SIERRA CLUB, IOWA
CHAPTER
Website Archive
Commission
Approves Proposed Dove Season Rules
The
Natural Resource Commission of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources
took the first step toward a mourning dove season Wednesday, when
commissioners approved the proposed rules on a 5-to-2 vote.
Commissioners Elizabeth Garst and Janelle Rettig voted against the
proposal.
The
proposed rules will now be available for public comment before the
commission votes on their final approval, probably in June. A
public meeting has been scheduled for 1 p.m., May 24, in the fourth
floor west conference room, Wallace Building in Des Moines.
The
proposed season would begin Sept. 1, last for 70 days, have a daily bag
limit of 15 doves, and possession limit of 30. The mourning dove season
does not include Eurasian collard doves or white winged doves.
While
the official rule making process is now under way, the Iowa DNR will be
evaluating wildlife areas to potentially locate food plots that could
enhance mourning dove hunting opportunities.
Since
doves are native to every county in Iowa, hunters could also pursue
doves on any of the public hunting wildlife areas.
Nationally,
dove hunting is seen as important to the future of hunting because it is
an easy sport to pick up, individuals with limited physical skills can
participate even late into life, novices do not need expensive equipment
and there is an easy learning curve. A bonus is that the September
to early November season would offer good weather.
The
Iowa DNR, through almost 40 years of research, has stated there is no
biological reason not to allow dove hunting as it is classified as a
migratory game bird and is the number one game bird in the country, with
an estimated population of nearly 500 million individuals. It is
the only game bird found in all of the lower 48 states and is a resident
of every county in Iowa.
Mourning
doves annual mortality rate is 6 out of 10, of which hunters account one
and disease, weather and predators account for the other five. About 1
million hunters in the U.S. harvest between 17-20 million birds each
year, which is about 5-7 percent of the population. Doves offset
this high death rate with a high birth rate.
In
other news, commissioners unanimously approved a three year pilot
program that would provide wildlife habitat on private land to
landowners who voluntarily enrolled.
The
voluntary program run by the DNR would create, manage and enhance
wildlife habitat on private land in exchange for allowing public access
for hunting.
Landowners
who chose to participate could begin enrolling in the program as early
as this summer. Contracts would last from 3 to 10 years, and the
land enrolled in the program would likely have signs posted, and maps to
the location available on the DNR’s website.
Funding
for this program is through a Voluntary Public Access and Habitat
Incentive Program Grant awarded to the DNR by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, as well as from wildlife habitat fees designated by law for
the development of public hunting opportunities.
Culver Steps Back in Time with Nuclear Energy Bill
Governor Chet Culver stepped back in
time with his decision to sign HF2399, a bill that will allow MidAmerican
Energy to charge its customers $15 million to study the feasibility of
constructing a nuclear power plant in Iowa.
“We are extremely disappointed
that Gov. Culver signed this bill,” said Pam Mackey-Taylor, Iowa Chapter
Energy chair. “We already
have one nuclear power plant operating in Iowa.
That’s enough.”
Sierra Club's position is that
nuclear power does nothing to help us transition to a clean energy future. Although
nuclear power produces less CO2 than fossil alternatives, nuclear power is
not safe, affordable, or clean with currently available technology and
practices. Mining uranium risks workers' health and creates toxic
residues. All current plant designs are complex, prone to accidents
and have severe security vulnerabilities. Nuclear waste
transportation, storage and disposal problems remain unsolved. The
nuclear fuel cycle increases weapons proliferation and risk among nations
and non-state entities.
“The industry is already heavily
subsidized by public payments, incentives and liability shielding
everywhere it operates,” said Debbie Neustadt, Iowa Chapter Legislative
chair. “These dependencies
were dramatically increased in the 2005 Energy Policy Act.”
Sierra Club and other environmental
organizations mounted a campaign encouraging the Governor to veto HF2399.
More than 360 Sierra Club members sent messages to the governor
while others called to express their opposition to nuclear power in Iowa.
