Water News Archive

Policy & Regulations

Livestock Waste Regulations in Nebraska are administered by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. NDEQ administers both state and federal (EPA) environmental regulations. The governing regulations are called Title 130, Livestock Waste Control Regulations.

Separate Turf and Ornamentals

Do you have trees growing right in the middle of your lawn? Do you swear under your breath every time you mow, having to trim around them and practice some fancy footwork trying to maneuver the mower around the trunk? If so, perhaps it's time to redesign your landscape, separating the grass and all of the other plants. If you are building a new home, or moving to one with little or no landscaping, you can avoid this maintenance nightmare by simply thinking of turf as a part of the landscape unto itself.

Integrated Pest Management

Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, is a long-standing, science-based, decision-making process that identifies and reduces risks from pests and pesticides. It coordinates the use of pest biology, environmental information and available technology to prevent unacceptable levels of pest damage by the most economical means, while posing the least possible risk to people, property, resources and the environment. IPM provides an effective strategy for managing pests in all areas from developed residential and public areas to crop and wild lands.

Agricultural Irrigation & Water Quality

Research has shown that concentrations of nitrate - nitrogen have accumulated in the groundwater beneath areas where irrigation is intense and where the soils are permeable allowing for leaching of nitrogen fertilizer. Leaching is most severe for surface irrigation systems used to irrigate sandy soils. The Platte River Valley and Eastern Sandhills have been most severely affected.

Contact the Manure Team

Small AFO VTS Demonstrations

The Animal Feeding Operation, also called the Livestock Producer Environmental Assistance Project (LPEAP), provides financial and technical assistance to small livestock producers who are concerned about protecting water quality and preserving the environment, but are exempt from current regulatory requirements. The project purpose is to construct on-farm demonstration sites that minimize environmental risk using new concepts and alternative technologies. All demonstration projects are available for viewing by all producers.

Building Soils

Water should never be applied at a rate faster than it can be absorbed by the soil. Soil properties that govern water infiltration (movement of water into the soil) are texture and structure.

Weekly Irrigation Newsletter: Using Soil Water Tension to Schedule Irrigation in East-central Nebraska

In 2024, Nebraska Extension started a new collaboration with three growers located in east-central Nebraska. We installed a set of three watermark sensors at 1-, 2-, and 3-feet soil depth and the sensors were connected to datalogger (IC-10 model from Irrometer) to record and store hourly data at one-hour intervals. The data can also be accessed remotely for quick irrigation decision.

Yield Goal Development

Setting a Realistic Corn Yield Goal Nebguide Discusses how to set a realistic corn yield goal by acknowledging climatic yield limitations of corn in Nebraska and the yield history in a field.

Order CD/DVD Set

Order the Water Optimizer CD/DVD set for $7.00. The CD/DVD set contains material not available for download: background information, applications, examples and research results for the Water Optimizer program.

Evaluating Soil Health

Soil health is defined as the continued capacity of the soil to function as a vital living ecosystem that sustains plants, animals, and humans. Typically, soil health includes three types of soil characteristics: biological, physical, and chemical. Although sometimes used interchangeably, soil quality generally refers to soil chemical and physical properties.

Design Videos for Small AFOs

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

Phosphorous Dynamics

Animal manures contain both organic and inorganic forms of phosphorus. When manure mineralizes, organic phosphorus becomes inorganic phosphorus in solution and is available to plants. Some organic phosphorus is transformed to inorganic form shortly after application but other phosphorus will remain in organic form

Variety Selection & Tests

EC197, Using Winter Wheat Yield Data to Improve Variety Selection PDF only (224 KB; 8 pages) This extension circular describes a method for comparing and selecting various wheat varieties.

Crop Water Use (Evapotranspiration)

The evapotranspiration (ET) process is a key variable in many disciplines including irrigation management, crop growth, hydrologic cycle, plant physiology, soil-plant-water-atmosphere relationships, microclimate and surface interactions, and drainage studies.

Estimating Manure N App Rates

Manure nitrogen application rates must be estimated annually based upon the most recently available information for manure nutrient concentration (manure sample) and the estimate of crop nutrient needs. Since this information is not typically available at the time of a permit application, estimating manure nitrogen application rates as part of a permit is, at best, an educated guess made without essential information. However, the underlying principles and assumptions that will be used to estimate manure nitrogen application rates can be defined in a permit application.

Feed Management Practices that Affect Animal Manures

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.

Pathogens and Organic Matter

Pathogens, typically microbes (e.g., bacteria, viruses, protozoa, fungi) or parasitic worms, are organisms capable of causing infection or disease in other organisms, including humans, wild and domestic animals, and plants. Several pathogens naturally occur in livestock and poultry manure and under certain circumstances may pose a risk to human health.

Troubleshooting

Problems sometimes occur. Lagoon depth may fall below 2-foot minimum due to leak in artificial liner, clogged inlet pipe, low flow rate into lagoon, holes in dike from plant roots or burrowing animals, not enough clay in natural soil liner or not compacted.

Irrigation Management Publications from Nebraska Extension

Harvesting Crop Residues, NebGuide G1846 Issues of crop residue harvest, including nutrient removal and effects on erosion, soil quality, water loss, and yield are discussed in this NebGuide.