Push to bulldoze topsoil rule rolls on.

The word of the day is 'infeasible.”

It's the most important word in a recommendation made by stakeholders reviewing a state regulation currently requiring builders and developers to put four inches of topsoil back on finished construction sites. The rule was created in 2012 to reduce urban runoff and improve water quality. As an added bonus, some homeowners could avoid being stuck with a dysfunctional, compacted clay yard stripped of its topsoil.

The seven-member panel, packed by the Branstad administration with four members from the homebuilding, realty, development and earthmoving industries, recommends scrapping the four-inch rule. In its place, they would be required to 'minimize soil compaction” and 'preserve topsoil” unless it's 'infeasible.” The state Environmental Protection Commission will publicly receive the recommendation July 15 in Davenport.

'Infeasible,” according to documents provided by a member of the stakeholders group, is defined as 'not technologically possible,” or 'not economically practicable and achievable in light of best industry practices.”

And when it is feasible, the new rule would require only that topsoil shall remain within the scope of the entire development. Where it goes, exactly, is up to builders.

'What it ends up being is they are not required to respread topsoil on individual lots,” said stakeholder Lucy Hershberger of Forever Green Nursery in Coralville. She sent me a copy of the proposed rule revision.

'They can spread it in community areas, or at the bottom of a stormwater retention basin. They can use it in berms around the development. Anywhere that it's convenient to spread it, I guess, is the best way to put it,” Hershberger said. 'There is no incentive to respread that soil on all the lots. They can move it as they see fit.”

So 'infeasible” is basically a magic word that basically makes the regulation go away. Hershberger and stakeholder Pat Sauer, of the Iowa Storm Water Education Program, each said they oppose the revised rule.

And yet, when stakeholder chairman Creighton Cox reported the group's recommendation to Iowa Department of Natural Resources staff, he listed a unanimous 7-0 vote. Cox is executive officer of the Homebuilders Association of Greater Des Moines.

'The vote was taken. It was a 7-0 vote,” Cox said Thursday, arguing that Sauer and Hershberger tried to change their votes after the fact. The stakeholders' meetings were closed to the public, including the May 29 meeting where the vote was taken.

'That is not something we agreed upon,” Sauer said, also Thursday. 'We weren't charged with coming up with language because that's DNR's job.”

Cox decelined to discuss the specific recommendations, saying they won't be publicly released until June 23.

From the beginning, Hershberger and Sauer made it clear they oppose scrapping the four-inch rule. But they also offered compromise proposals, acknowledging the difficulty of meeting such a specific depth requirement, and the overzealous tactics of some inspectors. Builders have said the current, rigid rule is too costly.

So how about a range of three to five inches, or a an average depth requirement? Or some standard that can be measured, but is less costly to meet?

'Anytime I tried to make a recommendation that there be a range of depth, or something measurable and enforceable, they said that was unacceptable,” Hershberger said.

Sauer remains optimistic that the Environmental Protection Commission will understand the value of returning top soil, the clear public benefit of reducing runoff and the flow of pollutants into our waters. Compromise remains possible, she said.

Looking over the compacted clay political landscape, I'm less hopeful.

Gov. Terry Branstad issued the executive order allowing for the creation of these stakeholder groups to review rules and regulations. His office picked the topsoil group in consultation with the DNR, and made sure its membership would guarantee a desirable outcome for its building industry friends. No homeowners. No state regulators. No representatives of cities who monitor building sites.

Now, its recommendations go to the EPC, where all nine members, five Republicans, three Democrats and an independent, were appointed by the governor. The independent member, Chad Ingles, also is a stakeholder who voted with builders.

After hearing the recommendations in July, the EPC could vote to scrap the four-inch rule as early as its Aug. 19 meeting. And just because I'm pesimistic doesn't mean that public comment can't still have an impact. If you'd like to contact EPC members, information can be found at www.iowadnr.gov. You can also send a comment on the four-inch rule and the stakeholders process to Adam.Schnieders@dnr.iowa.gov.

l Comments: (319) 398-8452; todd.dorman@thegazette.com