America's Most Endangered Rivers - (Page 38) NUMBER 10 WYOMING, NEBRASKA Niobrara River TH R E AT : U N S U S TA I N A B L E I R R I G AT I O N D I V E R S I O N S Summary The Niobrara River is one of only two Wild and Scenic Rivers in Nebraska and is a regional and national treasure for its fish and wildlife, recreation opportunities, and tourism. But excessive irrigation diversions, largely a result of rising corn prices for ethanol production, are shrinking its flows and threatening these values. Water managers must act to prevent excessive withdrawals to protect the river’s health and the many quality of life benefits it provides to human and natural communities. species depend on the Niobrara, including the piping plover, least tern, and whooping crane. The river sustains wildlife refuges and state parks and in 1988 was named one of America’s “10 best paddling rivers” by Outside Magazine. A 76-mile stretch of the Niobrara is designated as a National Wild and Scenic River, and today more than 65,000 people visit the river to float or explore this reach annually. In addition to the river’s tourism and recreation benefits, thousands of Nebraskans obtain water for household use from underground wells near the Niobrara and its tributaries, and the river provides irrigation and power generation to the region. have increased dramatically in the past decade, partially due to the rapidly growing demand for corn to make ethanol. In just the first six months of 2007, irrigators applied for more than five times the amount of water than had been granted during the entire decade between 1980 and 1990. While irrigation demands have increased, surface water levels have decreased. For the past five years, the river’s flow rate has been below average, and the NIOBRARA RIVER AT-A-GLANCE RIVER LENGTH: 535 miles WATERSHED AREA: 15,195 square miles LARGEST CITY IN THE WATERSHED: Valentine, NE (pop. 2,820) NUMBER OF IRRIGATED ACRES IN WATERSHED: more than 600,000 DID YOU KNOW? The Niobrara River is one of only two National Wild and Scenic Rivers in Nebraska. The River Nebraska’s longest river, the Niobrara flows 535 miles before emptying into the Missouri River near the town of Niobrara. A number of threatened and endangered The Threat Water diversions to support crop production in the Niobrara River region’s sandy soil 2008 EDITION | NIOBRARA RIVER W W W. A M E R I C A N R I V E R S . O R G A M E R I C A’ S M O S T E N DA N G E R E D R I V E R S ™ : NATIONAL PARK SERVICE http://www.americanrivers.org
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