Two counties see townships qualify for LENRD management

NORFOLK, Neb. -- The Lower Elkhorn Natural Resource District got an update on water samples from three of its counties.

The LENRD looked at water samples from Burt, Thurston, and Dixon counties to determine if there were contaminants in the supply.

The district mainly looks for nitrate, but also samples for other pesticides. If the contamination is severe enough, the district could recommend quality management in the region.

Using data from 2021 to 2023 from 257 irrigated wells, groundwater management area specialist Connor Baldwin presented their findings.

Burt County had no townships that qualified for phase two management areas. However, Thurston County has five of its six townships in the LENRD that qualify, while Dixon had three of six meet the requirements. 

Under phase two, nitrogen fertilizers would be prohibited for multiple months out of the year and restrict how much could be used. Other restrictions and requirements would also be put into effect.

Baldwin said nitrates in groundwater are one of the biggest concerns in the district due to their links to birth defects and cancer.

Data Baldwin presented, stated the national average of pediatric cancer in the United States was 3.3% while counties in the LENRD had a 9-12% rate. 

"That's why we're here, that's why we want to focus on it," Baldwin said. "That's not something we want to ignore." 

While some areas were found to qualify for management areas, it would require further board action to place them in one.

General Manager Brian Bruckner said they will be busy with variance requests the next few months and they need time to make sure their data is correct. 

"It's necessary for us to continue to look at this data," Bruckner said. "We want to make sure that we have quality data. They did get a lot of good samples this year, so we feel like we have good coverage. The conversation will continue at some point in the future." 

Bruckner said he hopes the board will have additional conversations on the topic in the early months of next year.