KEARNEY – The University of Nebraska at Kearney is hosting research presentations and a tour of Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District as part of the Oct. 2-3 Association of American Geographers Great Plains-Rocky Mountain Division meeting.
The event is hosted and organized by the UNK Department of Geography.
The Oct. 2 field trip allows attendees to see the many roles of CNPPID, which delivers irrigation water to 111,000 acres on the south side of the Platte River between North Platte and Minden. CNPPID also provides supplemental water from Lake McConaughy – Central’s main storage reservoir – to other irrigation projects along the North Platte and Platte Rivers.
The 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. tour includes stops at Lake McConaughy, its Water Interpretive Center, the Kingsley Hydroplant and the dam’s huge water outlet structures. The tour also include stops at Jeffrey Reservoir and the Gothenburg Control Center, from which the entire system – from Lake McConaughy to the irrigation canals near Minden – is controlled.
Along the way, attendees discuss Central’s additional roles in providing recreational opportunities, wildlife habitat and groundwater recharge in the Platte River valley. Cost to attend is $40 and seating is limited. For more information, contact Jeremy Dillon at dillonjs@unk.edu.
On Oct. 3, more than 100 academics and practitioners from 11 states will be at UNK to present research projects.
The poster sessions and presentations, free and open to the public, are from 8:30 a.m. to 3:20 p.m. at the Nebraskan Student Union on the UNK campus.
For more information or to register for the CNPPID tour, visit gprmconference.com or contact event chair Jason Combs at (308) 865-8605.
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Writer: Todd Gottula, Director of Communications, 308.865.8454, gottulatm@unk.edu
Contact: Jason Combs, UNK Geography & Earth Sciences, (308) 865-8605 combshj@unk.edu
