By Russ Pankonin
    The Imperial Republican
     Just a few details remain for natural resource districts in the Republican Basin to complete the purchases of surface water in the basin.
     The purchases will play a key role in helping the basin come into compliance in 2007 with a compact settlement with Kansas over water flows.
     The three NRDs in the basin, the Upper, Middle and Lower, formed a coalition to act as the entity to buy the water.
     The passage of LB 701 in the Legislature this year provided the funding mechanism to pay for the water buyouts.
     Under the bill, the NRDs have the authority to charge an occupation tax of up to $10 per-irrigated-acre in the basin, as well as levy an additional 10 cents per $100 of valuation.
     The largest purchase of surface water came from the Frenchman-Cambridge Irrigation District.
     The coalition agreed to pay the district $7.785 million for 26,000 acre-feet of water stored in Harry Strunk reservoir.
     An acre-foot of water would cover once acre of ground with 12 inches of water.
     The reservoir was already at flood stage with water free flowing over the spillway.
     URNRD Manager Jasper Fanning said that additional water will add to Nebraska's allocation as part of the formula to determine whether Nebraska is in compliance with the compact settlement with Kansas.
     The coalition also spent $600,000 to buy the natural flow rights of the Frenchman Valley Irrigation District. That flow was estimated at 8,000 acre-feet.
     Another $126,000 was paid to the Riverside Irrigation District near Culbertson for 2,000 acre feet.
    Bonds to finance purchase
     The coalition will sell bonds to cover the purchase of the surface water. Fanning said they would likely be three-year bonds with a one-year call option, so they could be paid off early.
     Now that negotiations have been completed on surface water for this year, the next big challenge will be for the coalition to sit down with the irrigation districts to discuss long-term or permanent buyouts.
     Fanning said those talks have yet to begin.
    Bostwick buyout by state
     Directors of the Nebraska Bostwick Irrigation District recently approved selling some of its stored and surface water to the state for about $5.7 million.
     The deal involves 12,500 acre-feet of water the district has stored in Harlan County Reservoir and 5,000 acre-feet of the Republican River's natural flow.
     Last year the district sold around 10,000 acre-feet in Harlan plus 5,000 acre-feet of river flow for about $2.5 million.
    Harlan Reservoir level up
     The water being stored in Harlan Reservoir is up substantially this summer, Fanning said.
     The water level there is key because it determines whether the NRDs can average their use over five years or two years in determining compliance.
     Once the deliverable water in Harlan reaches 119,000 acre feet, the average is figured over a five-year period.
     Fanning said the lake has risen significantly this year.
     He said the lake went into spring at a deficit of more than 13,000 towards compliance.
     Since then, snowmelt and heavy rains in the region have allowed the lake to erase that deficit and come within 14,000 acre feet of eclipsing the 119,000 acre-foot standard.
     However, that level must be achieved by the end of June, according to Ann Bleed, director of the Department of Natural Resources.
     What's needed now is a great big rain above Harlan, she said, to hit the magical 119,000 acre-foot mark.
     When asked if Nebraska would be in compliance with the Kansas compact settlement this year, she's sure hopeful. However, she said she's also seen what Mother Nature can do.