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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 9, 2020
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is working with state and local officials to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and has transitioned employees to work remotely. DNR offices are closed to the public during this time and only available by appointment.
In another effort to further reduce the spread of COVID-19, the DNR is encouraging the use of the online services for submitting applications, payments and other daily tasks and interaction with DNR staff.
We thank you for your patience and flexibility during this time. If you need to contact DNR staff you can reach them by email or phone or by calling 515-725-8200.
MEDIA CONTACT: Jerah Sheets at 515-313-8909 or Jerah.Sheets@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES—The Environmental Protection Commission will consider four contracts at its April 21 teleconference meeting.
The 10:30 a.m. meeting will be held by teleconference. To join the conference call, call 405-701-9543, and enter the conference code of 871 528 followed by the pound (#) sign when prompted. The meeting is open to the public. 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.
Up for consideration, a contract with the University of Iowa State Hygienic Laboratory to collect water samples and test for indicator bacteria at beaches from the week before Memorial Day to Labor Day.
A second contract with the State Hygienic Lab will provide analysis of water samples collected from 25 shallow lakes to evaluate the effectiveness of lake restorations and lake status.
A contract extension with the city of Coralville will provide education and promote soil quality restoration and home rainscaping to improve water quality in the Iowa River’s watershed.
The final contract to be approved is with the Iowa Department of Administrative Services and DNR to design a storm water project at Terrace Hill. Practices designed to control erosion and storm water runoff near the main entrance at Terrace Hill will demonstrate the effectiveness of water quality improvements to the mansion’s nearly 10,000 annual visitors.
The complete agenda follows:
Approval of Agenda
Approval of the Minutes
Monthly Reports
Director’s Remarks
Contract with the University of Iowa – Beach Monitoring
Contract with the University of Iowa – Shallow Lakes
Contract Amendment #01 to the Original Contract for Raising the Urban Soil Health IQ in the Lower Iowa River Watershed with City of Coralville
Memorandum of Understanding with Iowa Department of Administrative Services
General Discussion
Items for Next Month’s Meeting
- May 19 at 10:30 a.m. – EPC Business Meeting – Polk County
- June 16 at 10:30 a.m. – EPC Business Meeting – Polk County
Find more information at http://www.iowadnr.gov/About-DNR/Boards-Commissions.
Commissioners include: Ralph Lents, Menlo, chair; Harold Hommes, Windsor Heights, vice chair; Bob Sinclair, Sigourney, Secretary; Stephanie Dykshorn, Ireton; Amy Echard, Farmersburg; Lisa Gochenour, Logan; Rebecca Guinn, Bettendorf; Howard Hill, Cambridge; and Tim Kaldenberg, Albia. Kayla Lyon is the DNR director.
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, Iowa DNR, 515-725-8298 or Tim.Hall@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES — Almost all stations across Iowa reported above average precipitation in March, with some locations reporting 2 to 2.5 inches above normal rainfall, according to the latest Water Summary Update.
Iowa received 2.73 inches of precipitation, or 0.58 inches above normal. Soil moisture levels and average streamflow levels remain high across the state.
"The trend of wetter than normal months continued with March 2020,” said Tim Hall, DNR’s coordinator of hydrology resources. “Rainfall in Iowa averaged more than one half inch above normal, and the wet soils that we had headed into winter are still out there. Along with Iowa, nearly the entire eastern half of the United States is free from drought, with states to our south and east especially wet."
Projections for Missouri River Basin runoff for 2020 are about 140 percent of normal, but well below the levels experienced in 2019.
Most of Iowa experienced below normal snowfall in March, with the preliminary average statewide total of 2 inches, 2.7 inches below average. This ties 1974 as the 21st lowest snow total for March, based on 133 years of records.
March statewide temperatures averaged 40.4 degrees, 4.5 degrees warmer than the 30-year climatological normal. This ranks March 2020 as the 20th warmest in 148 years of statewide records.
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.
MEDIA CONTACT: Tamara McIntosh, DNR, at 515-725-8242 or Tamara.Mcintosh@dnr.iowa.gov.
DES MOINES – DNR staff work with individuals, businesses and communities to help them protect our natural resources by complying with state and federal laws. This approach is very effective. In the few cases where compliance cannot be achieved, the DNR issues enforcement actions. The following list summarizes recent enforcement actions.
For copies of the orders below, contact Kelli Book at Kelli.Book@dnr.iowa.gov. Older actions can be found at www.iowadnr.gov/EnforcementActions.
Consent Orders
A consent order is issued as an alternative to issuing an administrative order. A consent order indicates that the DNR has voluntarily entered into a legally enforceable agreement with the other party.
Hamilton County
Chamness Technology, Inc.
Comply with operating permit, have quarterly on-site meetings for two years, implement a long-term leachate management plan, and pay a $10,000 administrative penalty.
Osceola County
Cody Jarmer
Comply with applicable laws and obtain proper certifications prior to transporting, handling, storing, or applying manure and pay a $3,000 administrative penalty.
Decatur County
Wayne-Ringgold-Decatur Solid Waste Management Commission
Comply with waste cover regulations and pay a $6,000 administrative penalty.
MEDIA CONTACT: Sarah Piziali, DNR, at 515-725-9549 or Sarah.Piziali@dnr.iowa.gov for construction permits.
DES MOINES – The DNR Air Quality Bureau has the following draft permits up for review. The permits help protect Iowans’ health and air quality. DNR’s permitting staff review each permit application to ensure facilities comply with state and federal air quality requirements. We encourage public comments on draft permits, providing help on how to make effective comments. Submit written comments to the assigned permit writer before 4:30 p.m. on the last day of the comment period. DNR considers public comments before finalizing the permits.
Construction Permits
DNR engineers review and issue construction permits to facilities before they build new or modify existing sources of air pollution. The public may review the following air quality construction permits available online at www.iowadnr.gov/airpermitsearch OR through the EASY Air Public Inquiry Portal and then click the Public Notice tab.
Muscatine County
Grain Processing Corporation – 1600 Oregon St., Muscatine.
Project No. 19-307, Maltrin Spray Dryer #4; modify required water flow rate for 2 scrubbers; Expeller, Whole Germ Receiving; modify baghouse monitoring requirement. Public comment period ends May 12.
Woodbury County
Cargill, Inc. – 1016 Clark St., Sioux City.
Project No. 20-092, modification of permit # 95-A-328-P5. The proposed permitting action is to reduce the maximum rated capacity of Meal Conveying – Finished Meal Leg (EU 7.01) from 375 tons per hour to 218 tons per hour. Additionally, change the exhaust flowrate from 2,000 standard cubic feet per minute (scfm) to 1,300 scfm. The public comment period ends May 8.
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