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The below statements by knowledgeable individuals clearly refute the claim that Platte River flows are being depleted by groundwater use for irrigation, and that the aquifer is permanently drying up. They also throw into question the application of the COHYST model to management decisions, versus being used as a "research tool".
1. October 14, 2003 written response from Duane Woodward (CPNRD Engineering Hydrologist and Chairman of the COHYST Technical Committee) to questions raised about COHYST:
"The predominant two influences on the Central Platte River flows is: 1) weather and 2) the filling and refilling of Lake McConaughy. The correlation that can be made is the correlation between flows and weather, and between flows and filling (or refilling) of Lake McConaughy not between Platte River flows and the number of irrigation wells."
2. From a report on the October 23, 2003 CPNRD Water Resource Committee discussion on COHYST:
"At a discussion about the COHYST (COoperative HYdrological STudy) project on October 23, Duane Woodward, the Engineering Hydrologist for CPNRD, stated " … there is no evidence that groundwater pumping is depleting flows in the (Platte) River.." . "
3. From a report of Duane Woodward's presentation to the National Academy of Sciences at Grand Island on August 13, 2003 (The source of this was an attendee/presenter who made personal notes of this testimony):
".. Woodward said riparian groundwater levels in the central Platte are " stable or increasing". 8-11-03 NAS meeting Grand Island."
4. An attendee of a summer, 2003 Water Policy Task Force Meeting reports that Roger Patterson, Director of the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources, made the below remarks about the effect of groundwater irrigation on Platte River flows.
'… the river flow is not being "mined" by groundwater irrigation…'
5. A written report from an attendee/presenter at the August 11, 2003 National Academy of Sciences meeting quotes Dr. Gary Lewis, PhD, a consultant on the COHYST project as saying:
"Models are research tools and shoud not be used in management decisions".
ISN'T IT TIME TO BASE WATER POLICY ON FACTS AND SOUND SCIENCE INSTEAD OF POLITICS?