Iowa’s clean water rules put under the public microscope

DES MOINES - An overflow crowd turned out Friday to debate the merits and shortcomings of Iowa's proposed clean water rules.

Iowa Department of Natural Resources officials are conducting hearings to solicit public comments on proposed rules aimed at improving the quality of Iowa's waterways via better enforcement of livestock operations. The DNR reached an agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last year whereby Iowa would step up its enforcement of clean water standards pertaining to livestock production as a way to stave off federal takeover of those enforcement efforts.

However, Bill Stowe, chief executive officer of the Des Moines Water Works, activists from the Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement (CCI) group and other concerned Iowans argued that the new state rules are too weak and should be a minimum, rather than a maximum, standard for compliance.

'Clean water is our most valuable asset,” said Kay Pence of Eldridge, who argued that livestock polluters should not be allowed to shift their cost of doing business to Iowans who demand higher environmental standards.

Carolyn Bittner of Malcolm said the proposed state rules should be expanded to require concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to have sewage treatment facilities similar to Iowa towns.

'There are only 280 humans living in Malcolm and we have sewage treatment,” said Bittner, who told DNR hearing attendees that she lives near an egg factory. 'There are over 7 million chickens and there is no sewage treatment, hence the terrible stench. I think these facilities should be regulated and taxed as the commercial entities that they are. They are not farms.”

However, Justine Stevenson, director of government relations and public policy for the Ames-based Iowa Cattlemen's Association, said her 10,000-member group supports the state proposal requiring livestock operations to comply with national pollutant discharge elimination permit requirements.

Stevenson said the state has chosen to balance livestock production with waste management by allowing the inspection and evaluation of nearly 8,500 animal feeding operations on a case-by-case basis rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach to regulation.

However, Stowe took a different tack in speaking on behalf of the roughly 500,000 customers he serves with water drawn from the Raccoon and Des Moines rivers that are besieged with upstream chemical fertilizers the cause nitrate concerns and manure from feedlots that cause ammonia concerns.

'Clearly we are in opposition to the rules,” Stowe said.

'We view the aggressive preservation of clean water as an essential element that is absolutely crucial in making Iowa a better state,” he said in urging that the proposed rules be rejected by the state Environmental Protection Agency.

Stowe also raised 'great concern about the appearance of impropriety” over any EPC member with an interest in cattle or other livestock operations being involved in the review of the DNR rules.

CCI members called the rules weak, industry-friendly and granting DNR officials too much discretion to interpreting federal standards favorably toward corporate agriculture.

Gene Tinker, DNR animal feeding operations coordinator, said no one who eventually will be involved in deciding the fate of the proposed rules attended Friday's hearing, but the testimony would be relayed to the appropriate decision-makers as the process moves forward.