Report on the Platte River Basin, Nebraska Level B Study

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22 amounts of minerals and humus and have good water - holding capacity. There are sandy spots scat- tered throughout this region where a glacier left sand and gravel or a river washed along enough sand to fill its bed. There are also a small number of places where wind and water erosion have exposed areas of bedrock, but generally the silty soil region has sufficient topsoil to produce good crops. The Mixed soil region occurs in a small area in the northeastern part of the basin. Clayey, silty, sandy, and stony soils are present in this region. Farther west, the Sandy soil region comprises a major portion of the Nebraska Sandhills in the north central part of the basin. This Sandy region is, in general, a rolling sandy plain covered with grass. Here are many sandhill lakes, wetlands, and subirrigated valleys. The Loamy region includes the High Plains in the western part of the basin and the entire main valley of the Platte River. These soils are formed from mixtures of clay, silt, and sand and most are highly productive, especially when irrigated. VEGETATION The diversity of basin vegetation can be attrib- uted to the variation of soil and climate. Climate primarily determined the grassland types over most of the basin, resulting in tall grass prairie in the east, mid -grass prairie in the central portions, and short grass plains in the west. Originally an almost treeless plain except along major watercourses, there is still little forest in the basin. Extensive shelterbelts and farmstead plant- ings are maintained throughout the basin. Principal trees are cottonwood, oak, elm, willow, ash, box elder, and walnut. Outside the Sandhills most of the native vegeta- tion is gone. It has been replaced by corn, sor- ghums, soybeans, wheat, alfalfa, and tame grasses in the eastern part of the basin. In the western part, wheat is grown on the drylands and sugar beets, corn, dry beans, and alfalfa are grown on irrigated lands. Minerals Presently the Platte River Basin produces only six of the more than 80 minerals on the industrial trade market: clay, gas, oil, sand and gravel, lime- stone, and volcanic ash. In the past, the basin also produced potash and salt, but commercial produc- tion of these minerals is no longer economical. The dollar value of this nonmetallic mineral production in the basin is significant to the state's economy. An estimated $32 million was realized from production during 1970. Metallic minerals such as lead, zinc, iron, and gold occur in small amounts within the basin in various geologic formations, but these resources are not suitable for commercial production under present economic and technological conditions. OIL AND NATURAL GAS The basin's oil industry was bolstered by the discovery of oil in Cheyenne County in 1949 caus- ing the town of Sidney to nearly double in popula- tion from 1950 to 1960. The oil "boom" was over by 1970 but production continues as does exploratory drilling. The consumption of natural gas in the Platte River Basin and in Nebraska far exceeds the amount produced. Sales of natural gas in Nebras- ka in 1971 totaled 211,254 million cubic feet (mmcf), including an estimated 95,000 mmcf consumed in the basin. Natural gas production in Nebraska has never been very large and in recent years has decreased. In 1972 net production was 4,741 mmcf. The majority is produced in the southwest corner of the Panhandle in the Upper Platte Subbasin.