivers at a meeting Dec. ...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- The Nebraska Department of Natural Resources is continuing to prepare for dry conditions in the Republican River Basin next year. These continued preparations include efforts by the Department to update and refine its forecast for the Republican River Basin for the upcoming year as well as reassigning staff resources to carry out the administration that may be necessary. The preliminary forecast was released on Nov. 16 and is available at:...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Current forecasts suggest the state will not see any significant increase in precipitation this winter to reverse the drought, according to the state climatologist at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "We're probably going to see a more normal winter," said Al Dutcher, state climatologist in the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at UNL...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Four board members of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District maintained their seats on the board in the Nov. 6 election. The top four vote-getters were the four incumbents: Rick McConville of Indianola, 4,805 votes, 16.77 percent of the vote; Joe Anderjaska of Hayes Center, 4,234 votes, 14.78 percent; James Uerling, Indianola, 4,162 votes, 14.52 percent; and Buck Haag, 3,680 votes, 12.84 percent...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The board of directors of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District propose a 12-inch hard cap for ground water irrigators in 2013. The hard cap and penalties for overuse will be set following a public hearing in January, the date of which has not been determined...

LINCOLN, Nebraska -- Following action by four Natural Resources Districts in the last week, a purchase contract has now been signed that officials hope will bring the group a step closer to launching a stream flow enhancement project expected to aid and protect the Republican and Platte Rivers, local schools and other political subdivisions that rely on property tax revenues, and both agricultural and municipal water users...

CULBERTSON, Nebraska -- The Frenchman Valley Irrigation District, headquartered in Culbertson, Nebraska, is participating in a study to investigate how surface water use and groundwater use can be coordinated to make the best use of both water resources in the Republican River Basin...

CONNIE JO DISCOE Regional Editor McCOOK, Nebraska -- Middle Republican Natural Resources District board member Kevin Fornoff of rural Hayes Center, Nebraska, sees the purchase of a 19,500-acre southern Lincoln County farm as an opportunity to "keep us in control" of the water situation in the Republican River Basin...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors voted 9-2 Tuesday morning to participate with three other NRD's in the purchase of a 19,500-acre southern Lincoln County farm so that the water used now to irrigate its crops can be piped to the Republican and South Platte rivers...

CONNIE JO DISCOE Regional Editor McCOOK, Nebraska -- Not every one is pleased with the proposed purchase of a southern Lincoln County, Nebraska, farm to help Republican and Platte river Natural Resources Districts (NRD's) ensure compliance with interstate water agreements...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Just because they can, doesn't mean they will. Directors of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District (MRNRD) Tuesday evening reiterated earlier decisions to treat all irrigators equally, taking no action on state provisions that would allow different treatment of irrigation wells drilled after Jan. 1, 2001, when Nebraska became a defendant in interstate water compact litigation...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District (MRNRD) board of directors Tuesday evening officially accepted $1 million from the state to help fund its new "dry year lease program." Meeting in Curtis for its monthly meeting, the board approved a "memorandum of understanding" with the State of Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, which will reimburse each of the three Republican River Basin NRD's up to $1 million for payments made toward any new or expansion of any existing project or program designed to help the state meet compliance standards of the Republican River Compact in 2013 and beyond.. ...

SOUTHWEST NEBRASKA -- With minimal or no water flow in area streams and rivers, the Red Willow and Furnas County sheriff's departments and local Game and Parks Commission conservation officers are reminding the public that the beds of streams are private property...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican NRD Board of Directors approved (7-4) a 60-inch, five-year ground water irrigation allocation at Tuesday night's board meeting after hearing or receiving written testimony from 10 individuals at the 4:30 p.m. public hearing in McCook...

