Sad saga, wrong priorities

SIOUX CENTER - So your state Environmental Protection Commission didn't exactly bulldoze a rule requiring builders to put four inches of topsoil back on finished construction sites.

But members did start the bulldozer's engine.

Commissioners voted 5-2 Tuesday to accept the recommendations of a stakeholders group packed with homebuilding and real estate interests seeking to scrap the four-inch rule and replace it with a vague federal rule, one with no real measurable standard. Commissioners Nancy Couser of Nevada and LaQuanda Hoskins of Bettendorf voted no. Two members, Bruce Rastetter and Cindy Greiman, were absent.

The vote starts a rule-making process to change the topsoil standard. There was much talk among commissioners about bringing in a broader array of stakeholders to weigh in. There will be more time for public comment and more EPC scrutiny, they insisted. I hope that's all true. But given the process we just watched, I have serious doubts.

The four-inch rule took effect less than two years ago, and it applies to builders who are required to get a permit for handling stormwater. Water pros with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources say the rule is a 'best management practice” aimed at reducing runoff. Topsoil soaks up rain on the spot, so replacing it makes sense.

But homebuilders say the rule is too expensive, costing $6,000 per home, a figure that's been a moving target. And, because it's measurable, it leaves them open to legal liability. Builders want to use topsoil as they see fit on development sites, even if that means homeowners get compacted clay yards that increase runoff.

Residential builders hold only about 13 percent of permits subject to the rule. And yet, the governor's office made sure their interests dominated the stakeholder group. Forget homeowners, non-residential builders and cities that enforce stormwater rules.

Stakeholders closed their meetings to the public, with the exception of a single public hearing. In the end, stakeholder chairman Creighton Cox, who leads the Homebuilders Association of Greater Des Moines, submitted a 'unanimous” recommendation to toss four inches, even though two stakeholders strongly objected. Cox and his allies repeatedly have refused to consider any potential compromise that would create any sort of measurable standard.

The process was a sham, plain and simple. Regardless of what you think of the rule, this is no way to make public policy. And now the EPC, which is supposed to serve the best environmental interests of all Iowans, has lent it legitimacy. Sad, but predictable. And unnecessary.

Joe Griffin, senior stormwater permit writer for the DNR, told the commission that he and other staff are working with builders on the rule, and have made progress. 'I think if you decide to keep this, some of the problems may be ironed out,” Griffin said. The rule should be given time to work before it's bulldozed.

This whole sorry saga is an example of truly messed up priorities. Instead of searching for better ways to protect the state's water and soil, we're working overtime to shield certain industries from being held accountable. Fortunately, there's still time for the EPC to get its priorities straight.

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