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Energy

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About 40% of Iowa is in severe drought, expanding to Central Iowa

Des Moines Register: About three-fourths of Iowa is gripped in either moderate or severe drought conditions, a national report released today shows, expanding from about three-fifths of the state last week as temperatures hovered in the …
By BPC Staff | Jun 17, 2021
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Lawsuit: Iowa regulator should require MidAmerican to consider retiring coal plants

Des Moines Register: Three Iowa environmental groups are suing a state regulatory agency, saying it has failed to require MidAmerican Energy, the state’s largest electricity provider, to weigh retiring two of its western Iowa coal plants. …
By BPC Staff | Jun 17, 2021
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Polk County commits $1M to Central Iowa Water Trails

The Polk County Board of Supervisors has committed $1 million to the Central Iowa Water Trails project, the Great Outdoors Foundation announced today. According to the announcement, the county’s commitment is accounted for in the …
By BPC Staff | Jun 15, 2021
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Scott Avenue portion of Central Iowa Water Trails project gets final nod from city design board

A digital rendering of the features of the Scott Avenue portion of the Central Iowa Water Trails project. The design for this section of the project was approved by the city of Des Moines’ Urban …
By MICHAEL CRUMB | Jun 15, 2021
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BHE Renewables acquires eastern Iowa wind energy project

BHE Renewables has acquired the Independence wind energy project from RPM Access LLC. According to a release from Businesswire, the project is located near Ryan, in eastern Iowa’s Delaware County. It consists of 18 2.8-megawatt turbines and two …
By BPC Staff | Jun 14, 2021
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Des Moines’ portion of Dico cleanup estimated to cost $923,000

The former Dico Inc. property sits south of West Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway. Photo by Duane Tinkey

For nearly three decades, the city of Des Moines has been unable to rid a high-profile downtown area of an eyesore.

Now …
By KATHY A. BOLTEN | Jun 11, 2021
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Hot, dry weather means even lower Missouri River runoff projections

Radio Iowa: Drought conditions are expected to expand and worsen across Iowa when the new map is released tomorrow from the U.S. Drought Monitor. The continued hot, dry weather is being reflected in runoff predictions …
By BPC Staff | Jun 10, 2021
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Cargill announces construction of $300M facility in joint venture with German company HELM

Cargill is joining with Germany-based HELM to build a $300 million commercial scale, renewable butanediol (BDO) facility at Cargill’s biotechnology and corn processing campus in Eddyville. According to a news release from Cargill, the joint venture, called …
By BPC Staff | Jun 9, 2021
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IEDA announces awards to six communities for sewer and water improvements

The Iowa Economic Development Authority has awarded more than $2.2 million to improve water and sewer infrastructure in six Iowa communities. According to a news release, the awards were made through the Community Development Block …
By BPC Staff | Jun 7, 2021
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Polk County has aggressive plan to clean up its water. Could it work for the rest of Iowa?

Des Moines Register: Polk County could have a response to one of the biggest criticisms farmers face with Iowa’s voluntary approach to improving water quality: that they’re too slow to adopt conservation practices that can curb …
By BPC Staff | Jun 4, 2021