Blog For Tag "DNR"

  • Pushing through 2022 with dedication to cleaner water in Iowa

    posted by Alicia Vasto on Monday, December 26, 2022 Water Program Director Alicia Vasto shares her thoughts as we wrap up a year of work on water and land stewardship in Iowa at IEC. She reflects about the effort, hard work, and dedication to IEC's mission of clean water in Iowa, while also sharing valuable resources and looking forward to the coming year.

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  • Perspectives on River Restoration

    posted by Guest Blogger on Monday, October 10, 2022 Central Iowa Water Resources Designer, Will Gaskins, and Water Resource Engineer, Rai Tokuhisa, recently attended a River Restoration Toolbox Training hosted by Iowa Rivers Revival in partnership with Iowa DNR and Iowa Stormwater Education Partnership (ISWEP). In this guest blog post, they share their experiences and some of the lessons they learned.

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  • Where's the Beef? Near Outstanding Iowa Waters.

    posted by Michael Schmidt on Friday, June 4, 2021 Supreme Beef is in the watershed of Bloody Run Creek, a trout stream designated by the DNR as an Outstanding Iowa Water in a unique Iowa landscape. That unique topography means the manure produced by the facility will likely harm the creek, and will likely strip Bloody Run Creek of that special designation.

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  • When it comes to CAFOs, try, try again

    posted by Michael Schmidt on Tuesday, April 6, 2021 A company seeking to site an 11,600-head cattle feedlot in northeast Iowa wasn't giving up on getting DNR approval. IEC Staff Attorney Michael Schmidt reviews the timeline and how Supreme Beef and DNR found a way to make the massive feedlot happen.

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  • Help the Wild in Iowa This Tax Season

    posted by Guest Blogger on Monday, March 1, 2021 Learn how a simple checkbox on your state tax form can generate hundreds of thousands of dollars to support non-game wildlife in Iowa, including Trumpeter Swans, bats, turtles and so much more.

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  • DNR and EPA Revising Implementation of Clean Water Act Section 401

    posted on Tuesday, September 22, 2020 IEC submitted comments expressing concern that the combination of the new EPA rule and proposed DNR changes would reduce protections for Iowa's waters, allowing a thousand cuts that would further harm Iowa's few remaining wetlands and resulting in poorer water quality.

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  • Pandemic Highlights the Perennial Importance of Parks

    posted on Friday, July 31, 2020 Both the DNR and Polk County Conservation Board have reported a tremendous increase in park attendance, including increased beach and water recreation use since COVID-19 hit Iowa. However, before you throw on your swimsuit and goggles, know the risks of swimming prior to hitting the beach.

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  • Iowa State Parks at 100 Years: Backbone's Legacy

    posted by Alicia Vasto on Thursday, July 2, 2020 Iowa celebrates the 100th anniversary of the state parks system this year. Iowa has 72 state parks that span the breadth of our state's geological and biological diversity, but Backbone State Park is special because it was Iowa's first state park. IEC explores it's history and another more recent and troubling legacy.

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  • IEC: Let's improve the Invest in Iowa Act to benefit Iowa's natural resources and outdoor recreation

    posted by Ingrid Gronstal on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 With their votes in 2010, Iowans made it clear that they support a sales tax increase for a permanent, protected funding source to improve water quality, enhance outdoor recreation opportunities, preserve our natural areas, and support Iowa communities. This year's proposal to fund the Trust is exciting, but we've identified several areas for improvement.

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  • The Case for Iowa's Lakes

    posted by Alicia Vasto on Friday, September 6, 2019 It's time to put our money where our mouths – and our boats, fishing poles, and splash pads – are. Mandatory conservation practices to reduce pollution at the source, adequate funding for water quality monitoring and enforcement by the DNR, and significant progress with the Nutrient Reduction Strategy are just a few of the measures we are calling for to clean up and preserve Iowa's waters

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