September 12, 2008

A new UNL Web site — water.unl.edu — offers research and extension information on a wide variety of water issues. 

"Water is our most important natural resource," said Elbert Dickey, dean and director of UNL Extension. "It's critical that Nebraskans have unbiased, research-based information to help them make the best decisions possible about how to manage water for its many uses."

UNL experts involved in developing water.unl.edu come from a number of disciplines, including soil science, horticulture, landscaping, lake and pond management, irrigation, drinking water, wastewater treatment, crop production, livestock, watershed protection, well management, livestock manure management, climatology, fish and wildlife, remote sensing and GIS, toxicology, economics and water law and policy.

"The site focuses on both quality and quantity of water," said Sharon Skipton, UNL Extension water quality educator. She and UNL Water Center Assistant Director Lorrie Benson co-lead the site's content development team.

"It encompasses the day-in-day-out use of this all-important resource and also the development and maintenance of both agricultural and urban systems that assure safe, plentiful water will be available to future generations," Skipton said.

"We encourage visitors to check the site regularly because we have a lot more information to add, particularly for prospective students and those interested in knowing more about UNL water-related research," Benson said.

"The site will help prospective students make the links among water topics that interest them, academic majors and future careers."

The site allows visitors to identify their personal interest — whether they're a crop or livestock producer, landscape professional, prospective student, city dweller or rural resident, for example — and go immediately to content specific to their interest.

There are links to interactive tools, publications and other information, as well as links to other key university Web sites, including those for the UNL Water Center, the National Drought Mitigation Center and the High Plains Regional Climate Center.

"UNL has rapidly become one of the top public universities in the country in terms of breadth of water research, outreach programming and undergraduate and graduate education. This site will help bring those many areas of expertise together as a fingertip resource that's useable for the public," said UNL Water Center director Kyle Hoagland.

"We're billing this site as 'your natural resource for reliable water information,'" Dickey said. "We encourage Nebraskans from all walks of life to educate themselves about how to use water safely and wisely, and we believe this Web site will help do that.

Daniel R. Moser
IANR News Service