Conservation Connection
Weather Whiplash Returns!
Water quality in local rivers went from clear to coffee colored in the week since our volunteer water monitoring event.
Story County Develops First of Its Kind Water Monitoring and Interpretation Plan for 2021 – 2030
Prairie Rivers of Iowa along with staff from Story County and eight other local jurisdictions and organizations have developed a first-of-its-kind countywide comprehensive water monitoring and...
National for Twelves Day
On National For Twelves Day (4/12), our nation honors a magnificent number that holds significance in several ways. We measure our days in two 12 hour sets. When we buy roses, eggs, and pastries, we...
No-Till Farming The Low Hanging Fruit
The low-hanging fruit on a tree is that fruit that can be picked with the least amount of time and equipment. I consider the low-hanging fruit in conservation to be no-till farming.
Missing Monarchs, What it Means, Why it Matters, and How to Help.
It seems to be a yearly event nowadays, that we wait with bated breath for the release of the year’s final monarch count from Mexico, where they spend the winter. Similarly, each year, we're...
What’s carried with snowmelt?
When snow melts, salt applied to melt snow on sidewalks, roads, and parking lots can make its way to streams. Freshwater critters don’t like living in saltwater.
What’s in a (creek) name?
“Squaw Creek” in Story, Boone, and Hamilton County is now “Ioway Creek.” We discuss why this should be a welcome and uncontroversial change.
Weather whiplash
Cover crops could be especially important next spring if we get rain. Weather whiplash (a dry fall followed by a wet spring) can flush accumulated nitrogen out of the soil, leading to elevated nitrate concentrations in rivers.
Too close to call
There are plenty of parallels between polling and water, so if you’re looking to water quality monitoring to tell you whether or not conservation efforts in your watershed or your state are succeeding, read on. Short-term water quality trends are usually too close to call.