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Executive Director Corner
We are very
excited to welcome Pam Deines to the Trust.
As you will read below, Pam worked for many years at the Nebraska Game
and Parks Commission and both Marilyn and I had the pleasure of working with
Pam back in the day at the Commission.
On August 14th
the local Wachiska Audubon Society held a potluck meal and meeting here at the
Ferguson House and they invited me to give a presentation on the Ferguson House
and the Trust. It was a fun evening that
concluded with me giving tours of the house.
Speaking of Audubon, please keep Marian Langan (Audubon’s State
Director) in your thoughts and prayers as she battles some serious medical
issues. I know many of you have worked
with Marian over the years.
I was very
privileged to have attended a dedication of a monument near Fort Robinson to
permanently honor the Northern Cheyenne that died at the site in 1879 at the
hands of the cavalry during an escape from the fort. A group of about 100 Northern Cheyenne from southeastern
Montana, a few from the Pine Ridge in South Dakota and others from across the
country were there to honor their forefathers.
It was amazing to be in the presence of third, fourth, fifth, sixth and
seventh generations of Chief Dull Knife and the deep history of the area. The Trust and the Natural Resources
Conservation Service provided funds to the Nebraska Land Trust to place an
easement on lands owned by the Dull Knife College surrounding the monument. See the monument below.
I want to
thank everyone who has sent a note or contributed to a memorial for our
departed friend Lori Moore. Lori had
worked for the Trust since 2008 and will be greatly missed. The family generously directed memorials to
the Trust and we are planning to purchase a wildlife sculpture and place it in
the Ferguson House in Lori’s honor.
Marilyn and I
have been planning to kayak the Lower Platte River as part of the Lower Platte
Corridor Alliance annual tour, but it has been postponed twice now because of
high water. You don’t think of high
water in June and July in the Lower Platte.
Hopefully they can reschedule the tour yet this summer.
They have
just finished putting a new cedar shingle roof on the carriage house that is
adjacent to the Ferguson House, where the Trust has its offices. They are finishing up the ridges and copper
gutters. It looks very nice. Next time you are in Lincoln, drive by and
see our new roof.
I would like
to give a shout-out to two Game and Parks employees who recently retired. Don Gabelhouse, the Fisheries Chief, is a great
conservationist, a heck of a bird carver and a fellow Lincoln Stars hockey
fan. I’ve really enjoyed working with
Don over the years. The other retiree is
Jana Cockerham who worked tirelessly in the Personnel Division at Game and
Parks. Since the Trust utilizes Game and
Parks for budget and personnel matters, we relied heavily on Jana. She always had an answer or would get an
answer right away. She was one of those
people behind the scenes that make an agency run. We will miss Jana’s services.
Our next
board meeting will be our third quarter, two day summer meeting on August 8th
and 9th at Fort Robinson, just outside Crawford. This will be a great opportunity for us to
visit a few projects and take in the history and the beautiful scenery of the
Pine Ridge. If you are in the area
during that time, stop by and join one of our public meetings on the afternoon
of the 8th or morning of the 9th.
Have a great rest
of the summer and travel safe if you are getting in that last trip before
school starts or before the fall harvest.
It is too hot to think about football, but it won’t be long.
Mark Brohman
Executive Director
The Trust Welcomes Pam Deines to the Team!
Pam Deines is the new Administrative Secretary of the
Nebraska Environmental Trust.
Pam joined the trust in July 2016. Prior to joining the Trust, she was employed
by the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Nebraska for 16
years, where she was the Assistant to the President, who would lobby on higher
education issues.
Before her work with the Association, Pam was employed by
the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.
Starting as a temporary at Fort Kearny State Park, she moved to the main
office in Lincoln and began in the Budget and Fiscal Office. She then worked in the Operations office at
Apple Street, relocated back to the main office in the Parks Division and then
was in the Realty and Environmental Services Division. Also among her duties was to work in the
Director’s office and to fill in on the third floor during Commission meetings.
She received her degree in Home Economics in Business from
UNK in Kearney. She currently resides in
Lincoln. If you have some time on your hands, stop by and say, "Hi" to Pam.
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Carriage House at the Ferguson House Gets New Roof
Over the past month, there has been a lot of activity at the Ferguson House. Many of you may already know that the carriage house had been in need of a new roof for a long time. The work to repair the roof finally got started with the start of summer and it is almost done. There are still some final touches that the contractors are working on. Thanks to the 309 Task Force for Building Renewal for making all this work possible. We are excited to see this building all spruced up again!
Here are some before and after pictures. Photo above shows the roof almost done and the photo below show what it looked like before.
The State does not have any plans to lease the building but the carriage house currently stores grounds equipment for the State and has been useful to keep it out of the elements.
Pibel Lake
The Lower Loup Natural Resources District (LLNRD) was
awarded a $240,000 grant from the Nebraska Environmental Trust (NET) in 2013 to
assist with the renovation work taking place at Pibel Lake in Wheeler County,
Nebraska. The LLNRD received ownership of the lake in 2012 and became proactive
in addressing water quality issues that had been causing it to be on the
Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality’s (NDEQ) list of impaired water
bodies. Total phosphorous, total nitrogen, mercury and other issues were all classified
as impaired for aquatic life. The LLNRD and NDEQ collaborated to develop a
Watershed Management Plan to address potential contributing non-point source
pollutants throughout the basin.
Simultaneously, funding from the grant was
used in addition to NRD funds to assist the LLNRD with construction throughout
the lake. Elements of the renovation work included the installation of a
sedimentation and nutrient settling basin on the upper end of the lake, redesigning
the outlet structures to prevent downstream erosion and assistance with
engineering fees. Additionally, the LLNRD improved lake access by installing
two roofed handicap fishing piers and adding a pedestrian bridge to allow foot
traffic to the east side of the lake. Landscaping was conducted throughout the
day-use areas and handicap parking with sidewalk approaches were included as
well. Construction on the project began in the fall of 2015 and was completed
by spring 2016. The lake was lowered several feet over winter to accommodate
the work but has since returned to full capacity with the spring rains. Upon
completion of all associated work, a real-time water quality gauge was installed
on the main portion of the lake to assist the NDEQ and LLNRD with tracking
water quality (website: https://stormcentral.waterlog.com/public/LLNRDEXO
).
State Senator Kate Sullivan and the
NET’s Mark Brohman were on site last fall with the
LLNRD Board of Directors to initiate construction. Frahm Construction Company
out of North Loup conducted all of the work associated with the renovation project.
The LLNRD and NDEQ will continue to monitor the quality of the lake as part of
their respective monitoring programs.
Photos show the auxiliary outlet and spillway.
Upcoming Events
- August 3, 2016 (Wednesday), Environmental Expo, Homestead National Monument, Beatrice, NE
- August 8-9, 2016 (Monday/Tuesday) - 3rd Quarter Board Meeting, Fort Robinson, Crawford NE
- August 26-September 5, 2016 - Nebraska State Fair, Grand Island, NE
- September 10, 2016 (Saturday) - World O' Water, Omaha, NE
- September 16-18, 2016 (Friday-Sunday) - Ponca Outdoor Expo, Ponca State Park, NE
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