Iowan Wins Seat on Sierra Club’s National Board
of Directors
The Sierra Club Iowa Chapter proudly announces that Donna Buell of Spirit
Lake has been elected to the national Sierra Club’s Board of Directors.
Buell received the second highest number of votes from Sierra Club
members across the nation in this election.
She becomes the first Iowan ever to serve on the national board.
“As
global warming legislation stands before Congress, we must seize this
opportunity to lead our country to a sustainable climate recovery,” said
Buell. “I look forward to contributing my rural farming heritage and
appreciation for our agricultural land to the environmental expertise of the
Sierra Club.”
Buell
was one of eight candidates for five seats on the board.
“The
Chapter is thrilled that Donna has been elected to the board,” said Jerry
Neff, chair of the Iowa Chapter Executive Committee.
“We’ve never had an Iowan represent the Sierra Club on its
national board of directors since we organized in Iowa in 1972.
We’re very excited.”
Buell
has served in various capacities with the Sierra Club at the local, state and
national level. In 2006, she
organized the Prairie Lake Group that encompasses Buena Vista, Clay,
Dickinson, Emmet, O’Brian, Osceola, Palo Alto and Pocahontas
counties
and served as its chair. Elected
to the chapter executive committee, Buell has served as the chapter treasurer
since 2008. Nationally,
she currently serves as Budget Officer of the Council of Club Leaders
Executive Committee and on the National Finance and Risk Management
Advisory Committee.
A
volunteer for the environment for the past 20 years, Buell also served as a
member of the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission from 2003 to 2007 as
an appointee of then-Gov. Tom Vilsack.
Congratulations,
Donna!
ISU
Student Government Passes Anti-Coal Resolution
Iowa State University's student body government voted
unanimously last week to urge ISU administration to continue to decrease its
use of coal energy and begin using cleaner energy. Find
out more.
Alliant Cancels Plans for Coal Plant
On March 5, 2009, Alliant Energy, parent company of Interstate
Power & Light, announced it was canceling plans to build a massive
coal-fired power plant in Marshalltown. Citing a combination of
factors including the current economic and financial climate, increasing
environmental, legislative and regulatory uncertainty regarding regulation
of future greenhouse gas emissions and the terms placed on the proposed
power plant by regulators, Alliant announced it was canceling the project.
The stunning announcement is a huge victory for
environmental and other organizations that have been organizing for two
years in an effort to halt the project.
Read our news release IOWANS
CAN BREATHE EASIER:
Alliant Energy Abandons
Marshalltown
Coal Plant Proposal.
From
the Iowa Department of Natural Resources:
IPL’S
Marshalltown Facility Air Permit Application Withdrawn
Media
Contact: Chris Roling, DNR Construction Permits, (515) 242-6002 or Chris.Roling@dnr.iowa.gov
MARSHALLTOWN
—Due to a combination of factors, Alliant Energy/Interstate Power and
Light decided to cancel construction plans for its Sutherland Generating
Station Unit 4 coal-fired power plant project in Marshalltown. The
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has ended the comment period for the
project’s air permit application and public hearings are cancelled.
Documents
for this project will continue to be available on the DNR Web site at http://aq48.dnraq.state.ia.us:8080/airpermit/eecomment.jsp
for a few more days, and then they will be moved to http://aq48.dnraq.state.ia.us:8080/airpermit/eepsd.jsp.
ExCom Planning Retreat
The Iowa Chapter Executive
Committee held a planning retreat in August at the Iowa Great Lakes.
Although the committee members and staff made time for fun, the group
worked very hard to plan for 2010 and beyond. See pictures from the
two-day retreat here...
Annual
Awards Dinners
The Chapter has a long history of
presenting awards. Click here
for a list of who previously has been honored.
2009
--
Annual Dinner held October 31.
The Sierra Club Iowa
Chapter's Annual Dinner, Awards Celebration and Silent Auction was held October 31, 2009, in Davenport at the Best Western
Steeple Gate Inn. Davenport's Alderman at Large Gene Meeker served as keynote
speaker and talked about what Davenport is doing as a Cool City and the
city's future plans. Awards were given to individuals who have done outstanding work to
protect Iowa's environment. See more about the 2009 dinner here...
