Latest State of Iowa Environment report a mixed bag

URBANDALE – The state of Iowa's environment is a mixed bag with fishing and camping activities surging to record numbers, problems with deer herds and water quality improving, and air quality and the state's pheasant population on the decline.

That's according to Richard Leopold, director of the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR), who Tuesday delivered a yearly report on the status of Iowa's natural resources and environment to mark the 40

^th

anniversary of Earth Day.

“This year's report shows we've made strides in a number of areas, as more Iowans fish, hunt and camp, and water quality in the state's streams improves. Challenges also exist, as the continuing loss of grassland habitat makes it difficult for pheasant, jackrabbits, prairie chickens and other Iowa species to thrive,” Leopold said in the report's cover letter.

“However, in 2009, Iowa saw one of its largest investments in environmental protection and natural resource development,” he added. “This more than $100 million investment, largely a result of federal stimulus funding, I-JOBS and the Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) program, will no doubt have positive effects on our environment, both short term and long term.”

Generally speaking, Leopold said 2009 was an exceptional year, but the data compared to a previous year when Iowa's landscape and water sources were buffeted by the state's worst natural disaster and historic flooding. While 2009 was a better climatic year, he noted that Iowa has been impacted by several harsh winters.

On the positive side, Leopold said, fishing license sales increased 14 percent since 2008 and anglers are experiencing record levels of walleye and breaking pan fish harvest records in Iowa's natural lakes. He attributed that to DNR and local efforts to improve water quality and fish habitat. Also, the number of boats certified in the state increased by 15,000 over the previous year – excluding kayaks traversing 249 miles of water trails that are expected to grow by 930 miles due to increased development.

Also, 2009 saw Iowans return to the campfire with camping activities up 4 percent compared to the previous two to three years – a trend that could be interrupted as state budget cuts will mean fewer seasonal workers and closure of some nonrevenue-generating areas within state parks, he said.

However, sales of hunting licenses dropped due to harsh winters and wet springs that have reduced prospects for turkey and upland game, like pheasants, quail and cottontail rabbits.

“The pheasant population is horrible,” Leopold said, with a major hit to habitat linked to a decline of 64,000 acres enrolled in the conservation reserve program (CRP) in 2008 and a 354,000-acre drop since 2007 – marking the lowest level since 2000. “Between weather and habitat, the pheasant population has really taken it on the chin. We hope that that can get better,” he said, noting hunters harvested 383,000 birds last year – a drop of more than 248,000.

Efforts to gradually reduce Iowa's deer population continue to move closer to achieving the goal of socially manageable levels, he said, although trouble spots remain in some urban areas and the northeast, southeast and extreme southwest corners of the state. If deer numbers continue to fall at the current rate, Iowa's deer herd will meet its overall population goal in 2011 in most counties, according to the yearly report.

Water quality in Iowa's streams made considerable improvement last year, Leopold said, but the overall quality score still remains in the poor category. Meanwhile, 65 of Iowa's 132 publicly owned lakes that are monitored had good water clarity with the rest of the lakes were a murky, cloudy blend due to sediment and algae as statewide water clarity and nutrient levels remained similar to previous years.

Leopold noted that Iowa's air quality continues to get a little worse every year. The latest report indicated that air pollution levels exceeded public health thresholds 125 times from 2007 to 2009 at sites across Iowa – up 33 percent from the previous reporting period mostly due to high levels of fine particles.

Topping the list of communities with total days exceeding air quality standards during the most-recent reporting period were Davenport with 26, Muscatine with 20, Clinton with 18, Cedar Rapids with 16, Waterloo and Iowa City each with eight, Des Moines with five and Sioux City and Clarion each with four days.

Last year, the state of Iowa's environment report was issued in a report card format with eight classifications receiving letter grades and the overall status rated at a B minus grade. Leopold said DNR officials decided to dump that format this year because people focused too much attention on the grades rather than the trends and what could be done to change them.

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