State to consider new water conservation rules

WINDSOR HEIGHTS — Iowans should begin adopting voluntary water conservation practices now that will head off or at least move back the need to consider restrictions on usage by residents and industries that could negatively impact economic growth and community lifestyles in the future, members of a state panel were told Wednesday.

The upward trend line of water usage in Iowa was the focus on a state Environmental Protection Commission meeting where commissioners postponed action on a series of recommendations made by a stakeholders group to give state officials time to draft rules that could establish a three-tiered system for managing draw downs from Iowa's main underground water source.

Last year, Iowa households, industries and other users pumped almost 26 billion gallons of water from the Jordan aquifer, which lies beneath most of the state's land mass, said Todd Steigerwaldt, general manager of the Marion Water Department who led a seven-member study panel that presented its findings to the commission Wednesday. The withdraw rate was 70 percent higher than when Iowa established a 1977 benchmark that said users could not draw down the aquifer more than 200 feet from where well levels were then.

'This is a trend that is not sustainable for the future generations of users of the Jordan aquifer,' said Steigerwaldt, who presented 33 recommendations to EPC members that included trigger levels requiring conservation measures and alternative water sources for cities, businesses and other aquifer users that exceeded certain limits.

Only about half of the recommendations made by the study group — some requiring higher or new fees; permit renewals every five years instead of 10; on-site inspections for private users; and enforcement actions for permit violators — would require rule changes by the state Department of Natural Resources. DNR staff planned to draft proposed rules to be considered by Gov. Terry Branstad and the commission at its February meeting before going out for public comments and final adoption at a later date.

'It's a big issue,' said DNR Director Chuck Gipp, who noted other U.S. states are facing water shortages and rationing — a situation that Iowa can avoid by being proactive rather than reactive in taking steps to head off future problems.

'I don't know if it's going to stave off problems. It will certainly make people more aware of what the issues are. We here in Iowa are water rich, but we also know that there are not unlimited resources out there,' Gipp said. 'I think the whole focus on this is to make sure that we're looking at the long term about water usage and what's the best use of that water.'

Under the proposed recommendations, Steigerwaldt said about 80 percent of the existing Jordan aquifer wells would be rated at a level not yet of concern based on current and projected usage. Communities with wells in the second level eventually could be required to seek alternative water sources or consider conservation measures while wells in the third tier would be considered at critical levels where draw downs would be curtailed.

Steigerwaldt said his community is in an area of Linn and Johnson counties where aquifer levels are lower than most other parts of the state. He said Marion already has pursued alternative water sources to drilling wells in shallower aquifers than the Jordan that can recharge faster.