2008
--
Awards Presented. At its Annual Dinner and Awards Celebration
in September, the Iowa Chapter presented awards to six individuals and one
organization for their outstanding achievement in protecting the
environment. Click here
to check out this year's winners.
2007
-- Awards Presented. The annual luncheon of the Iowa Chapter of the
Sierra Club was held at the Wickiup Hill Outdoor Learning Center at
Toddville on September 22, 2007. MJ Hatfield spoke on “Defining
Wildness, Let’s Take a Closer Look.”
2006
--
Annual Awards Presented. Five awards were presented at
this year's Annual Gathering and Awards Celebration held October 15 in
Johnston. Find out more here...
2005
--
Iowa Annual Awards Presented.
On September 25, the Iowa Chapter presented
five awards at its annual dinner in Fairfield. Congratulations to
all of them! See who won here...
Sewage
Bill Right to Know Passes House
The
Sewage Right to Know bill (HR 2452) passed the U.S. House of
Representatives on a voice vote June 23, 2009. If passed by the Senate and
signed by the president, this bill will require publicly owned treatment
works to monitor their systems for spills and then alert the public when
there is the potential to affect public health. There are currently no
such requirements nationwide. These new requirements will be incorporated
into discharge permits. Iowa currently requires treatment
facilities to notify the Department of Natural Resources spills caused by mechanical failures to the DNR within 12 hours of onset or
discovery. Facilities do not have to immediately report bypasses from
precipitation events, but must include them in their monthly operating
report to the DNR.
Outstanding Iowa Waters List
The Administrative Rules Review Committee
(ARRC), a legislative oversight committee, directed the Iowa Department
of Natural Resources (DNR) to develop a regulatory analysis regarding DNR's
proposed Outstanding Iowa Waters list included in the antidegradation rule
package.
The OIW list includes six lakes in
Dickinson County (including Lake Okoboji pictured below) and 32 stream
segments in northeast Iowa.
DNR concluded that dischargers
proposing to add pollution to Outstanding Iowa Waters would result in not
more than $50,000 per year (the difference between paying for a general
use permit as they do now, to paying for an individual permit), that the
costs related to limits on new or expanding wastewater discharges into
OIWs from municipalities or industries is "not expected to be overly
burdensome;" and there may also be increased economic development as
a result of marketing benefits associated with waters classified as
Outstanding Iowa Waters.
The
DNR also acknowledged the economic benefits might be realized by increased
tourism, increased recreational uses of the waters, and protection of
these resources for future generations.
See the proposed list of Outstanding Iowa Waters here...
and maps of the Outstanding Iowa Waters in Dickinson
County and Northeast Iowa.
The
ARRC will discuss the regulatory analysis at its November 10
meeting. Please consider contacting the ARRC members and let them
know that you want your waters protected.
Round
Two – Recreational Use Assessment and Attainability
DNR
requested comments from the public on their recommendations to lower recreational
use protections on 119 stream segments from the current primary contact
recreational standard that protects for swimming, children’s play and
other full body contact recreational uses (A1 and A3) to a less
protective secondary contact recreational standard that only protects
for incidental contact with the water (A2).
Click
here for a map that shows the streams included in the second round of
stream assessments.
The map is color-coded to show the DNR recommendations.
The stream segments shown in red or blue will get the highest
recreational use protection (A1 or A3).
The streams shown in green are proposed to be downgraded to the
lower secondary contact level of protection (A2).
Find
the UAA streams recommended for downgrading listed by county here...
The public comment period has ended
and DNR currently is reviewing comments. A responsiveness summary
will be available in the next few months with DNR's final recommendations.
If you want to look at the actual UAA assessment data and rationale for
the DNR recommendations, that is available on the DNR website at http://programs.iowadnr.gov/uaa/search.aspx.
This is a searchable database where you can search by stream name
or permitted facility. If you
put the stream name in you will get all the streams with that name that
have UAAs. Sometimes there is more than one stream with the same
name, so you need to be sure to pick the right stream.
