Invest in agricultural water quality initiatives

To the editor:

In light of the report of high radium levels in a Marion water well, this seems a good time to consider the broader topic of water quality in our fine state.

Agriculture is a major cause of the water pollution and poor water quality in Iowa. Farmland takes up all but 5 percent of Iowa's land. And when this farmland is not properly cared for (left fallow, for example) there are nutrients which escape from the soil in water runoff and enter streams which are then used as water sources.

Iowa has a Nutrient Reduction Strategy put in place in 2013, but it is falling short due to lack of required action for agriculture. If Governor Branstad would appropriate some funds in the form of subsidies for farmers so that they could plant low-cost cover crops in off seasons, there would be a large enough reduction in the nutrient runoff from farms that water quality could improve significantly.

With a small allotment of annual funds to encourage better and safer practices in the farms that drive our state economy, we could see vast improvement in water quality and overall health as a state.

While it is not a small thing to ask, it is a fairly minor sacrifice that would better our community as a whole and isn't that what Iowan culture is all about?

Hannah Bott

Cedar Rapids