McCOOK, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors adopted the district's "Ground Water Management Area Rules and Regulations" at their monthly meeting in McCook, Nebraska, Tuesday evening. The vote was 7-4 for approval of Joe Anderjaska's motion; James Uerling, Steve Cappel, Buck Haag and Bill Hoyt cast the dissenting votes...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The Riverside Irrigation Co. has joined efforts with the Middle Republican Natural Resources District to help the state stay in compliance with the three-state Republican River Compact, meet standards in MRNRD's integrated management plan, and help protect the local economy, according to a joint news release...

Republican River case back to court PORTLAND, Maine -- Kansas is taking Nebraska back to court over alleged violation of terms of the 2003 settlement of a dispute over the Republican River. Attorneys representing Kansas and Nebraska will appear before Special Water master William J. Kayatta Jr. in Portland on Aug. 13, for a possible three-week trial...

CONNIE JO DISCOE Regional Editor CURTIS, Nebraska -- An official with the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources told directors of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District that a compact call year "isn't going to sneak up on us, or jump out of a bush at us."...

IMPERIAL, Nebraska -- For the first time since the Upper Republican Natural Resources District began regulating groundwater use in the late 1970s, the average groundwater level in the district has risen for three years in a row. The average groundwater level in the district rose about a third of a foot from spring 2011 to spring 2012, marking the third straight year water levels have increased. ...

IMPERIAL, Nebraska -- Bids to construct a pipeline for the Upper Republican NRD's augmentation project near Rock Creek came in well below estimates and the NRD board has awarded a contract to a Kansas City company to do the work. It is expected that Kansas City-based Garney Companies will begin laying the pipeline in June and be completed this fall. ...

WASHINGTON, D.C.--Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced that Interior's Bureau of Reclamation is providing $2.4 million in new funding for comprehensive water studies in five western river basins, including the Republican River Basin in Colorado, Kansas and Nebraska...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- Agricultural producers will have to do more with less to feed a hungry world, according to an expert who will speak at an upcoming event in McCook. Local irrigators, producers, farm managers, agronomists and bankers are invited to attend the 26th annual Southwest Nebraska Water Conference, Wednesday, March 14, at the Red Willow County Fairgrounds Community Building in McCook...

TRENTON, Nebraska -- The Middle Republican Natural Resources District board of directors voted Tuesday afternoon to help fund payments to landowners permanently retiring irrigated acres through the "Ogallala Aquifer Initiative." The Ogallala Aquifer Initiative is a voluntary program to provide technical and financial assistance to farmers and ranchers who want to improve water conservation on their agricultural land. ...

TRENTON, Nebraska -- Citing their desire to treat all irrigators equally, board members of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District Tuesday afternoon struck language from their proposed rules and regulations that would have shut down wells in rapid response areas during years of predicted water shortages...

OBERLIN, Kansas -- At least two speakers at the January meeting of the Republican River Restoration Partners in Oberlin, Kansas, encouraged Kansas, Nebraska and Colorado to work together to solve challenges facing the Republican River. Lorre McKeone, representing the Nebraska Water Balance Alliance, told the 40-or-so at the conference and meeting, "We can no longer afford to fight over water. We need to learn to work together."...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- The board of directors of the Middle Republican Natural Resources District took no action Tuesday to adopt proposed amendments to its Ground Water Management Area rules and regulations. During their regular monthly meeting Tuesday afternoon and following a public hearing Tuesday morning, several board members suggested waiting to adopt the rules and regs until they can further study testimony offered at the hearing...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- A compromise was reached with surface water irrigators concerning the occupation tax levied by the Middle Republican Natural Resources District. By a vote of 7 to 4, directors decided to reimburse surface water irrigators for the $8.50 occupation tax levied on irrigated acres, if timely proof of payment is brought to the MRNRD office...

CURTIS, Nebraska -- A budget hearing will precede the regular meeting of the Middle Republican Natural Resource District, Tuesday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m. at the Community Center in Curtis. The proposed property tax request for 2011-12 is $703.388.74. The proposed 2011 tax rate is 0.030281, or 3.2 cents...