Gomers -- What's going wrong

FERTILIZER DILEMMA: Advances in efficiencies and farming techniques among Iowa farmers has led to some reduction of nitrogen fertilizer leaching from state soil into waterways that eventually reach the Mississippi River. Nonetheless, Iowa, along with Illinois, remains a leading contributor of nitrogen that has been a big factor in creating the huge dead zone in Gulf of Mexico. The dilemma is that Iowa leads the nation in corn production, but that requires use of commercial chemical fertilizers.

lll

EMS CALLS UP: Many Iowa fire departments are handling more and more emergency medical service calls, putting more demands on their expanding range of duties and more strain on financial resources. Cedar Rapids and Iowa City departments have seen increases of several hundred cases in annual totals over the past few years. One big factor is the aging of the baby boomer generation, some officials say. Another is a decline in using preventive care. Rather than pursuing a timely checkup with the doctor, for example, more residents are holding off, leading to more situations that become medical emergencies and require an EMS response.

n Comments: thegazette.com/

category/opinion/editorial or

editorial@sourcemedia.net