Nebraska joins a half-dozen other states in developing a program that helps farmers improve water management and irrigation efficiency.

By Don McCabe

For 40-plus years, Roric Paulman has adopted the latest in new crop and irrigation technology on his farm south of Sutherland, Neb.

He frequently speaks on those advances used on his corn, soybeans and other crops. In addition, he works with University of Nebraska researchers who use his farm to test practices that increase yields and improve the environment.

It’s no surprise then that Paulman is one of the founders of the new Master Irrigator program in Nebraska that began last winter. The program includes Nebraska Extension, irrigation and precision ag firms, state and federal agencies, and Natural Resources Districts.

It’s an ambitious endeavor that hopes to bring Nebraska irrigators to the next level of management. And it eventually could include agency incentives for participating irrigators who use more efficient water and nutrient management.

“It’s a comprehensive approach that involves not just irrigation, but irrigated cropping systems, nitrogen management, soil health, profitability and water policy,” says Crystal Powers, Nebraska Extension educator and coordinator of the program.  “This year is a planning year, but the intent is for irrigators to design the program goals and topics as it moves forward.”

Designing the program

Several design summits for the program were held last winter, and several will occur this summer, Powers says. Sign-up for 2026 will be this fall.

Colorado and Texas are among a half-dozen other states that have created similar programs, in part because of their need to conserve declining water levels. In Nebraska, that’s a factor too, considering three years of less-than-normal rainfall, Paulman says.

“We want irrigators to be able to continue their water use, but do it efficiently and be conservation-minded in the process,” he says. “We are armed with so much intelligence, science and research that building a trust model is what comes next, and I think that’s where Master Irrigator will reside.

“New technologies are advancing like crazy, and we want irrigators to adopt those advanced tools and learn how to use them.”

In addition, farmers have considerable data of their own on yields, nutrient management and soils, so the need is to use that information well and protect it.

That’s where ag firms come in. “This partnership will allow companies such as pivot manufacturers and precision irrigation component firms to be partners in this effort, while learning what irrigators need and responding to those needs to move to the next level,” Paulman adds.

It’s intended those irrigators, when they join and adopt these practices, will earn certification.

USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service has been a partner in neighboring Master Irrigator states by offering incentives for farmers to use new technologies and management practices, Powers says.

That includes adoption of soil health and nitrogen management.  “They all connect through water management,” she adds.

Powers says that irrigators in Minnesota’s Master Irrigator program may be given regulatory certainty as they work to improve water efficiency.

“Nebraska producers are extremely knowledgeable about irrigation and nutrient management,” says Derek McClean, director of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Agricultural Research Division. “What we’re hearing is a desire for more opportunities to interact with peers and industry leaders on the latest innovations.”

Learn more at water.unl.edu.