The refuge, cradled in the Driftless Area and bordered by steep wooded bluffs, includes nearly 250,000 acres of floodplain forests, braided river channels, marshes and prairie that provides habitat to more than 300 bird species.
With water-guzzling data centers popping up across Iowa and a multi-year drought causing more farmers to use irrigation systems, Iowa’s underground aquifers are being tapped more frequently. The Iowa Legislature allocated $250,000 this year for a study of Iowa’s aquifers to make sure they don’t run dry with increased use.
After water main breaks in April 2023 and January sent chlorinated water into McLoud Run, killing at least 2,000 fish in the urban stream, the city is now considering installing a pressure monitoring system to underground water lines to more quickly identify and stop leaks and breaks.
AI will help analyze recordings of the mammals’ clicks
A woman was bitten and attacked by a coyote Monday while walking on the University of Iowa campus. It’s the first recorded case of a coyote attacking a person in Iowa in more than 20 years, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
NEW Co.’s accidental release of of 265,000 gallons of nitrogen-based fertilizer from a facility in Red Oak killed 750,000 fish in the East Nishnabotna. The case is an ‘extreme outlier’ among fertilizer spills and one that calls for a larger penalty than the maximum $10,000 that can be enforced by regulators, an Iowa DNR attorney said.
Inspired by COVID-19 rapid tests, a Minnesota startup developed a kit that amplifies the DNA of a fungus spreading among oaks weakened by drought. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources hopes to use information gathered from these kits to isolate infected trees.
An Orange Alert rally will be held on Sunday
A 2023 state report determined most of Iowa’s state parks have restrooms, shelters and cabins that are not accessible to people with disabilities.
The Library of Congress has named an Iowa book of essays about agricultural pollution to a list of 56 “Great Reads” for 2024.
It’s rare for the DNR to ask the AG’s office to step in on enforcement. And the Environmental Protection Commission, a nine-person, governor-appointed board that oversees environmental polices at the DNR, doesn’t always follow staff recommendations.
Most of the smoke was expected to linger over Minnesota, Wisconsin and northern Michigan, but some could drift as far south as Iowa and Chicago, leaving skies looking milky by late Tuesday or early Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service.
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