Governor, committee propose canal from Colorado, massive lake near Ashland, and more

LINCOLN — Water is the word of the day at the Nebraska State Capitol. Gov. Pete Ricketts and members of a special legislative committee announced separate proposals that could bring major changes to existing water features and spur the development of new ones. The main ideas between all the proposals were the same: to guarantee access to water resources in the future, and to add economic development opportunities. 

“How do we come up with a statewide plan - across the state east to west - to really grow, manage and steward our resources in a way to provide additional opportunities for Nebraskans for future generations,” Speaker of the Legislature Mike Hilgers said.

Hilgers is a member of the Statewide Tourism and Recreational Water Access and Resources Sustainability committee, or the STAR WARS committee.

His proposal includes building a marina at Lake McConaughy, building a lodge at Niobrara State Park, quadrupling the size of the marina at Lewis and Clark Lake, improving flood prevention and here’s the big one: the creation of a 4,000 acre lake between Lincoln and Omaha.

“That will add economic opportunity for our state, help us control more of our own water, sustain more of our own water, while not in any way impacting Ashland and the surrounding communities," Hilgers said. "In fact, we think we’ll ultimately only improve the economic opportunity in those areas.”

The committee is asking for a $200 million appropriation from the legislature.

The governor is asking for a $500 million appropriation for his project, which is a canal carrying water from the South Platte River in Colorado to a series of reservoirs in western Nebraska. The project is an effort to prevent Colorado from limiting the amount of water flowing to Nebraska.

“These reduced streamflows are going to have a dramatic impact on our ability to feed the world," Ricketts said. "How would we be able to continue to irrigate the way we have done and feed the world if our water was being reduced?”

If the project is completed, Nebraska could enforce the 1923 South Platte Compact, which forces Colorado to provide 500 cubic feet per second of streamflow during the winter.

“We are simply notifying Colorado today that we are moving forward with this process and completing the terms that we’re entitled to complete,” Attorney General Doug Peterson said.

The committee’s proposals still need to make it through the legislature. We’ll learn more about the funding and approval steps for the governor’s proposal during his state of the state address on Thursday. 

The proposed 4,000-acre reservoir between Lincoln and Omaha would be bigger than Lake Okoboji in Iowa.