News Release from
The Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District

Date: Jan. 10, 2007
Contact: Tim Anderson, Public Relations Manager
Phone: (308) 995-8601

January 2007 Board Meeting Summary

(HOLDREGE, Neb.) -- The Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District's board of directors elected officers and seated two new members at its first monthly meeting of the year on Wednesday.

William Knoerzer of Elwood was elected by fellow board members to serve as chairman. Other officers elected were Robert Petersen of North Platte as vice president, Roger D. Olson of Holdrege as treasurer and Doyle Lavene of Bertrand as secretary. All officers will serve two-year terms in their positions.

Robert Dahlgren of Bertrand and Martin Mueller of Ogallala were officially seated as new directors representing Phelps and Keith counties, respectively. Each was elected in November to six-year terms on the board.

In other action Wednesday:

• The board approved a motion to participate in a test program in the Phelps-Gosper-Kearney County area that would pay producers to take pivot corners out of production. On an 8-6 vote with one member absent, the board agreed to provide an incentive payment of $25/acre to Central's irrigation customers who are accepted into the program.

The proposed "Conservation Corners Program" is intended to save water and create incentives for establishment of wildlife habitat on private land adjacent to pivot-irrigated fields. Primary funding for the program is provided by a combination of federal, state and local agencies and organizations.

• The board approved a motion to award a contract (subject to legal and staff review) to Kleinschmidt Associates, an energy and water resources consulting firm based in Essex, CT, for preparation of an update to the District's Land and Shoreline Management Plan. The update is required every five years by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Under terms of the contract, cost of the service is not to exceed $100,000.

• General Manager Don Kraus reported that the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program, a product of the Three-State/Dept. of the Interior Cooperative Agreement, officially began on Jan. 1. The first meeting is scheduled for Feb. 7 in Denver with an agenda that includes selection of an executive director to manage the program; a 2007 budget; discussion of possible pulse flows from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's environmental account of water in Lake McConaughy this spring; river flow issues; and adaptive management issues.

• Civil Engineer Cory Steinke reported that Lake McConaughy's elevation as of Jan. 10 was 3209.6 feet above mean sea level (510,600 acre-feet and 29 percent of operating capacity), about five feet lower than at this time last year.

Current snowpack in the North Platte River Basin in Wyoming was at 92 percent of average, while snowpack accumulation in the South Platte River Basin was 130 percent of normal.

• The directors voted unanimously to allow Otter Creek Lodge, a concessionaire at Lake McConaughy, to expand some of its lots to remedy encroachment issues under the condition that no further encroachments off of its leased property occur and no new mobile homes are added to the lots. The expanded lots still remain within the area leased to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission at the lake.

• The board awarded a bid for the purchase of weed-control chemicals to Van Diest Supply Co., of McCook which submitted the low bid of $38,585.34.

• The board approved purchase requisitions for a 3/4-ton, 4x4 pickup for $18,059 from Pony Express Chevrolet of Gothenburg; a 1/2-ton, 4x4 pickup for $17,674 from Janssen and Sons of Holdrege; and a 4-door sedan for $21,030 from Spady Buick-Pontiac-GMC of Holdrege. All purchase prices included trade-ins.

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