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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 14, 2019
MEDIA CONTACT: Jerah Sheets at 515-313-8909 or Jerah.Sheets@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES – Environmental Protection Commissioners will be asked to approve several contracts during a teleconference meeting on March 19.
Up for approval: contracts for transporting a mobile education trailer, analyzing water quality samples from shallow lakes and linking two water quality databases.
Also on the agenda, commissioners will be asked to approve the fourth quarter intended use plans ending on June 30 for the Clean Water and Drinking Water state revolving funds.
The meeting will be held via teleconference starting at 10 a.m. To listen to the call, dial 866-685-1580, and then enter the conference call code of 4510673319 followed by the # sign.
There is no scheduled public participation. Written comments may be submitted up to one day before the meeting to Jerah Sheets at Jerah.Sheets@dnr.iowa.gov or to DNR, 502 E. Ninth St., Des Moines, IA 50319.
The full agenda follows:
Approval of Agenda
Approval of the Minutes
Monthly Reports
Acting Director’s Remarks
Air Quality – Budget Review
Clean Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund – FY 2019 Intended Use Plan update
Contract Amendment #2 with Mid America Recycling
Contract with the University of Iowa on behalf of IIHR
Contract with the University of Iowa on behalf of the State Hygienic Laboratory
Contract with the University of Iowa for DNR State Hygienic Laboratory TMDL Contract
General Discussion
Items for Next Month’s Meeting
- April 15 – Educational Tour – Carroll County
- April 16 – EPC Business Meeting – Carroll County
- May 21 – EPC Business Meeting – Des Moines
Commissioners include: Ralph Lents, Menlo, chair; Joe Riding, Altoona, vice chair; Rebecca Guinn, Bettendorf, Secretary; Mary Boote, Des Moines; Nancy Couser, Nevada; Lisa Gochenour, Logan; Howard Hill, Cambridge; Harold Hommes, Windsor Heights; and Bob Sinclair, Sigourney. Bruce Trautman is the acting director of the DNR.
Any person attending the public meeting who has special requirements such as those related to mobility or hearing impairments should contact the DNR or ADA Coordinator at 515-725-8200, Relay Iowa TTY Service 800-735-7942, or Webmaster@dnr.iowa.gov, and advise of specific needs.
MEDIA CONTACT: Tim Hall, 515-725-8298, Tim.Hall@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES — More than 40 inches of snow fell in parts of northern Iowa in February, while temperatures fell as low as 20 degrees below zero, according to the latest Water Summary Update.
Streamflow was returning to normal levels until the recent March rain and snowmelt. Soil moisture is high, and frost remains in the ground across the state.
"The heavy snow pack and recent rainfall have combined with saturated soils to bring widespread flooding to the state. As a result, this is the first spring in the last three years that has started with no drought in Iowa," said Tim Hall, DNR’s coordinator of hydrology resources. “Everyone was ready for spring, but unfortunately the rain and warm weather and snow melt have combined to bring us the flooding that nobody wanted."
Iowa temperatures averaged 15.6 degrees, or 8.4 degrees below normal, ranking February 2019 as the 16th coldest among 147 years of state records.
Statewide precipitation totaled 2.25 inches, or 1.20 inches above average, ranking it as the seventh wettest February on record. The average statewide snowfall for February was 22.6 inches, making this February the snowiest on record. For the month, Swea City (Kossuth County) reported 41.1 inches of snowfall while Bloomfield (Davis County) observed only 4.6 inches.
For a thorough review of Iowa’s water resource trends, go to www.iowadnr.gov/watersummaryupdate.
The report is prepared by technical staff from Iowa DNR, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, IIHR—Hydroscience and Engineering, and the U.S. Geological Survey, in collaboration with Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Department.
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