Additional information is
available on the DNR website at http://www.iowadnr.gov/water/uaa.html
.
2008
Floods
The Iowa floods devastated tens of
thousands of Iowans. Click here
for flood recovery resources, photographs and links to why we are
experiencing such severe storms.
New
Infestation of Emerald Ash Borer Discovered in Wisconsin
Following the discovery of a new
infestation of the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) just across the Mississippi
River from the Iowa-Wisconsin border, members of the Iowa Emerald Ash
Borer Team have highlighted steps being taken to prevent an infestation in
Iowa and detect the beetle if it is in the state.
Read more about the Emerald Ash Borer here…
Click
here for frequently asked
questions about the Emerald Ash Borer.
Sierra
Club Green Home Simplifies Sustainable Living, Bringing Green Within Reach
New
Web Site Serves as a Comprehensive Resource and Educational Tool for
Greening the Home
Sierra Club
Green Home (SCGH) recently launched its new Web site, www.sierraclubgreenhome.com,
designed to educate Americans on how to make their homes more energy
efficient, environmentally sustainable and healthy.
Created with Sierra Club—
America
’s oldest, largest, and best-known environmental organization—SCGH
aims to help aspirationally green citizens become more
environmentally-conscious.
Mercury Rule Update
On Feb. 8, 2008, a federal appeals court ruled
that the Environmental Protection Agency violated the Clean Air Act in its
Clean Air Mercury Rule by evading mandatory cuts in mercury pollution by
coal- and oil-fired power plants. Read the court's ruling here...
Schedule
an Arctic Presentation
Iowa
Chapter Executive Committee member Phyllis Mains recently traveled to
Alaska and hiked in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. You can see
some of her magnificent photographs here...
Phyllis is also available to do presentations about the Arctic for your
group. For more information, contact Phyllis at pmains@juno.com.
Reports Released
The
National Parks Conservation Association recently released its report "Dark
Horizons: 10 National Parks Most Threatened by New Coal-Fired Power
Plants." The 10 parks include Badlands (South Dakota),
Capitol Reef (Utah), Great Basin (Nevada), Great Smoky Mountains
(Tennessee and North Carolina), Mammoth Cave (Kentucky), Mesa Verde
(Colorado), Shenandoah (Virginia), Theodore Roosevelt (North Dakota), Wind
Cave (South Dakota) and Zion (Utah). Read the report here...
Two
national organizations recently released reports on industrial
agriculture.
was formed to conduct a
comprehensive, fact-based and balanced examination of key aspects of the
farm animal industry. Read its recently released report titled Putting
Meat on The Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America.
In
its report, the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) analyzed
policies that have facilitated the growth of confined animal feeding
operations (CAFOs) and the enormous costs imposed on society by
CAFOs. Read the UCS report titled CAFOs
Uncovered: The Untold Costs of Confined Animal Feeding Operations.
COAL
PLANT UPDATE
At
its meeting April 30, two of the three members of the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB)
voted to approve a new coal plant proposed by Alliant Energy for
Marshalltown. The IUB members placed conditions on their approval
requiring the co-firing of biomass with coal as a fuel source (5 percent
by 2013 and 25 percent by 2018), additional wind generation and the right
to require Alliant to use carbon capture and sequestration when the
technology becomes feasible. See our news release here...
Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge
On
December 6, 1960, President Dwight D. Eisenhower established 
the
Arctic National Wildlife Range. The Range would later be doubled in size
and renamed the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge under President Carter,
but it was Eisenhower who began the bipartisan legacy of arctic
conservation. According to Fred Seaton, the Secretary of the Interior
under Eisenhower, the Arctic Refuge "offers the only opportunity for
this Nation to preserve an undisturbed portion of the Arctic large enough
to be biologically self-sufficient."
The
Dirty Truth About Coal
From
mining to burning to combustion wastes, using coal for electricity scars
lungs, tears up the land, pollutes water, devastates communities, and
makes global warming worse. Learn about coal's dirty secrets that have
serious societal and economic consequences in Sierra Club's brand new report,
"The Dirty Truth about Coal: Why Yesterday's Technology Should Not Be
Part of Tomorrow's Energy Future."
