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Iowa ag officials respond to lawsuit threat

The executive director of the Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance calls Des Moines Water Works’ decision to proceed with a lawsuit over nitrate contamination “unfortunate”.

Sean McMahon says claims by Water Works’ officials that the nitrate situation has worsened over the years, forcing them to use their nitrate removal system more often, are not accurate.

“The nitrate removal system, from 1992 to 2000, operated an average of 46 days per year. But from 2001 to 2014, it operated just an average of 26 days,” says McMahon. “The longest stretch that it didn’t run was from 2008 to 2012.”

Iowa launched a voluntary state-wide nutrient reduction strategy in 2013, but Des Moines Water Works CEO Bill Stowe says that voluntary approach is not working. Stowe wants more state and federal regulations imposed on farmers.

McMahon says the strategy needs time to work. He says for Stowe to expect tangible results after just 18 months is “kind of laughable”.

“It’s kind of like being down a run or two in the top half of the first inning and declaring, ‘Well, game over, we lost, time to quit’,” he says. “We need to give our nutrient reduction strategy a chance to succeed. Farmers are willing to participate—farmers want to reduce their nutrient loss.  That’s good for productivity and profitability—and also good for water quality.”

The Water Work’s lawsuit targets several drainage districts feeding into the North Raccoon River that are managed by boards of supervisors in Sac, Buena Vista and Calhoun counties.

Tom Oswald of Cleghorn, the president of the Iowa Soybean Association, issued a written statement accusing Des Moines Water Works officials of being “sensationalistic at best and, at worst, dishonest” about water quality problems.

In a statement, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey called the waterworks’ threat of litigation “the wrong approach to address the important issue of improving water quality.”

AUDIO: Sean McMahon

Photo: Raccoon River in Iowa