ORD - More than 1.2 million irrigated acres certified with the Lower Loup Natural Resources District soon will be checked from the air for compliance.

The LLNRD Board of Directors voted Thursday to spend more than $100,000 in the next fiscal year for infrared aerial photos of farmland, said LLNRD General Manager Leon Koehlmoos. He said the airplane likely will fly in August or September when dryland areas are stressed and there will be a better contrast with irrigated areas.

There are 1,202,702 total certified acres in the district, which has all or parts of 14 counties, including Buffalo, Custer and Sherman in Hub Territory.

Koehlmoos said 153,442 acres are irrigated with surface water and 47,167 are irrigated with both surface water and groundwater. The totals come from 9,539 records.

When asked if the certification process is done, he said, "You're never done." Some "gray areas" on applications are being spot checked.

All the certification information and maps have been put into the LLNRD's GIS (geographic information systems) program. Koehlmoos said the GIS data will be laid on top of the aerial maps to check for compliance.

In other business, the board was updated on a schedule for an office renovation and addition project. Koehlmoos said the engineer's final drawings should be completed in early July, and contractors then will have three weeks to submit bids.

The tentative plan is to open bids on July 30, have them reviewed by architect Jim Canon and ready for board consideration at a 5 p.m. July 31 board meeting at the LLNRD's Ord office. That's one week later than the regular fourth-Thursday meeting time.

If the board accepts a bid July 31, construction could begin in early August. The goal is to have the work enclosed by winter.

The project, originally estimated to cost $1.2 million, includes a larger board room and eight additional offices. Koehlmoos said the plan includes a half basement, but there is a bid option for no basement so the board can consider a change once actual costs are known.

Also Thursday, the directors:

- Scheduled a budget work session for the July 31 meeting. The work schedule for the fiscal year 2008-09 budget includes a public hearing at the Aug. 28 meeting.

- Heard a report on spring 2007 to spring 2008 groundwater readings that show a district average gain of more than 1 foot. Koehlmoos said that puts the average at 3 feet higher than the 1982 baseline.