DROUGHT CONTINGENCY PLAN UPDATE May 21, 2025
Stage 3 Drought Contingency Protocol is still in place. The recent rain has provided some recharge for the well fields. The Board continues to work diligently to find solutions to maintain our water levels and find additional resources. While the well levels are still low, the reservoir levels are stable, and wells are keeping up with demand. We do have emergency water resources prepared to be trucked in if the reservoir is unable to maintain necessary levels for residential and commercial customers. Nemaha County Emergency Manager is ready to provide drinking water if needed. Short-term solutions for collection are in process and are expected to be in place in approximately 120 days. Long-term solutions are being researched. Multiple agencies are now involved to expedite the process.
The Board along with O’Neill Excavating from the Topeka, Kansas area is providing non-potable water tanks for the community. The water is available for gardens and potted plants and is not for human consumption. The O’Neill Excavating tanks are located at the City Storage Building on 6th and N Street. The Board of Public Works has additional tanks located at the Camper site Lot #7 at the Sports Rec Complex 419 Q Street. The Board of Public Works would like to thank O’Neill Excavating for their generous time and resources in providing this valuable resource to our community. The water from O’Neill Excavating is from a bulk water source in Kansas and the BPW tanks are from Long’s Creek which is a spring fed creek located outside of the alluvial wellfield.
We appreciate all our customers and work hard to ensure that water is safe and available. We continue to provide data with daily readings on the number of gallons pumped, pumping times, and reservoir levels. This will keep the public informed of current conditions. See the City of Auburn website at https://auburn.ne.gov for updates.
If you have questions about the status of any of our activities, please contact the BPW and we are happy to provide you with statistics of rainfall, well levels and daily monitoring of the water pumped. All systems are actively monitored, and data is kept on file permanently. The reservoir holds 1.5 million gallons of water and has not dropped below the normal levels and is currently stable. This is due to the implementation of the plan and the collaboration of the members of the Auburn and Peru communities’ reduction in use. We appreciate all efforts for conserving usage until levels return to normal.
Alan Slater
Water/Wastewater Manager
Daily Water Readings: May 21, 2025
