DES MOINES – Commissioners will tour a number of conservation practices in the Clarion area Nov. 14 before their November meeting the next day, also in Clarion.
Commissioners will take a driving tour to see a farm using cover crops, prairie STRIPS and other conservation practices that are part of Iowa’s nutrient reduction strategy. They will also view an oxbow restoration, fish passage restoration, wetland and take part in a bioreactor water sampling. The tour begins at 12:30 p.m. Nov. 14, leaving from the Clarion Hometown Inn at 1001 Central Ave. West in Clarion. The public is welcome to attend.
At a 10 a.m. meeting the following day at the Clarion Public Library, the commission will review contracts through the Solid Waste Alternatives Program, or SWAP. Proposed projects to be funded include work to begin single-stream curbside recycling in two northwest Iowa towns, a better waste management process for a Waterloo brewery, and for equipment to improve food waste composting for an Iowa business.
The meeting is open to the public. Public comment will follow the monthly reports. Or, people may submit written comments to the commission by mail or email to Jerah Sheets, Jerah.Sheets@dnr.iowa.gov before the meeting.
Highlights of the agenda follow:
- Monthly Reports
- Public Participation
- Director’s Remarks
- Solid Waste Alternatives Program – Contract Recommendation
- Contract – Redmon Group, Inc. – Mobile Education Exhibit Interactive Station Updates
- Contract with Stantec Consulting Services Inc. for Program Management (PM) and Community Engagement & Risk Communication (CERC) Floodplain Mapping Services
- Contracts with Four Pre-Qualified Companies for Floodplain Mapping Services
- Contract for River Restoration BMP Toolbox Manual
- Contract with IDALS for Price Creek-Amana Colonies Urban Conservation and Water Quality Education Project Phase 1
- Referral to Attorney General – Mr. Frank Roback – Leaking Underground Storage Tank
- 2017 EPC Dates
- EPC Annual Report
- General Discussion
The next Environmental Protection Commission meeting is scheduled for Dec. 20 in Windsor Heights.
Find agenda details at www.iowadnr.gov/epc.
Commissioners include Mary Boote, Des Moines, chair; Chad Ingels, Randalia, vice chair; Cindy Greiman, Garner, secretary; Nancy Couser, Nevada; Bob Sinclair, Sigourney; Gene Ver Steeg, Inwood; LaQuanda Hoskins, Bettendorf; Ralph Lents, Menlo; and Joe Riding, Altoona. Chuck Gipp is the director of the DNR.