‘It doesn’t have to be this way’: Scientists confirm Iowa farm pollution is creating dire health risks

This story was originally published by The New Lede Agricultural operations across Iowa are a leading cause of major water poisoning problems in the state posing dire risks to constituents and environmental wellbeing according to a new scientific overview that is sparking heated debate in the key U S farm state The -page Central Iowa Source Water Research Assessment CISWRA was formally distributed by Polk County Iowa executives on July after months of what multiple sources reported were intentional actions by citizens leaders to suppress details of the statement The analysis caps a two-year-long research review by a gang of scientists that focused on contamination patterns in two essential rivers fed from a watershed running from southern Minnesota through the central part of Iowa to the state capital of Des Moines Those rivers the Des Moines and the Raccoon are the primary source of drinking water for roughly people and are considered central recreational state assets but the rivers are commonly laden with harmful contaminants that include phosphorus and nitrogen bacteria from animal and human waste pesticides and other chemicals Much though not all of the contamination is tied to agriculture according to the summary Among multiple recommendations the record calls for the top U S corn-growing state to diversify into production of crops that require fewer chemical inputs and for limits on the density of livestock With nearly farms Iowa ranks first not only for corn production but also for pork and egg production and is within the top five states for growing soybeans and raising cattle Agriculture is a key engine for the state s commercial sector Among multiple recommendations the analysis calls for the top U S corn-growing state to diversify into production of crops that require fewer chemical inputs and for limits on the density of livestock Credit Central Iowa Source Water Research Assessment A huge constituents medical threat Environmentalists and certain masses executives welcomed the document which they see as a data-driven catalyst for an overhaul in policies that could improve water quality and environmental and human wellbeing But they say they fear Iowa s longstanding political allegiance to agricultural interests will continue to thwart such efforts There is a huge citizens physical condition threat noted Polk County Administrator John Norris who helped initiate the scrutiny Polk County which has its county seat in Des Moines and is the state s the majority populous county provided funding to the inquiry It affects business and the economic system too This statement tells us exactly where the issue is coming from Norris declared Now it is up to us to have the courage to tackle it Norris was placed on paid leave of absence earlier this year after battling with the county s board of supervisors He would not comment about why he was forced out but announced the farm industry holds considerable power in Iowa and nationally There are huge institutional forces in our way They have been in charge of agricultural protocol for a long time he mentioned Iowa has the second-highest rate of cancer in the nation and is only one of two US states where cancer is increasing Leukemia as well as cancers of the pancreas breast stomach kidney thyroid and uterus are among the different cancer types on the rise across the state according to the National Cancer Institute Agricultural litter is among the factors suspected of causing the high cancer rates Separate from the water garbage inquiry an initiative to scrutiny the relationship between environmental jeopardy factors and cancer rates is underway led by the Iowa Environmental Council and the Harkin Institute at Drake University In a Polk County Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday several people spoke out about what they noted was a history of political unwillingness to address mounting problems with agricultural waste and called for masses officers to take the findings of the new assessment seriously If we can move the terms of the debate away from politics and onto science I have no doubt that there are policies and practices that are proven to work in other places that can work in Iowa too stated Mike Tramontina a member of the executive committee of the Sierra Club in Iowa It doesn t have to be this way Our rivers can be cleaned up In the meeting Matt McCoy chair of the Polk County Board of Supervisors mentioned the problems identified were not new but were timely given the high level of nitrates being dealt with now Clean water should be a bipartisan issue The solutions to address this trouble are within our grasp McCoy explained The New Lede there was no effort to manipulate or suppress the release of the overview Chief concerns Among the chief concerns are nitrogen and phosphorus present in the waterways at levels that are among the highest in the nation according to the review Fully of the nitrogen and phosphorus in central Iowa stem from agricultural sources including from corn growers who consider nitrogen a key tool for boosting yields Levels of nitrates a form of nitrogen have been so high in recent times in the key Iowa rivers that residents soundness officers have banned about businesses and homeowners from watering lawns to limit demands on utility operations seeking to filter the nitrates from drinking water Even as the statement was being disclosed nitrate levels recorded this week in Iowa waterways were well above the federal limit of milligrams per liter for drinking water Certain areas were showing levels at more than double the limit When pregnant women are exposed to nitrates in drinking water it raises the risks of problematic birth outcomes including low birth weights and pre-term birth Babies can suffer severe wellbeing problems when consuming nitrates in drinking water and a growing body of literature indicates feasible associations that include an increased threat of cancer Farmer use of weed killers and other pesticides is also a contributor to the water trash problems posing risks to the ecosystem and to general medical as pesticides are often exposed in surface water during spring and early summer Due to their extensive use pesticides are contaminants of critical concern for Iowa the record states Pesticide use in the state has increased over the last scant decades with glyphosate herbicide ranking as Iowa s bulk widely used pesticide applied through traditional spraying followed by acetochlor and atrazine according to the description Neonicotinoid pesticides are also prevalent in Iowa used as seed coatings on preponderance corn and soybean seeds planted in the state the account noted Each of the pesticides is linked in scientific research to human and or environmental harms Another major threat is seen in the large amounts of manure generated from Iowa s expansive livestock operations also known as Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs The manure is often spread onto fields as fertilizer but surplus manure leaches into waterways along with pathogens and pharmaceuticals that can be present in animal waste In parts of the watersheds manure produced exceeds the ceiling of surrounding lands to absorb it as fertilizer This surplus manure becomes waste contributing to the contamination of surface and groundwater the overview states The amount of nitrogen excreted on a statewide basis is tons annually which is approximately times the amount excreted by humans in Iowa The agricultural garbage as well as other defilement sources have been triggering increasing algal blooms in central Iowa s waterways the description notes Certain algal blooms produce toxins that can harm fish and other aquatic life humans and animals One such type of toxin microcystin has been unveiled throughout the watershed for the last years Microcystin is a potent liver toxin and attainable human carcinogen according to the U S Environmental Protection Agency Also of concern both antibiotics and antibiotic-resistant bacteria have been revealed in Iowa s waterways the overview notes A water quality accident The overview makes a number of specific recommendations including advancing regenerative agricultural practices reducing pesticide use better management of manure disposal improved erosion control and expansion of dual water delivery systems to increase the limit of utilities to treat nitrate contamination in drinking water supplies We need everyone to make improvements on the land they own whether on the farm or in the city reported Claire Hruby an assistant professor of environmental science and sustainability at Drake University and one of the science advisors for the analysis And we need everyone who votes to hold our legislature accountable to make sure that long-term community wellbeing and the economic well-being of our communities is a priority Larry Weber another science advisor on the review and director of the IIHR-Hydroscience and Engineering research center at the University of Iowa mentioned the findings of the description demonstrate that we are on the verge of an environmental water quality tragedy in this state Still he disclosed he has little hope that the recommendations in the summary will be followed noting that Iowa lawmakers have cut funding for a monitoring structure focused on reducing nutrient loss and water trash The monitoring architecture is now supported by private foundation funding but that money will run out next year Agriculture is such a dominant force he stated I think industry and politics will prevail The post It doesn t have to be this way Scientists confirm Iowa farm trash is creating dire wellness risks appeared first on MinnPost