Advocates to launch solutions phase for Iowa's water crisis
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Health and community advocates will launch on Saturday what they're calling a solutions phase for Iowa's water quality crisis and are seeking volunteers.
Why it matters: Iowa's waterways are among the most nitrate-polluted in the U.S., a problem linked to rising cancer rates.
- Saturday's town hall represents a shift from gathering data through an extensive multi-year Polk County-sponsored study to taking action — potentially shaping policy and politics for years to come, organizers tell Axios.
Catch up quick: Nitrates are tasteless naturally occurring compounds that can become harmful to human health when levels in drinking water become too high.
- Fertilizer and animal waste runoff have contributed to the problem, and the metro has been dealing with high levels for decades.
State of play: Polk County hired about a dozen scientists in 2023 to examine water conditions and biological health of the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers.
- The nearly 250-page "Currents of Change" report concluded that about 80% of DSM River nitrates are linked to farming. It recommended stricter drinking water standards to better protect public health.
The intrigue: The report was released in June, when water utilities enacted the metro's first lawn-watering ban after struggling to keep up with nitrate removal.
Zoom in: Saturday's event is hosted by the Harkin Institute, a DSM-based nonpartisan policy research group, and cosponsored by Iowa CCI, Iowa Food and Water Watch and Progress Iowa.
- Volunteers will break into working groups to help set policy options and approaches.
What they're saying: The groups aim to make water quality improvements a prominent issue in next year's election cycle, Jen Sinkler, creative director at Progress Iowa, tells Axios.
- Participants will discuss strategies for ideas such as banning fall fertilizer applications, which are more likely to cause higher nitrate runoff, John Norris, the former Polk County administrator who supported the river study, tells Axios.
The other side: Gov. Kim Reynolds and some agricultural groups have argued that voluntary conservation, rather than regulations, is a better way to promote cleaner water practices.
What's next: Saturday's town hall starts at 1pm in Meredith Hall at Drake University in DSM.