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North Platte NRD
Nebraska is divided into 23 natural resources districts (NRDs), multi-purpose,
local units of government established to conserve, protect, develop
and manage natural resources. The North Platte NRD comprises Banner,
Garden, Morrill, Scotts Bluff and southern Sioux counties in the North
Platte Valley in the Nebraska Panhandle. This is a land area of more
than 3 million acres with a population of more than 45,000 people and
18 communities (14 incorporated and four unincorporated). Land use consists
of range (63 percent), crop and pasture (33 percent), and lakes and
wetlands, forest and other uses (4 percent).
Major agricultural products are cattle, corn, sugar beets, dry edible
beans, alfalfa and wheat. Most crops require irrigation because annual
average precipitation is 14 to 17 inches. The largest source of irrigation
water is the North Platte River. A system of dams and canals in the
river valley, operated by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation since the early
1900s, diverts water from the river and stores it to irrigate about
300,000 acres. Some groundwater also is used to irrigate. The North
Platte Valley also is noted for its historical role in the westward
expansion of the United States. In the 1800s several major overland
emigrant trails, including the Oregon and Mormon Trails, followed the
North Platte River. Noted landmarks such as Chimney Rock, Courthouse
and Jail Rocks and Scotts Bluff National Monument trace their fame to
this era.
Nebraska's NRDs: Unique, flexible, local
Natural resources districts are unique to Nebraska. Established in
1972, they take their boundaries from major river basins. They are governed
by locally elected boards of directors, enabling them to respond to
local needs. The North Platte NRD is governed by a nine-member board
of directors elected on a non-partisan ballot. NRDs get much of their
operating funds from local property taxes. However, NRDs use only a
small slice of the property tax pie -- typically 1 percent to 2 percent
of all property taxes collected in a county.
NRDs have 12 statutory purposes for existence:
•Erosion prevention and control
•Prevention of damages from flood water and sediment
•Flood prevention and control
•Soil conservation
•Water supply for any beneficial uses
•Development, management, utilization and conservation of groundwater
and surface water
•Pollution control
•Solid waste disposal and sanitary drainage
•Drainage improvement and channel rectification
•Development and management of fish and wildlife habitat
•Development and management of recreational and park facilities
•Forestry and range management
NRDs often build partnerships with other agencies and organizations,
including the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Nebraska
Natural Resources Commission, other state and federal agencies, municipalities,
counties and private organizations. The Nebraska Association of Resources
Districts provides administrative services, legislative representation,
statewide communication and coordination for the 23 independent districts.
