If the Director of Environment and Energy determines from the study conducted pursuant to section 46-722 that one or more sources of contamination are not point sources and if a management area, a purpose of which is protection of water quality, has been established which includes the affected area, the Director of Environment and Energy shall consider whether to require the district which established the management area to adopt an action plan as provided in sections 46-725 to 46-729.

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If the Director of Environment and Energy determines that one or more of the sources are not point sources and if such a management area has not been established or does not include all the affected area, he or she shall, within thirty days after completion of the report required by section 46-722, consult with the district within whose boundaries the area affected by such contamination is located and fix a time and place for a public hearing to consider the report, hear any other evidence, and secure testimony on whether a management area should be designated or whether an existing area should be modified. The hearing shall be held within one hundred twenty days after completion of the report. Notice of the hearing shall be given as provided in section 46-743, and the hearing shall be conducted in accordance with such section.

At the hearing, all interested persons shall be allowed to appear and present testimony. The Conservation and Survey Division of the University of Nebraska, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Natural Resources, and the appropriate district may offer as evidence any information in their possession which they deem relevant to the purpose of the hearing. After the hearing and after any studies or investigations conducted by or on behalf of the Director of Environment and Energy as he or she deems necessary, the director shall determine whether a management area shall be designated.