Come celebrate Nebraska's heritage by visiting 11 northeast Nebraska museums between Memorial Day and Labor Day.  Passport booklets can be obtained at participating museums.  When you visit participating museums between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day, hand them your Passport booklet.  The museum staff will place a sticker over their listing on the center page.  Persons collecting stickers from all 11 participating museums will be entered into a drawing for a cash prize of $300; stickers from 9 or more participating museums will be entered into a drawing for a cash prize of $100; and stickers from 5 or more participating museums will be entered into a drawing for a cash prize of $50.

The 11 museums are:  Antelope County Historical Museum in Neligh, Ashfall State Historical Park near Royal, Cedar County Historical Museum in Hartington, Creighton Historical Center in Creighton, Dixon County Museum in Allen, Graves Library Museum and Depot Railroad Museum in Wakefield, Mars Historical Area near Royal, Pierce Historical Museum in Pierce, Plainview Depot Railroad Museum in Plainview, Plainview Klown Doll Museum in Plainview, and the Verdigre Heritage Museum in Verdigre.

The Passport to Heritage Project is sponsored by The Northeast Nebraska RC&D and is funded by the participating museums and the following:  Mary's Restaurant in Plainview, Green Gables Restaurant near Royal, Gragerts Grocery Store in Creighton, Northern Nebraska United Mutual Insurance Company in Plainview, Dixon County Museum in Allen, Wakefield Heritage Organization in Wakefield, Mars Historical Area near Royal, Verdigre Heritage Museum in Verdigre, Royal Last Chance Bar & Grill in Royal, Dusty's Convenience Store in Orchard, Midwest Bank in Plainview, Madison County Bank in Plainview, J's Place in Pierce, Cobblestone Inn & Suites in Hartington, Tom's Service in Pierce, Boyd's Electrical Service of Clearwater, Brockhaus Funeral Homes of Creighton, Pizza Hut in Hartington, and McNally Law Office in Neligh.

Click on Button below to view and print your Passport Booklet.

The Northeast Nebraska Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) Council in partnership with the Northeast Nebraska Weed Management Area (NNWMA) is hosting an educational workshop and tour on Tuesday, May 22, 2018.   This free event will be held at the Antelope County Courthouse basement meeting room, 501 Main St., from 9 a.m. until noon.  No registration is required.  Questions can be addressed to Bruce Ofe, Antelope County Weed Superintendent at 402-887-4659.
 
Landowners, County Board members, Natural Resource District Board members, and interested citizens are encouraged to attend this Weed Workshop.  Topics will include the invasive Yellow Flag Iris, efforts with biocontrol agents in controlling noxious weeds, mechanical and chemical control of Salt Cedar, and accomplishments of the NNWMA.  A tour to a site containing Yellow Flag Iris will complete the morning’s event which will then be followed by lunch.
 
This project is funded in part by a grant from the Nebraska Environmental Trust.  The NNWMA covers an eight-county area and 4,610,212 acres of private, public, and tribal land.  NNWMA has technical support from the Northeast Nebraska RC&D, a local non-profit.

On the early morning of Saturday, April 7th, a bus carrying 24 people journeyed to a pasture southwest of Naper, Nebraska to watch the male Sharp-tailed Grouse compete for the attention of the hens.  As the sun began to rise, several male grouse began their elaborate calls and their courtship dances despite the temperature in the single digits.  Several people took up positions in a photo blind that had been strategically set up by the Game & Parks Commission a couple weeks earlier.  Other people watched the annual mating ritual of the grouse from the bus.  Even though the birds seemed a little curious about the big yellow bus, they performed their dance within yards of the amazed visitors.

A little after 8am, the bus left the lek area and drove into Naper where the group enjoyed a nice hot breakfast at the Naper Cafe.  After breakfast, the group enjoyed informative presentations by Kelly & Jen Corman of the Northern Prairies Land Trust and Scott and Cassidy Wessel of the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission.  Land owner, Larry Anderson, and Tessa Combs of NRCS also addressed the group on ways that landowners can work with State and Federal Agencies for conservation opportunities.  The group then toured the White Horse Ranch Museum.

The tour was sponsored by The Northeast Nebraska RC&D and North Central RC&D in partnership with the Nebraska Game & Parks, the Northern Prairies Land Trust, the Nebraska Natural Legacy Project, NRCS, and the Nebraska Environmental Trust.

DUE TO THE IMPENDING WINTER STORM, THE HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE EVENTS HAVE BEEN POSTPONED FROM APRIL 13 & 14 TO APRIL 27TH IN WAYNE AND APRIL 28TH IN O'NEILL!

The Northeast Nebraska RC&D in conjunction with the North Central RC&D, the Wayne Green Team and the Cities of Atkinson, O’Neill, and Wayne will be holding two Household Hazardous Waste Collection Events.  One event will be held at the Wayne Transfer Station on Friday, April 27th from 2pm to 4pm.  The second event will be held at Carney Park in O’Neill on Saturday, April 28th from 8am to 10am.
 
Household quantities of the following items will be accepted:  paint (latex and oil base), pesticides, herbicides, oil, cleaning chemicals, fluorescent light bulbs, yard and garden chemicals, anti-freeze, car batteries, and mercury & mercury containing devices including compact fluorescent bulbs.
 
The following items will NOT be accepted:  tires, electronic equipment, appliances, PCB’s, picric acid, science lab materials, radioactive materials, or biological hazards.
 
There will be a $10 per vehicle fee to assist with the cost of the collection.
 
This event is funded in part by a grant from the Nebraska Environmental Trust.

