Quantity Sub-Area 8
On March 17, 2006 the Little Blue NRD issued a stay on new well drilling and expansion of irrigated acres in an area declared Quantity Sub-Area 8. This action was taken because the observation network indicated the area is experiencing an average water table decline in monitored wells. This decline is not consistent with data collected from the District as a whole. During the time span from the 1992 to 2000 the area showed difficulty in recording a rise in monitored wells, the average rise was around two feet. However, other units across the District recorded rises of seven feet and more. Initial results from a study, not yet completed, by the University of Nebraska's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources validates the District's decline data from their observation network. It also raises questions on potential ionic degradation of the High Plains Aquifer from surrounding Dakota aged geologic material.