Media Advisory: Event Celebrates Contribution of 100-year-old Streamgage to Nebraska
The Platte River near Duncan streamgage, just upstream from the Platte’s confluence with the Loup River, began operating on June 4, 1895. For more than a century of operation, this U.S. Geological Survey streamgage has contributed abundant information about water levels to farmers, decision makers, scientists, planners, and the public by helping assure future water supplies, sound water-resources management, safe infrastructure design, and proper flood zoning.
“The value and utility of the data from long-term streamgages such as this one is difficult to overstate,” said Robert Swanson, Director of the USGS Nebraska Water Science Center.
During the 1990s, however, many such long-term streamgages were discontinued due to lack of funding. On average, each year of the decade saw a net loss of about 70 of these vital, often life-saving instruments that are located beside a river and measure water levels.
| Who: | Representatives from the Offices of Senator Ben Nelson, Senator Mike Johanns, and U.S. Congressman Adrian Smith Robert Swanson, Director, USGS Nebraska Water Science Center |
| What: | Re-dedication ceremony of USGS Platte River streamgage |
| Where: | The streamgage on the Platte River bridge, 0.5 mi. south of Duncan on Main/287 Ave. From Lincoln and Omaha. |
| When: | Tuesday June 5, 2012, 10 a.m. |
| Note: | Duration about one hour, including a 15-minute re-dedication presentation, streamgage-house tour, and data-collection demonstrations. |
More information on Platte River at Duncan, including historical photos:
- Nebraska Centennial Streamgage Platte River near Duncan
- Streamgages: Measuring the Pulse of our Nation’s Rivers (187 KB PDF)
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