Read
the report.
Clean
Power Comes on Strong
How
Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Can Fuel Our Future
We
have the potential to produce almost all of our electricity from clean
energy sources. Today, we have the technology and the know-how to
move beyond our dependence on polluting power plants by using clean, safe
and affordable renewable energy. By harnessing renewable sources of
energy like the sun and the wind, we can transform how we produce
electricity.
Find
out more here...
Download
the "Clean Energy Comes on Strong" factsheet here...
Liquid
Coal is a Bad Deal for Global Warming
Although its proponents claim that liquid coal is a
cure-all to our nation's energy problems, the truth is that liquid coal is
plagued with economical and environmental downsides from the time coal is
mined until long after the liquid is burned. Liquid coal releases almost
double the global warming emissions per gallon as regular gasoline, making
a hybrid filled with liquid coal as dirty as a Hummer H3 running on
regular gas.
Liquid coal also requires huge amounts of water, and
would lead to an over 40% increase in coal mining just to replace a mere
10% of our nation's transportation fuels. Proponents of liquid coal also
want the government to funnel billions in subsidies and tax breaks to
artificially create an entirely new industry. Liquid coal is arguably the
dirtiest, most expensive energy gamble we could take.
Download Sierra Club's fact
sheet, "Liquid Coal: A Bad Deal for Global Warming here...
Tick
Season
It's tick season
again. Click here
to find out how you can protect yourself, your family and your pets from
Lyme Disease and other problems associated with ticks.
Genetic
Engineering and Bee Collapse Disorder
"One out of every
three bites of food that we consume is due to the work of honeybees,
serving as crucial pollinators in agriculture and farming
communities," wrote Laurel Hopwood, chair of the Sierra Club Genetic
Engineering Committee, in a letter to Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) who chairs
the Senate Agriculture Committee. "Yet agriculture and food
production may be severely impacted by Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), a
trend documented in honey bee colonies .... Beekeepers are reporting
estimates as high as 80% loss of their honey bee colonies..."
Read Laurel's letter here...
Legislative Pressure
"...I'm just trying to take a stand and
represent my people the way I want to..."
-Rep. Dawn Pettengill (D-Mt.
Auburn) in The Des Moines Register, March 28, 2007
"You will
know by the time you get this letter that I’ve joined the Republican House
caucus."
Rep.
Dawn Pettengill wrote to House Speaker Pat Murphy (D-Dubuque) after
announcing April 30, 2007, that she was switching parties.
Iowa's
Impaired Waters
On
November 14, 2005, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) partially
approved and partially disapproved the Iowa Department of Natural
Resources' (DNR) Final 2004 List of Impaired Waters.
EPA disapproved Iowa’s decision not to
list 20 waterbodies
and associated pollutants. EPA proposed adding six waterbodies that DNR
had removed from the list, and adding 14 new waterbodies and associated
pollutants.
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge
The Senate voted 51-49 on March 16 to take the first step
toward drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge as part of the Federal Budget Resolution.
Iowa Sen. Tom Harkin voted for the amendment while Iowa Sen. Charles
Grassley voted against it. The
vote...
CAIR/CAMR
At its May 15, 2006 meting, the
Environmental Protection Commission approved the Department of Natural Resources
proposed Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) and the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR).
The Environmental Protection Agency promulgated the rules in 2005. Sierra Club opposed the CAMR because it involves trading mercury pollution
credits. The rules now go to the Administrative Rules Review
Committee, a legislative oversight committee, for final approval. Learn more about the mercury
rule here...
Read more about the lawsuit here...
Polar
Bears Threatened
The US Department of the Interior announced on December 27,
2006, that it was recommending that the polar bear be officially listed at "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act. Citing the growing body of evidence that receding sea ice threatens the existence of the Arctic bears, Secretary Kempthorne stated "based on current analysis, there are concerns about the effect of receding sea ice on polar bear populations...I am directing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey to aggressively work with the public and the scientific community over the next year to broaden our understanding of what is happening with the species..."
