Water
Monitoring and Data Gathering
The
North Platte NRD requires sound information on which to base any
water management decisions. That is why the NRD has developed
an extensive program of monitoring the quality and quantity of
groundwater.
The
heart of the program is a network of more than 400 monitoring
well sites throughout the Valley. Data are gathered from the wells
and analyzed, using Geographic Information System (GIS) technology
that allows for storage and mapping of data.
Here
are several of the highlights of the NRD's monitoring program:
·
Platte
River Cooperative Hydrology Study
·
Groundwater
Level Measurements
·
Groundwater
Information on the World Wide Web
Platte
River Cooperative Hydrology Study
The
North Platte NRD is one of nearly 20 organizations working together
to carry out the Platte River Cooperative Hydrology Study, also
known as COHYST (pronounced co-heist). This cooperative effort
among state and local agencies in Nebraska
is
expected to improve the understanding of the hydrological and
geological conditions in the Platte
River
Basin
upstream of Columbus
. This
will benefit numerous agencies in Nebraska
that
are responsible for regulating or protecting water.
COHYST
should generate data and computer models that will improve the
North Platte NRD's ability to manage the water resource of the
North
Platte Basin
. The
study will increase the NRD's knowledge about the relationship
between ground water and the river.
COHYST
is funded by the Nebraska Environmental Trust as well as the sponsoring
organizations. The study began in 1998 and is scheduled for completion
in 2001. Ten to 20 people have been working on the study full-
and part-time.
COHYST's
primary product will be computer databases that quantify existing
water use and flow data in the Platte River Basin — not only surface
water flowing through river channels, but also groundwater seeping
through alluvial aquifers.
Understanding
the river and its entire hydrological system is important, because
this stretch of the Platte River will be affected by the Cooperative
Agreement, a joint effort by Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado and the
U.S. Department of the Interior to develop a recovery plan for
threatened and endangered species of birds that use the river.
·
COHYST
web site
·
Platte
River Cooperative Agreement web site
Groundwater
Level Measurements
Twice
a year, fall and spring, the NRD measures ground water levels
in more than 500 wells throughout the North
Platte Valley
. Data
from these measurements are stored and analyzed, providing a reliable
long-term record of groundwater quantity trends. Ground water
levels are measured more frequently in some areas as dictated
by data needs.
Groundwater
Information On the World Wide Web
These
sites on the World Wide Web have data related to groundwater or
water wells that may be useful to residents of the North
Platte Valley
:
·
State
of Nebraska Registered Water Wells database
·
Other
useful Nebraska groundwater data (Nebraska
Department of Natural Resources ground water page)
|
