NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln County commissioners have refused to exempt from taxes thousands of acres of land bought by a group of natural resources districts so groundwater that had been used for irrigation would instead flow into the Platte and Republican rivers.

The Board of Commissioners on Monday followed the recommendation by county assessor Julie Stenger to tax the property on its grassland value.

Farmers and ranchers from throughout the county gathered to hear the board’s comments about tax exemption requests for the Nebraska Cooperative Republican Platte Enhancement land.

The co-op is an agency composed of several natural resources districts. It bought 19,500 acres to stop irrigation and direct the groundwater into the Platte and Republican rivers to help the state meet river water obligations.