Governor warns more cutbacks needed in pumping

Gov. Dave Heineman thinks there may be light at the end, but the tunnel between us and revitalized irrigation in the Republican River basin is long and dark.

In a letter to his Water Policy Task Force, the governor thanked the Republican River Natural Resources Districts, surface water irrigation districts and individual farmers and ranchers "for working with the [Department of Natural Resources] to meet our challenges to achieve sustainability of our water supplies and to achieve compliance with the Republican River Compact."

But then, he had a cautionary note:

"To insure compliance with the Republican River Compact, the allocations for ground water pumping probably will need to be lower than what is currently being discussed publicly," Heineman wrote.

"However, it is possible that allocations could be increased in future years if we can successfully implement vegetation management programs, water augmentation projects, surface water buy-outs and other program that will reduce the amount of water consumed in the basin.

"If these and other ideas prove successful, the State of Nebraska will work with the NRDs to increase allocations where appropriate," the governor wrote.

The governor was correct in listing Nebraska's accomplishments, Southwest Nebraska's in particular. Through LB701, $4 million was provided to reduce vegetation along the stream, create the Water Resources Cash Fund to address interrelated surface water and ground water issues statewide, and authority was given to the Republican River NRDs to raise funds to deal with the compliance issue and "more importantly, help the basin achieve a sustainable balance between water supply and use."

LB701 "addresses both our short-term issues in the Republican River Basin and creates a framework for addressing our water challenges ..."

We hope the governor is correct.