NOTICE OF PUBLIC MEETING
OF THE PLATTE BASIN COALITION
AND
MEETING RELATED TO THE BASIN-WIDE PLAN FOR JOINT INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT OF OVERAPPROPRIATED PORTIONS
OF THE UPPER PLATTE RIVER BASIN, NEBRASKA
The Central Platte Natural Resources District, North Platte Natural Resources District, South Platte Natural Resources District, Tri-Basin Natural Resources District, Twin Platte Natural Resources District (collectively, the Upper Platte Basin NRDs), and the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (Department) hereby provide notice that a public meeting will be held at the Central Platte NRD Office, 215 Kaufman Ave, Grand Island, NE 68803, and virtually via Zoom, on Thursday, August 1st, 2024 at 1 p.m. Central Time. A link to the Zoom teleconference will be available upon request from the Department or the Platte Basin NRDs. This public meeting will consist of a basin-wide annual meeting as required by the Upper Platte Basin-Wide Plan followed by a meeting of the Platte Basin Coalition.
The Platte Basin Coalition’s purpose is to create a cooperative body to assist the Platte Basin NRDs and the Department with resource management and efficient implementation of the Basin-Wide Plan and the individual integrated management plans for the over-appropriated area of the Platte River Basin.
As expressed in Goal 5, Objective 5.1 of the Basin-Wide Plan, the purpose of the basin-wide annual meeting is to review progress toward achieving the goals and objectives of the Plan and the portions of individual NRD integrated management plans (IMPs) that implement the Basin-Wide Plan. The agenda will include discussions of: 1) any proposed revisions to the Basin-Wide Plan; 2) any proposed revisions to the individual IMPs; 3) new data and information; 4) reports of ongoing monitoring of actions taken by the NRDs and the Department; 5) disputes related to implementation of the IMPs; 6) any other topic on which both the Department and Upper Platte Basin NRDs have agreed; and 7) a public comment period.
Any interested person may attend the meeting and comment during the public comment period. Additionally, any groundwater user, surface water appropriator, NRD, or the Department may send a written request to one of the Upper Platte Basin NRDs or the Department to propose revisions to the Basin-Wide Plan by the close of business on July 2, 2024. Persons sending a written request for changes to the Basin-Wide Plan will be given the opportunity for input during the public meeting. Groundwater users, surface water appropriators, the Upper Platte Basin NRDs, and the Department may also present data and other supporting information at the annual meeting identifying what they regard as disputes between groundwater users and surface water appropriators. Written requests may be submitted by regular mail or electronic mail to any of the following:
Central Platte Natural Resources District (CPNRD), 215 Kaufman Ave, Grand Island, NE 68803-4915, email vogt@cpnrd.org;
North Platte Natural Resources District (NPNRD), 100547 Airport Rd, PO Box 280, Scottsbluff, NE 69363-0280, email sschaneman@npnrd.org;
South Platte Natural Resources District (SPNRD), 551 Parkland Dr, PO Box 294, Sidney, NE 69162-0294, email gwittrock@spnrd.org;
Tri-Basin Natural Resources District (TBNRD), 1723 Burlington St, Holdrege, NE 68949, email jthorburn@tribasinnrd.org;
Twin Platte Natural Resources District (TPNRD), Great Western Bank Center 2nd Floor, 111 S. Dewey St, PO Box 1347, North Platte, NE 69103-1347, email komiller@tpnrd.org;
Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, 245 Fallbrook Blvd, Suite 201, Lincoln, NE 68521, email jennifer.schellpeper@nebraska.gov.
All written requests must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. CDT, July 2, 2024. A copy of the Basin-Wide Plan and each Upper Platte Basin NRD IMP can be found online at: https://dnr.nebraska.gov/water-planning/upper-platte-river-basin. An agenda of the matters to be considered at the meeting and supporting documents will be available for public inspection on July 18, 2024, during normal business hours at the offices of the NRDs and the Department and at the following website: https://dnr.nebraska.gov/water-planning/upper-platte-basin-wide-meetings-and-annual-reports. Please refer to the addresses above or the websites and phone numbers listed below for further information.
CPNRD: https://www.cpnrd.org or phone (308) 385-6282
NPNRD: https://www.npnrd.org or phone (308) 632-2749
SPNRD: https://www.spnrd.org or phone (308) 254-2377
TBNRD: https://www.tribasinnrd.org or phone (308) 995-6688
TPNRD: https://tpnrd.org or phone (308) 535-8080
Department: https://www.dnr.nebraska.gov or phone (402) 471-2363
Individuals with disabilities may request auxiliary aids and services necessary for participation by contacting Ryan Kelly at the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, 245 Fallbrook Blvd., Suite 201, Lincoln, NE 68521, telephone (402) 471-1080 or e-mail ryan.kelly@nebraska.gov.
