AABP EP Awards 728x90

Ag and Environment

26256

Growing the local foods revolution

Penny Brown Huber loves seeing people’s reactions when they first sample the Iowa sweet corn that her company, Iowa Choice Harvest, produces and packages. 

“We do a lot of sampling at grocery stores, and it’s …

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Legislature provides $9.6M for water quality work

Before state lawmakers adjourned the session last week, they approved $9.6 million for water quality work in the year beginning July 1.

 

Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey said if Gov. Terry Branstad signs the legislation, …

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DNR: Oxford campground violated radium limits in water

 

The Iowa Environmental Protection Commission on June 16 will consider asking the attorney general to levy fines of up to $10,000 a day for a range of environmental violations at Sleepy Hollow Campground & RV …

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Iowa EPC looks to save topsoil, Jordan aquifer

 

The Iowa Environmental Protection Commission on June 16 will discuss controversial rules on how much topsoil developers must leave on the ground after construction.

 

The governor-appointed panel, which writes environmental rules enforced by …

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Four more bird flu cases suspected

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship reported that that four more suspected cases of bird flu have been found in commercial poultry farms in Buena Vista and Kossuth counties. The state already was investigating eight …

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USDA offers $10 million in loans to rural Iowans

U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development has $10 million available for loans for Iowans to purchase or refinance homes in rural Iowa through its Direct Home Loan Program. The program offers 100 percent financing, a 33-year loan …

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Greater Des Moines in for real ash kicking

A little green beetle capable of wiping out ash trees has been confirmed in southeastern Dallas County. The emerald ash borer had already been found in Story, Boone, Jasper and 17 other counties, and is …

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Appeals court sends fight over clean water back to U.S. District Court

For years, the nonprofit Iowa Environmental Council and other members of the Mississippi River Collaborative (MRC) have asked federal courts to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to set limits for nitrogen and phosphorus, two …

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DNR: Lower snow totals should help pheasants

Pheasant hunting is one of Iowa’s biggest economic drivers among outdoor pursuits. But the pheasant population is rebuilding after years of poor nesting conditions and disappearing habitat cut the $200 million annual economic impact by …

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Environmentalist, author McKibben to speak at Grinnell commencement

Bill McKibben, an author and environmental activist who has written extensively about climate change, will speak at Grinnell College’s commencement exercises May 18. The event, which begins at 10 a.m. at the central campus amphitheater, …