United States Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Conservation Service		 Nebraska Go to Accessibility Information
Skip to Page Content
 Photo of Nebraska





UPPER NIOBRARA-WHITE NRD

Primary programs and services

Many acres of the district are under federal or state management. Staff have a great opportunity to work with other groups and agencies. These include USDA Forest Service, Sugarloaf Grazing Association, Mirage Flats and Whitney Irrigation Districts, Bureau of Educational Lands & Funds (BELF), Nebraska Game and Parks, UNL Extension, Bureau of Reclamation, Bureau of Land Management, US Fish and Wildlife, Pheasants Forever, and Ducks Unlimited.

NRCS utilizes the following programs on a routine basis to address the resource concerns and needs identified by the Upper Niobrara White NRD Local Work Group:

  • Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP)
  • Conservation Reserve Program (CRP)
  • Nebraska Soil and Water Conservation Program (NSWCP)
  • Wetland Reserve Program (WRP)
  • NGPC Private Lands Wetlands Initiative Program
  • Federal or State Wildlife Habitat Incentives Program (WHIP)
  • Nebraska Buffer Strip Program
  • Partners for Wildlife
  • Wildlife Shelterbelt Program
  • Corners for Wildlife
  • Pheasants Forever
  • Stewardship Incentive Program (SIP)
  • Forestry Incentive Program (FIP)
  • Nebraska Water Well Decommissioning Fund
  • Ground Water Monitoring
  • Duck Unlimited

Utilization of Environmental Trust Fund (money generated through the Nebraska lottery) and grants under Nonpoint Source Management Projects to the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality for funding under Section 319 of the Federal Clean Water Act are also available for environmental improvement.

A partnership was developed between the Bureau of Reclamation, Upper Niobrara White NRD, Mirage Flats Irrigation District, UNL Extension, and NRCS to provide irrigation scheduling and to implement a surge valve loaner program in the Mirage Flats Irrigation District.

In 1997, EQIP dollars were approved for the Mirage Flats Irrigation Priority Area. The project area is approximately 16,000 acres. Mirage Flats is an area of relatively intensive irrigated crop production on porous soils. Irrigation water comes from both the District delivery system which includes a twelve mile canal originating from Box Butte Reservoir and numerous private irrigation wells. Major crops include corn, edible beans, alfalfa, and hay. The objective of this project is to reduce and prevent nutrients and other agricutural chemicals from reaching the Ogallala Aquifer. Best Management Practices include irrigation water management and herbicide use and application area as follows:

  • conservation cropping sequence
  • conservation tillage
  • crop residue
  • irrigation water management
  • integrated crop management
  • wildlife wetland habitat management
  • wildlife upland habitat management
  • record keeping