Iowa Environmental regulators get no consensus on topsoil compromise

DES MOINES – State environmental regulators got a mixed view Tuesday from members of a stakeholder group that reviewed a state rule requiring that builders and construction companies return 4 inches of topsoil to construction sites upon completion of a new home or development.

A majority of the seven-member panel that represented homebuilders, developers and earth-moving companies told the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission they supported doing away with a standard to preserve topsoil by requiring a uniform post-construction 4-inch layer at work sites in favor of a vaguely worded federal regulation that requires the preservation of topsoil with no guidance to define what that means.

Creighton Cox of the Homebuilders Association of Greater Des Moines, who served as chairman of the stakeholders group, said the 4-inch standard the state adopted two years ago at the request of developers adds from $3,500 to $6,000 in costs to homeowners, which has the effect of eliminating up to 11,000 Iowans from being able to afford a mortgage to buy a home.

However, two stakeholder members - Pat Sauer of the Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities and Lucy Hershberger of the Forever Green landscaping company in Johnson County - disputed those numbers in arguing for the state's existing topsoil retention standard as a way to combat excessive stormwater runoff and dysfunctional soil.

Stakeholder group member Joe Pietruszynski of Hubbell Realty Co. said a problem that developers face is the 'absolute measurement” of the 4-inch topsoil rule which is handled differently by municipalities, and several members supported more flexibility in providing a range like 3 to 5 inches of topsoil retention. Sites with less than 4 inches of topsoil are allowed to retain only the amount that existed before development.

Mary Boote, chairwoman of the state commission that would have to consider any rule change offered by the Department of Natural Resources, said she was disappointed the study panel was unable to reach consensus on an issue the likely will be controversial given the pros and cons heard Tuesday.

DNR Director Chuck Gipp told EPC members that any change in topsoil retention policy would have to go through the state's rule-making process, which likely would be a lengthy process that would include public hearings and legislative oversight.

'It's a lot more complicated than just 4 inches,” said EPC member Chad Ingels, who also was a member of the stakeholders panel.