Belle Plaine gets $500K to boost water retention amid drought

Belle Plaine is at the center of Iowa’s ongoing drought, which has left city wells about 14 feet lower than they should be.

The city of 2,300 in Benton County has received $500,000 in state grants to rebuild a wetland to better capture and retain rainfall to recharge the aquifer. The city is seeking other money for upgrades to the water treatment system.

“The wetland has a lot of functions,” said Belle Plaine City Administrator Steve Beck. “It will have aquatic plant life, which will aid in the removal of nutrients. Then it will create a zone of saturation and it will also be a filtration site, as the water percolates down through plant roots, sand, aggregate, rock and soil it will cleanse the water until it gets down into the aquifer, where it will be held in storage.”

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The most recent grant, $250,000 announced April 23, is from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. The agency will provide up to 50 percent of the cost for 14 projects statewide for a total $3.6 million from the state’s Water Quality Initiative and from federal pandemic relief money.

“This project will improve the water quality of stormwater runoff from 385 acres of rural and urban areas,” the agriculture department said about the Belle Plaine project. “This project will benefit the recharge zone of the well field and provide wildlife habitat.“

Belle Plaine received another $250,000 last November from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to rebuild wetlands.

Water challenges

Belle Plaine’s water problems started years ago when a landowner illegally rerouted a stream near the city’s well field, where four wells pull water from a shallow aquifer, Beck told The Gazette last summer.

Those wells were producing only 20 percent of their capacity, which caused the city to not be able to flush hydrants as often as needed to keep the water from being discolored. Beck told the Hometown Current in January he suggested short-term solutions, such as filtration systems and water softeners.

“Our situation has not improved,” said Beck, who is also vice chair of the Middle Iowa River Watershed Management Authority executive board.

Recent rains have given him hope the aquifer will be recharged more quickly. “I always have to be optimistic about it,” he said.

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More upgrades planned

Belle Plaine is working with an engineering firm to develop a plan that could include drilling more shallow wells before rebuilding the surrounding wetland. The project will be on part of a 70-acre parcel northwest of the city.

“The wetland is just one component to our comprehensive plan, called Belle Plaine’s Strategic Drought Resiliency Program,” he said. Other elements will include water treatment for the city’s deep well and water storage tank restoration. The plan also includes upgrading electrical systems and telecommunications.

Beck doesn’t yet know the exact timeline for all the upgrades, but suggested it could take until 2026.

Comments: (319) 339-3157; erin.jordan@thegazette.com