Conservation Compass

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  • Imagine a day without water 2024

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    ANKENY, Iowa (IAWA) – Water’s essential role in life on earth, everywhere and every day, is common knowledge. Despite its importance to everyday life (or maybe because of it), water can also be easy to take for granted.  That’s true even for folks whose day jobs revolve around Iowa water quality – and it’s why the…

  • Wonder and water – reflections on my second Father’s Day

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    By Adam Sodders, Communications Specialist MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa (IAWA) – Central Iowa has been the place my great grandpa, grandpa, dad, I have all called home over the last century or so, and in 2022 a fifth name was added tothe list: Milo. As a young father, it’s impossible not to think about my own childhood…

  • From wet spot to wetland

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    Partnerships lead to new water quality feature at DMACC Dallas County Farm By Adam Sodders ADEL, Iowa (IAWA) – A once-troublesome mud puddle in a Central Iowa farm field has been transformed into one of the state’s newest water quality wetlands. The new wetland was completed in January at the DMACC Dallas County Farm near Adel.…

  • IAWA and partners to celebrate $140,000 grant with wetlands tour

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    ADEL, Iowa (IAWA) – You’re invited! Join us during Earth Week on April 19, 2023 at 1:30 p.m. to learn about the power of wetlands near Iowa farmland to improve water quality! RSVP here. This is part of a celebration hosted by the Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance, DMACC, Ducks Unlimited, Dallas County, and Polk County…

  • Iowa N Initiative hits the airwaves

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    DES MOINES, Iowa (IAWA) – Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance Executive Director Sean McMahon hit the airwaves this week to talk about the Iowa N Initiative – a program helping Iowa farmers dial in their fields’ fertilizer needs. McMahon was joined on The Big Show’s “Clean Water Wednesday” by Melissa Miller of The N Initiative.   The…

  • Farmers back clean water research

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    By Dan Looker Two farmer-led organizations in Iowa have a long history of research-based work—the Iowa Soybean Association and Practical Farmers of Iowa. For 11 years, ISA has run its own water lab – the Research Center for Farming Innovation (RFCI) – testing thousands of samples from streams and drainage tiles each year. Nitrates and…

  • Tools to track nutrient reduction progress

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    By Dan Looker Iowa (IAWA) – Iowans can track nutrient reduction progress using two sources: the Iowa Nutrient Research and Ed­­­­­ucation Council (INREC) and Iowa State University’s online reporting dashboard. INREC conducts statistically reliable surveys of ag retailers each year, meeting with agronomists to pick 1,000 representative locations. Other sources rely on data from government…

  • Nutrients in farming: What are they and why do we need them?

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    By Dan Looker, IAWA Writer Iowans have heard a lot about nitrogen fertilizer in recent years. Nitrogen and phosphorus are the two key nutrients that the state is working to manage better through the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy. Nitrogen is one of earth’s most important elements, and it plays a key role in plant growth.…

  • Some soil health gains can happen fast

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    And other surprising facts about regenerative farming By Dan Looker, IAWA contributor AMES, Iowa (IAWA) – Building healthy soil takes work, investment, and time. It can be years before tests show increases in stable organic matter and benefits are seen… at least, that’s a common belief among many people. But that’s not quite right, says…

  • Soil, water conservation practices increase profitability for S.E. Iowa farmer

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    By Dan Looker, IAWA contributor WASHINGTON CO., Iowa (IAWA) – In southeast Iowa, sixth-generation farmer Brian Hora has seen great improvements in soil health and input savings after starting no-till in 1978 and cover crops in 2013. Weed suppression from planting into growing cereal rye, a cover crop, has eliminated the need for residual herbicides…