The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy’s (NDEE) Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program has been a leader among states in implementing pollution management projects to improve water quality and collaborating with state and local organizations and agencies.

In 2018, two Nebraska streams were removed from the impaired waters list. A segment of Shell Creek was the first known creek in the United States delisted for atrazine contamination through implementation of a comprehensive watershed management plan. Antelope Creek in Lincoln was delisted for E. coli contamination.

The water quality in both streams improved thanks to the work of several groups coming together to provide funds and education to implement best management practices (BMPs) and other conservation work.

Nonpoint source pollution comes from many sources, as opposed to one specific source like a wastewater pipe. Nonpoint source pollution is often associated with runoff from agricultural and urban areas, and it is the most prevalent cause of water quality degradation in Nebraska.

NDEE’s Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program is largely funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) through Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. This funding is passed through NDEE to units of government, educational institutions and non-profit organizations for projects that facilitate implementation of the state Nonpoint Source Management Plan.

The nonpoint source program works with water and conservation experts from multiple organizations across the state, including the University of Nebraska Extension, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Services, and the Nebraska Association of Natural Resources Districts. Often, 319 funding is used in conjunction with funding from additional sources.

These conservation groups also work with Citizen Advisory Councils while developing and carrying out Watershed Management Plans – a practice Nebraska initiated, and other states adopted. Citizen councils represent the interests of local stakeholders and work with a Technical Advisory Team to take the lead in shaping the expectations for water quality improvements and selecting practices acceptable to the community. Ensuring the community leads planning efforts has increased the percentage of stakeholder participants and improves local acceptance and installation of best management practices.

Several factors are considered when selecting the most effective best management practices for a project, including the area’s precipitation, climate, soils and topography, in addition to the type of impairment and its cause. NDEE’s nonpoint source program and its partners also consider a systems approach that employs multiple practices that work together effectively. Some of these BMPs include:

• For Cropland:
  • Buffer strips
  • Cover crops
  • No-till
  • Nutrient management
• For livestock:
  • Exclusion fencing
  • Manure management
  • Prescribed grazing
  • Water diversion
• For urban areas:
  • Pervious pavement
  • Fertilizer management
  • Rain gardens
  • Low input landscaping
• Other:
  • Wetland/sediment basins
  • Sediment removal
  • Shoreline/stream bank stabilization
  • Septic system replacement.

By collaborating with partner organizations, NDEE helps support highly focused projects that measurably reduce the degradation of surface and groundwater resources by nonpoint source pollution.