The proposal to officially list the polar bear as "threatened" can be found at the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's
website.
President Bush Lifts Ban on Oil Drilling in Fragile Alaska Waters
On January 9, 2007, President Bush exercised his executive authority to lift the ban on drilling off the southwest coast of Alaska in the fragile, salmon-rich waters of Bristol Bay. Bristol Bay, one of the world's most productive marine systems for fish, marine mammals and migratory birds, has enjoyed federal protection since the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989.
EPA
Proposes Revised CAFO Rule
EPA
is proposing to revise the NPDES permitting requirements and Effluent
Limitations Guidelines for CAFOs in response to the order issued by the
Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Waterkeeper Alliance et al. v.
EPA.
This
proposed rule weakens the goal of restoring and maintaining the nation's
water quality and ensuring that CAFOs properly manage manure generated by
their operations. Comments
are due to the EPA on August 14.
A
public hearing on the proposed rule will be held in Ames on Tuesday, July
25, 2006, from 9 a.m. to noon at Iowa State Center’s Scheman Conference
Center. Sierra Club members
are encouraged to attend and submit comments.
Contact Neila.Seaman@sierraclub.org
for more information.
Find
out more about the proposed rule here…
Water Quality Standards Rules Pass
At its March 13 meeting, the Administrative
Rules Review Committee (a bipartisan, legislative oversight committee)
passed the DNR's water quality standards rule package. The rules now
go to the Environmental Protection Agency for approval.
Arctic Refuge Drilling
Threatened ... Again
On May 25, 2006, the House approved by a narrow margin (225-201) to drill
in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Read
more...
Is Your Home Cool?
Walk through a real house on our Cool Home Tour
with Sierra magazine's answer man, Mr. Green, and you'll learn how to have a "cool" house, save money, and help chip away at a problem facing us all. Download Mr. Green's Cool Home Checklist and tour your own abode to see what you're doing right and where you have room to improve. It's a great way to celebrate Earth Day.
2006 Earth Day
Across the country, 224 mayors representing more than 43 million people in 39 states have signed the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement -- the first step to becoming a "Cool City." Frustrated by lack of action on the federal level, local leaders are moving forward with innovative energy solutions that cut our dependence on oil, benefit public health, and save taxpayer dollars.
Visit Sierra Club's new Cool Cities
web site to see what cities are included.
Is Your Tuna Family-Safe?
Defenders of Wildlife's ground-breaking study shows that the FDA and EPA's light canned tuna recommendations do not adequately protect the American public from high levels of mercury.
Find out more here...
Sierra
Club Responds to Ethanol Projects Proposed for Des Moines' Agrimergent
Technology Park
At a special meeting held November 1, the
Des Moines City Council reviewed two proposals for ethanol plants to be
constructed in the city's Agrimergent Technology Park in southeast
Des Moines.
Lincolnway Energy proposed a 100 million
gallon per year coal-fired plant while Vision Fuels proposed a 110 million
gallon per year natural gas-fired plant. The Council members stalemated
with three votes going to each proposal.
The Council directed City Manager Richard
Clark to negotiate its concerns for coal versus natural gas, neighborhood
participation in the process and the financial impact to the city
regarding the franchise fee on natural gas.
Sierra Club responded to the Mayor, City
Council and City Manager with a letter addressing its concerns. Read
the letter here...
UPDATE:
Lincolnway Energy withdrew its proposal for a 100 million gallon per year,
coal-fired ethanol plant in Des Moines. Read about it here...
CAFO rule proposed
At its December 19, 2005, meeting, Environmental
Protection Commissioners heard information on a rule
amendment regarding department evaluation; denial of or
condition of construction permits or disapproval or modification of MMPs
for confinement feeding operations. The Legislature passed SF 2377 that would prohibit any action by the DNR
until after a facility is in operation. Sierra Club opposed this bill and asked the governor to veto it.
UPDATE: Gov. Vilsack vetoed
the bill on May 31, 2006. The rule now goes before the Administrative
Rules Review Committee (ARRC) at its August meeting. The Iowa
Chapter of Sierra Club supports the ARRC passing the rule as it is
presented to the committee.
