October 7 2024
(HOLDREGE, Neb.) – The Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District board of directors held their monthly meeting on Monday and voted to approve the irrigation water rates for the 2025 irrigation season.
The board voted to increase the rates by 2.5% for the 2025 season. The rate for a base allotment of 9 inches per acre will be $43.86 and $1.53 per acre/inch above the base allotment.
Rates for non-incremental price program 12” contracts is set at $48.45 per acre and $57.63 per acre for 18” contracts.
The board also approved the 2025 irrigation schedule to begin the week of June 9, 2025, and end the week of August 31, 2025.
Also at Monday’s Meeting:
- The directors approved the purchase of a 2024 VMI Titan Diesel Powered Mobile Cutter Suction Dredge with 1,500’ of 12” Floating HDPE Pipe and accessories in the amount of $1,722,540 from VMI, Inc. in Cushing, Okla. The new dredge will be delivered between January and March 2025 to be used primarily at the CNPPID Diversion Dam. This dredge will replace the current one that has been in operation for over 50 years. Hydraulic Project Operations Manager Cory Steinke reported the dredge provides the ability to reduce the cost of pumping sediment longer distances and will be more efficient in removing the sediment.
- The board approved the bid of $401,100 to Gingerich Structures of Missouri Valley, Iowa for construction of a new chemical storage building in Holdrege. The proposed facility, to be built across from the administration office on the south side of Highway 6/34, will provide a location to store and dispense all chemicals for both the Bertrand and Holdrege locations and provide a safer working environment for district staff while affording additional room for maintenance at the existing facilities.
- Directors voted to purchase two pickups from Pony Express Chevrolet in Gothenburg for $91,000. The bid was for one ¾ ton crew cab standard bed 4x4 pickup and one ½ ton crew cab standard bed pickup.
- General Manager Devin Brundage reported on proposals the District received for the purchase of power generated at Jeffrey Hydroplant. Staff will continue evaluations of the offers and bring options and recommendations to the board.
- Civil Engineer Tyler Thulin reported that Lake McConaughy’s elevation was at 3231.5 feet on Monday (52% capacity). Inflows are around 1350 cubic feet per second (cfs) and outflows are about 200 cfs. He added the hydrocycling period is set to begin on October 17 and go through November 10 so water elevations at Johnson Lake are expected to fluctuate.
- Thulin also reported the outage of Johnson No. 1 and Johnson No. 2 hydroplants is scheduled for Oct. 28. Water elevation of Johnson Lake will be 2613 on Oct. 22 which is five feet below normal. Elevation will start to come back on the 28th and should return to normal on Nov. 2. A second, smaller outage is set for Nov. 2-4 with elevation of Johnson Lake lowered to 2615 and it will come back up on Nov. 8.
- Cory Steinke told the board he is planning on a large drawdown of Johnson Lake sometime in December to complete work in the lakebed on the east side of Johnson lake. The elevation would be lowered to 2610 which is about a nine-foot drawdown and that would last between 4-6 weeks. Once the date is finalized Central will send out a news release and notify residents.