On September 14, 2018, the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) leadership met with members of the Small Business Compliance Advisory Panel (SBCAP) for their annual meeting to review and discuss how NDEQ can better support and improve their environmental services and programs for small business development and compliance across the state.

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality’s 2018 Clean Diesel Rebate Program is now accepting applications for two types of rebate – diesel refuse truck replacements and agricultural irrigation pump diesel engine replacements. Applications must be submitted to NDEQ by December 15, 2018 to be considered.

NDEQ established the Nebraska Clean Diesel Program in 2008 to distribute funding received from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for the purpose of reducing diesel emissions and improving air quality in the state.

City, State and federal officials today announced that Antelope Creek, which runs for 11 miles through Lincoln, has been removed from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Impaired Waters list. Only 90 creeks in the nation have been removed from the list in the last 15 years, and only 14 of those are in urban areas.

The 2018 Power Summit, sponsored by NDEQ and NPPD, was held in Lincoln on Oct. 30th. The Power Summit provides those in the power generating industry and those responsible for the implementation of the associated environmental regulations with an opportunity to exchange information related to power production, environmental policies, programs, and issues in Nebraska.

A primary objective of the Summit is to enhance the dialogue that has been established between the power industry and the associated regulatory agencies.

Dec. 4, 2018 -- NDEQ has revised the grant period for the next round of Waste Reduction and Recycling Incentive (WRR) grants. The next round of WRR grants, which are typically awarded for a 12-month fiscal year period, will instead be awarded for a six-month period, from July 1 to December 31, 2019. This is part of an effort to ensure all waste grant programs will be distributed on a calendar year basis, starting in 2020. WRR grant applications for the last half of 2019 will be accepted between January 2 and February 13, 2019.

Officials from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality praised the cleanup efforts at Lincoln’s Haymarket District during a recent Haymarket Celebration event.

The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (DWEE) is now accepting applications for the Private Well Reverse Osmosis Rebate Program.

DWEE will administer $1.2 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds through rebates for private well reverse osmosis systems, which is part of a larger $4 million ARPA initiative administered by DWEE as authorized under LB 1014e Section 51.

The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (DWEE) ensures that public water consumers have safe drinking water that meets all state and federal standards. Private drinking water wells, however, are not regulated by DWEE, and some could contain harmful levels of contaminants.

The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (DWEE) has received significant interest and feedback in the Private Well Reverse Osmosis Rebate Program, which is available to private well owners with drinking water test levels above 10 parts per million of nitrate. The department would like to offer the following clarifications regarding the program’s requirements:

Federal nonpoint source pollution funds can be used to support projects that address nonpoint source contamination of groundwater, but it wasn’t always a simple process. The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy was integral in justifying the use these funds for groundwater projects by proving the connection between surface water and groundwater quality.