UPDATE: The ARRC formally objected
to the rule at its August 2006 meeting. The objection leaves the rule
open to legal challenge forcing the DNR to prove the rule is in compliance
with state law.
The
Water Quality Standards Issues
In
its responsiveness summary from the WQS hearings in October, DNR
addressed commenter issues. See a condensed version of those
responses here...
Read water quality
standards hearing comments and responsiveness summary here...
Senate
Passes Water Quality Bill
On March 16, 2006, the Iowa Senate unanimously
approved SF 2363 with Senate Amendment 5080. The Iowa Chapter opposes the bill because it's unnecessary and could provide limitations
to implementing the rules as passed by the ARRC three days earlier.
Read the bill and the amendment here...
Loess Hills
Featured in Sierra Magazine
If you haven't seen it yet,
check out the Sierra Magazine's March/April 2005 issue and read about the Loess
Hills, they're unique geology found only in Iowa and in China and much
more. Click
here for the article...
Arctic Refuge Drilling Stopped in the House
- Bipartisan Opposition to Including Arctic in Budget Prevails
The Sierra Club expressed cautious optimism as bipartisan pressure to keep the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge out of the
budget prevailed in the House. Read
more...
Happy Birthday, Mr. Muir The great man's birthday is April 21, but most folks are so focused on Earth Day that they forget to honor his memory. As the founding president of the Sierra Club, Muir was instrumental in the creation of Yosemite National Park and is considered by many to be the father of the conservation movement in America. Learn more about the man at our
John Muir Exhibit Web
site.
Superfund
Notification Victory for Iowa City
The
Iowa-Illinois Manor Apartment Building in Iowa City houses hundreds of
college students. Since it was built in 1983, every month, students
signed new leases to live in this
building not knowing that they
were going to reside on top of a Superfund toxic
waste
Read more....
Sierra Club Joins Others in Letter to EPA
In April 2004, the Sierra Club, Iowa
Chapter joined the Midwest Environmental Justice Advocates , Iowa
Environmental Council and Hawkeye Fly Fishing Association in sending a
letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requesting
intervention with Iowa's Department of Natural Resources (DNR) water
quality policies. Read the letter...
Lyme
Disease -- Kathy Cuddeback, who with her
husband, Larry, have been Washington County farmers since 1980, was diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease in
1993. Knowledgeable Lyme physicians believe she was first infected in 1977 while working in KY and TN. She struggles with 15 symptoms including chronic spinal pain, seizures,
tourettes, memory loss, tremors, and speech loss.
Of Kathy and Larry's three children, their severely handicapped
middle daughter, has been diagnosed with congenital Lyme disease. Read
more about Lyme disease...
Volunteer Feature
--
Jack Eastman, vice-chair of
the Chapter's Leopold Group, actively volunteers his time in southeast
Iowa. He was recently featured in an Iowa Sierran article
written by Larry Stone. Read more
about Jack...
Sierra
Club Launches its... "True Cost of Food" Campaign -- The
United States, with less than 5% of the world’s people, consumes over
twenty-five percent.... Read
more....
Clean Water Rules
Update Find out more...
Clean
Water Rules Update --The
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established an April 2005
deadline for the DNR and other states’ agencies to start implementing
the Clean Water Act for livestock facilities. The DNR planned to do the
minimum work required to meet the new federal requirements, but a recent
Circuit Court ruling means DNR will have to do better. Learn
more...
Mercury,
Fish and Your Family -- The Iowa Chapter reached out to help
educate Iowa's Asian population about the dangers of mercury consumption
by the fish they eat. See our message in English, Lao, Vietnamese
and Cambodian here...
See our Spanish-language brochure here...
Intrepid
Wind Farm Tour
In November 2005, MidAmerican Energy hosted a
tour of its Intrepid wind farm in Sac County for environmentalists. See photographs of the tour here...
In
Iowa Courts
See the status of environmental cases
working their way through the Iowa court system.
Read more...