The Lower Platte North covers 5 counties in East Central Nebraska including Platte, Colfax, Dodge, Butler, and Saunders. The district includes parts of the following five Natural Resource Districts:
Lower Platte North
Lower Platte South
Lower Elkhorn
Lower Loup
Central Platte
The population of the district is approximately 90,000, divided almost equally between rural and urban residents. The largest communities in the district are:
Columbus
Fremont
Wahoo
Schuyler
David City
North Bend
Valparaiso
Ceresco
Ashland
The land use in the district is divided as follows:
Dry Cropland, 1,200,000 acres
Irrigated Cropland, 485,000 acres
Pasture, 190,000 acres
Rangeland, 27,000 acres
Forest, 32,000 acres
Urban, 32,000 acres
Other rural land, 53,000 acres
Water, 27,500 acres
Primary resource concerns within the NRD include the following in priority order:
Soil Resources
-- Cropland erosion control
-- Improve soil health
Water Resources
-- Prevent contamination of groundwater supplies
-- Reduce chemical and sediment loading on surface water
-- Irrigation water management
-- Flood control
Grazing lands
-- Improve range condition
-- Implement waste management systems
Wetlands
-- Protect, restore, and enhance
Fish and Wildlife Habitat
-- Increase size and diversity of habitat areas
-- Reduce turbidity and chemical levels in surface water
The priorities are listed in order from one to five in the previous section. However, programs are ongoing to address parts of all concerns. The NRCS plays a major role in reducing cropland erosion through the planning, layout, and design of terraces, diversions, waterways, filter strips, sediment and erosion control structures, dams, and many other practices. The water resources concerns are addressed by reducing sedimentation into lakes and streams with the application of conservation practices and Irrigation Water Management planning. The grazing lands are addressed through technical assistance with livestock producers to plan and apply grazing systems. The wetlands and wildlife concerns are addressed by NRCS through conservation compliance activities and implementing Federal programs such as Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP), Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), and the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP).
