Flood Control
SPNRD Ground Water Runoff Program
One of the responsibilities mandated to Natural Resources Districts is flood control. Each year flood control projects built by NRDs protect thousands of acres of land and hundreds of homes from damage by uncontrolled flood waters, saving millions of dollars in rebuilding costs. NRD technicians also help protect property and lives by inspecting a number of public and private dams throughout the district. Examples of flood control projects within the South Platte NRD include:
The Sidney East Dam protects the city of Sidney from drainage from 134 acres north of town. Constructed in 1957-58, the dam is designed to contain a 21-inch rainfall over six hours.
Bushnell West was built in 1983 about three miles northwest of Bushnell. It controls erosion from about 1,900 acres above Bushnell, protecting the town, county roads and cropland below.
The McFee Road Structure protects a highly traveled Deuel County road from flooding, and protects the Chappell Landfill from runoff and erosion. It was built in 1993 about 1 1/2 miles north of Chappell.
Established in 1978, the SPNRD Ground Water Runoff Program is in place to prevent improper irrigation runoff and maintain ground water supplies.
In order to conserve water and to prevent inefficient or improper runoff, each person who uses ground water irrigation is required by the Nebraska Ground Water Management and Protection Act to prevent the runoff of water used in irrigation.
The SPNRD program, which meets the Act requirements, addresses the standards of inefficient or improper runoff of ground water used in irrigation, procedures to prevent, control, and abate such runoff, measures for the construction, modification, extension, or operation of remedial measures to prevent, control or abate runoff of ground water used in irrigation.