Nebraska Ground Water Law and Administration

I. Introduction II. Western Ground Water Rights Law ... A. The Nature of the Ground Water Resource ... B. Legal Theories of Ground Water Ownership and Use ... C. Well Interference Conflicts ... D. Ground Water Mining ... E. Conflicts between Ground and Surface Water Users ... F. Ground Water Quality III. The Historical Development of Nebraska Ground Water Law ... A. The Windmill Era: Before 1930 ... B. Drought and Depression: 1930 to 1939 ... C. The Beginning of Irrigation: 1940 to 1949 ... D. Drought, Development, and Legislative Response: 1950 to 1959 ... E. The Center Pivot Boom: 1960 to 1969 ... F. Ground Water Mining and Management: 1970 to 1980 IV. Nebraska Ground Water Law and Policy ... A. Institutional Framework ... B. Rights of Use ... C. Ground Water Transfers ... D. Well Interference Conflicts ... E. Ground Water Mining ... F. Conflicts between Surface and Ground Water Users … G. Ground Water Quality V. Summary and Conclusions