May 26, 2017 -- The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality is soliciting input from local governmental agencies and other interested parties regarding a request from U.S. EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) to provide state and local input relating a forthcoming proposal to revise the definition of waters of the United States.

The Environmental Quality Council, will hold its next meeting June 13, 2017 at the Cornhusker Hotel in Lincoln. The meeting begins at 10 a.m., and hearings will be conducted on:
 

Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality Director Jim Macy today announced the awarding of $2,623,217 in grants through the Waste Reduction and Recycling Incentive Grant Fund.

The state has issued health alerts for harmful algal blooms, also known as toxic blue-green algae, at Iron Horse Trail Lake in Pawnee County and Pawnee Lake in Lancaster County. These are the first health alerts issued in the 2017 recreational season. Weekly sampling has been conducted at 50 public lakes since the beginning of May.

The state has issued a new health alert for harmful algal blooms, also known as toxic blue-green algae, at Rockford Lake in Gage County, and alerts continue at Iron Horse Trail Lake in Pawnee County and Pawnee Lake in Lancaster County.

July 3, 2017 -- The 2018 Litter Reduction and Recycling Incentive grant applications will be available online August 15th to Sept. 13th, 2017 at 4:00 p.m. CST. Please visit the following webpage for more information: /forms/publications-grants-forms/was066

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services today announced a Memorandum of Agreement to improve coordination of Safe Drinking Water Act and Clean Water Act programs. Through the agreement, 24 DHHS staff will move to shared office space with NDEQ wastewater staff effective August 1, 2017, and seven DHHS field staff will begin working with NDEQ field staff.

Governor Pete Ricketts said the agreement is an effective means of ensuring improved services to Nebraska’s communities.

The state has issued new health alerts for harmful algal blooms, also known as toxic blue-green algae, at Kirkman’s Cove in Richardson County and Swan Creek Lake 5A in Saline County, and alerts continue at Rockford Lake in Gage County and Iron Horse Trail Lake in Pawnee County. An alert has ended at Pawnee Lake in Lancaster County.

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality has announced that a public hearing will be held Aug. 8 in Fremont to accept testimony on a proposed air quality construction permit for Lincoln Premium Poultry for a chicken hatchery located at 1015 East Cloverly, a poultry processing plant located at 1325 East Cloverly, and an animal feed mill located at 2045 South Downing, Fremont.

July 19, 2017 -- The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) is inviting proposals for funding under the Nebraska Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Program authorized through Section 319(h) of the Clean Water Act as administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Applications must be received by 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017.

For more information about the procedures for Nonpoint Source Pollution Management Project proposals, go to: