Phase III Groundwater Quality Management Area
Greater than 9.5 PPM Nitrate-Nitrogen

1.)  All rules and regulations established for Phases I and II will remain in effect unless modified or negated by Phase III requirements.

2.)  If a town, village or city lies within a Phase III Groundwater Quality Management Area then residents who apply any amount of commercial nitrogen fertilizer must become certified through the District's nitrogen certification class.  Nitrogen certification from bordering NRDs will also be accepted as fulfillment of the UENRD nitrogen certification requirement pending approval by the UENRD Board of Directors.

3.)  If the groundwater analysis from Phase I, # 6 and reported in Phase II, # 3 shows nitrate-nitrogen levels greater than 75 % of the MCL, then the groundwater analysis for nitrate-nitrogen in Phase I, #6 must be made annually and results submitted in the report discussed in Phase II, #3.

4.)  The District may require the use of monitoring equipment (i.e., flow meters, rain gauges, hour meters, etc.) and distribution equipment (i.e. pressure regulators, low pressure nozzles, etc.) for efficient fertilizer and water distribution.  A flow test through the irrigation distribution system will be required once every eight years.  The first flow test must be completed within the first two years following initial designation of a Phase III Area.  The Upper Elkhorn NRD may decide to develop a cost share program to assist operators in the purchase, installation, and testing of such equipment.

5.)  The UENRD may choose to allocate groundwater if the UENRD Board of Directors deems it necessary.

6.)  Certified operators are required to submit an annual Integrated Crop Management Plan to the UENRD by April 1 (or prior to planting of crops) on forms provided by the District for areas larger than 25 acres where more than 50 pounds per acre per year of actual nitrogen fertilizer is applied.  This plan will emphasize future planning and the establishment of fertility, pest, and irrigation management plans. The required reports from Phase II will be incorporated into the plan to help evaluate past practices and identify areas for improvement.  The plan will consist of three sections including, but not limited to, the following:

Section I.  Fertility Management Plan
a)  Fertility Management Report - from previous year (from Phase II)
b)  Evaluation of the Fertility Management Plan (from previous year).
c)  Planned fertility management actions for the upcoming year.

Section II. Pest Management Plan
a)  Pest Management Report - from previous year (from Phase II)
b) Evaluation of Pest Management Plan (from previous year).
c)  Planned pest management actions for the upcoming year.

Section III.  Irrigation Management Plan
a)  Irrigation Management Report- from the previous year (from Phase II).
b)  Evaluation of Irrigation Management Plan (from previous year).
c)  Planned irrigation management activities for the upcoming year.

     Each section of the plan consists of three subsections.  The first subsection is the Management Report (Fertility, Pest, and Irrigation) already required in Phase II.  This subsection is a summary of activities and results from the previous year.

     The second subsection is an evaluation of the Management Plan (Fertility, Pest, and Irrigation) from the previous year.  It compares the activities planned prior to planting with activities and results reported following harvest.  For the first plan, no evaluation will be required since there will not be any documented planned management activities (Phase III, Section III, c) from the previous year.  The District will provide guidelines and recommendations during this first year.  For following years, the certified operator will need to refer back to the plan from the previous year for documentation of planned activities.

     The third and final subsection details planned management activities (fertility, pest, and irrigation) for the upcoming year.  Planned activities should be based on the evaluation in subsection c and can change from year to year depending on the ability of activities and practices to produce desired results.

7.)  The application of commercial nitrogen fertilizer is prohibited on all soils until after March1.  Spring (March 1 to June 20) application of commercial nitrogen over 100 pounds per acre per year of actual nitrogen fertilizer will require split applications (i.e. pre-plant, post emergence side dress, weed and feed, planting time, and through the center pivot, if applicable). 

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For more information on the Upper Elkhorn Natural Resources District contact them at tnaprstek@uenrd.org or call 402-336-3867.

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