Come join us to watch the Sharp-tailed Grouse dance at their lek near Naper, Nebraska on Saturday, April 7th.  The bus will depart from the Naper Cafe at 5:45am for a guided sunrise viewing of the birds on their lek.  After viewing the dance, the bus will return to the Naper Cafe for a breakfast buffet and enjoy presentations by speakers from the Northern Prairies Land Trust, the Game & Parks Commission, NRCS, and the Naper Historical Society.  Following breakfast, we will tour the Whitehorse Ranch Museum in Naper.

The cost of the tour is $30 per person and includes expert guide, transportation, breakfast, educational presentations, and museum tour.  Registrations are now closed.

Be sure to bring binoculars, a camera, and warm clothing.  This tour is sponsored by the Northeast Nebraska RC&D, North Central RC&D, the Nebraska Natural Legacy Project, the Nebraska Game & Parks Commission, NRCS, and the Northern Prairies Land Trust.

Rain date will be April 13th.

Due to weather conditions, the regular meeting of the Northeast Nebraska RC&D Council has postponed from this evening to next Monday, January 29th at 7pm at the RC&D Office in Plainview.

Due to the adverse weather forecast for February 9th, the Grant Writing Workshop originally scheduled for Feb 9th has been postponed until February 23rd; Plainview Library; 9:30am to 3:30pm.

The workshop will begin at 9:30am and will be led by instructors Laura Dendinger of Wayne State College, Joan Scheel of USDA Rural Development, and Jan Jorgensen of RC&D.  Participants will learn valuable techniques to improve grant writing success, will prepare a draft grant proposal, and will receive one-on-one grant proposal review at this workshop.

The cost of the event is $50 per person and includes instruction, materials, personal grant review, and lunch.  Registrations for this event must be received by February 14, 2018.  To register, contact the Northeast RC&D office at 402-582-4866; e-mail RC&D at northeastrcd@plvwtelco.net; or fill out the form below and click the light gray "submit" button at the bottom.  Registrants will receive an e-mail with an invoice and secure Paypal link to remit registration fee with credit card.

Be sure to register early because seats are limited.  Please allow 2 to 5 days to receive your invoice for payment.

The Northeast Nebraska Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) Council in partnership with Nebraska Game & Parks, Northern Prairie Lands Trust and the Plainview Public Library are hosting Project Feeder Watch on Saturday, February 3rd, 2018.   This free event will be held at the Plainview Library, 209 N. Pine St., from 10:00 a.m. until noon.  No registration required.  Questions can be addressed to Jamie Bachmann, Wildlife Education Assistant, at Jamie.bachmann@nebraska.gov.
 
Kids, families, and bird lovers of all ages and experience levels are encouraged to attend Project Feeder Watch.  Join us for a fun and informative presentation from 10:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. followed by Feeder Watch data collection and cozy winter treats from 10:30 a.m. until noon.  Participants will leave with the confidence and materials to continue Project Feeder Watch in their own backyard.  Join in on this hands-on learning experience and free door prizes.  
 
Project Feeder Watch is a citizen science project out of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Citizen science is a way for the public to contribute to the scientific understanding of the natural world.  Participants will learn how to identify and count backyard feeders birds under the Project Feeder Watch protocol. The data collected will help to understand changes in bird populations.   
 
Embrace the winter. Count feeder birds for science!  It’ll be fun. 

The Northeast Nebraska Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) Council held their annual meeting on November 27th.  Following a meal at Donna’s Diner in Wynot, President Jim Rabe opened the meeting. 
 
The Council accepted the Plainview Farmers Market as a project for 2018 and accepted the resignation of Joan Alexander effective January 1, 2018.
 
The Council elected the following Officers for 2018:  Jim Rabe, President; Dennis Wacker, Vice-President; Judy Rasmussen, Secretary; and Janet Gill, Treasurer. 
 
Several people were recognized with awards for their service to RC&D and its projects.  Jan Jorgensen received the “Been There & Done That” award for her leadership and service.  Dick Haskin received an award for Financial Management and the “Been There & Donut” award.  Gary Howey of Hartington received an award for 20 years of service to the RC&D Program.  Jim & Laurie Meuret of Brunswick received the “World’s Best RC&D Partner” award for their assistance to RC&D.  Jim & Pearl Laycock of Plainview received the “Farmers Market” award for starting and assisting the Plainview Farmers Market.  Leonard Janovec of Norfolk received an award for his leadership and support of the RC&D History Tours.  Teresa Liermann of Plainview received the “Leadership” award for managing the Plainview Farmers Market in 2017.  Jim Rabe of Winside received an award for his leadership of the RC&D Council and for perfect attendance to the RC&D meetings.
 
The RC&D Council looks forward to continuing their service to citizens through projects that will make life better for people in Antelope, Cedar, Dixon, Knox, Pierce, and Wayne counties.

Eleven area museums participated in Northeast Nebraska’s Passport to Heritage program this summer.  Tourist visiting these museums were given Passport Booklets and would receive a stamp from each of the museums they visited.  People who visited all 11 museums were entered into a drawing for $300; people who visited 9 or more museums were entered into a drawing for $150; and people who visited 5 or more museums were entered into a drawing for $75.
 
Cindy Howey of Hartington won first prize of $300.  Lois Moser of Plainview won the second place prize of $150.  Angela Blattert of Wakefield won the third place prize of $75.

Checks were presented to the Passport winners.  In the photos below (left to right):  RC&D Council Member, Maurice Ketter presents a check for $300 to Cindy Howey of Hartington; RC&D Vice-President, Dennis Wacker presents a check for $150 to Lois Moser of Plainview; RC&D Financial Manager, Dick Haskin presents a check for $75 to Angela Blattert of Wakefield.