Water News Archive

Watch this series of six videos for information on planning a Vegetative Treatment System on a small AFO.

The Water Optimizer tool evaluates single fields for several crop options. Irrigated crops include: corn, soybeans, sorghum, wheat, alfalfa, edible beans, sunflowers, and sugar beets. Dryland crops include: corn, soybeans, sorghum, sunflowers, alfalfa and wheat in continuous, summer fallow and eco-fallow rotations.

Excess nutrients in livestock feed all end up in manure because animals cannot utilize them. What you feed your livestock makes a big difference in the composition of the manure output. Feed management practices that not only meet animal requirements but minimize the amount of excess nutrients in manure help reduce risk of water contamination problems. Knowing the requirements of the animal you are feeding can improve your ability to feed the animal the correct amount of nutrients.

As crops come out of the field, manure application equipment typically begins going in. While knowing the nutrient concentrations in your manure, the nutrient levels in the soil, and the nutrient needs of future crop needs are important, another critical component of the manure application process is using the right manure spreader setting, speed, and lane spacing during application. Combining all of these factors to optimize application efficiency is called calibrating the manure spreader.

The stormwater activity sheets below can be downloaded and used with the Stormwater Sleuth comic book or on their own. They are designed for students from 4th - 6th grades, but may be appropriate for other ages as well.

National Septic Smart week is Sept. 17–21, 2018. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses a week in September each year to focus on improved awareness of proper operation and maintenance of septic systems across the U.S.  The wastewater of approximately 25 percent of the population of the U.S. is treated by on-site or individual wastewater systems. In Nebraska, that statistic holds consistent with approximately 25 percent of our state’s population served by onsite wastewater systems on farms, acreages, suburbs and even some small communities.

Soil erosion and sediment loss from construction sites has been documented as a major source of water pollution. Bare soil exposed to a rain event can become quickly eroded, leading to sediment that moves into adjacent storm sewers or lakes and streams.