Conservation Connection
How Big is the Elephant in the Room?
Are Iowa’s water quality woes being driven by concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs)? I analyzed correlations between livestock density and five water quality metrics across 60 watersheds in Iowa. The results suggest that manure from feedlots has less influence on E. coli bacteria but more influence on nitrate than is often assumed.
South Skunk River Cleanup – Spring 2024
During a chilly morning of paddling, 16 volunteers removed 2100 pounds of trash from the South Skunk River.
Water quality results for 2023 in Story County
Our annual report for the 2023 water monitoring season in Story County is now available, along with a summary of key findings. Another drought year brought high E. coli and low dissolved oxygen, but some encouraging trends.
Paddling While Impaired
Iowa’s draft 2024 Impaired Waters List is up for public comment. If you are wondering where to find cleaner lakes and rivers for recreation, we have an interactive map to help you, as well as some observations on this latest assessment.
Green Stuff in the Skunk River
No it’s not an early St. Patrick’s Day celebration! That strange color in the South Skunk River is probably a blue-green algae bloom, stimulated by unseasonably warm weather. If you see water like this, be cautious, they can produce toxins.
Inch Your Way to Loving Worms!
We won’t be talking about love or flowers this Valentine’s Day, but we’ll talk about some love-able critters that eat flowers! We’re talking about CATERPILLARS!
Metrics from the 2023 monitoring season
We’re still crunching numbers from the 2023 monitoring season in Story County, but here’s a few numbers that should be left uncrunched.
Prairie Rivers Wins Grant to Help Pollinators and Farmers
For 20 years, Prairie Rivers of Iowa has been meeting one-on-one with landowners to support their efforts to be good stewards of the land. A grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Monarch Butterfly and Pollinators Conservation Fund will help us continue this work, with a special focus on planting more milkweed for monarchs.
Can Infrastructure Spending Help Iowa’s Polluted Rivers?
Maybe! This case study from the Raccoon River shows why we can’t ignore point sources of pollution, and why we need more transparency about the permit decisions that drive costs and timelines for wastewater treatment.