Northey provides water quality update

     Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey highlighted the Iowa Water Quality Initiative 2017 Legislative Report during his Jan. 24 presentation to the Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee.

     “This report is a good snapshot of the water quality efforts underway through the Iowa Water Quality Initiative.  Thanks to the support we have received from the Governor and Legislature we continue to expand the efforts and work with additional farmers.  We are excited about the progress that has been made and the potential to scale-up efforts,” Northey said.

     The eight-page report provides an update on the $3.8 million made available for statewide cost share for water quality practices and on the 45 demonstration projects that are operating across the state to help implement and demonstrate water quality practices.

     The report also updates tracking/accountability efforts underway, share information about research being conducted by the Iowa Nutrient Research Center at Iowa State University and highlights the USDA Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) project underway in Iowa.  The Iowa DNR also provided an update on the efforts of point sources that is included in the report.

     During the hearing Northey also reiterated his support for the proposal passed by the Iowa House of Representatives last session that would have provided nearly $500 million through 2029 for water quality efforts in the state. The department would use the additional funding to continue offering cost share statewide to farmers trying new water quality practices, expand work in targeted watersheds to achieve measurable water quality improvements, and continue to develop new programs to help engage all Iowans in water quality efforts.

     The department received $9.6 million for the current fiscal year for the Water Quality Initiative. Gov. Branstad included $17.6 million in fiscal year 2018 and $25.1 million in fiscal year 2019 for the Iowa Water Quality Initiative in his budget proposal released earlier this year.

     A copy of the report can be found at www.IowaAgriculture.gov under “Hot Topics” or at http://www.cleanwateriowa.org/news-and-blog.aspx.

     The Iowa Water Quality Initiative was established in 2013 to help implement the Nutrient Reduction Strategy, which is a science and technology based approach to achieving a 45 percent reduction in nitrogen and phosphorus losses to our waters.

     More information about the initiative can be found at www.CleanWaterIowa.org.