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Water Quality Challenges in Iowa's Agricultural Watersheds

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Water Quality Challenges in Iowa's Agricultural Watersheds Water Quality Challenges in Iowa’s Agricultural Watersheds Iowa-Illinois Safety Council Conference & Expo April 20, 2017 Jennifer Terry Environmental Advocacy Leader Des Moines, Iowa Unique, Urgent and Persistent Ecosystem Challenges in the Raccoon River Watershed Road Map for Today’s Presentation: • Des Moines Water Works - who are we and why are we unique among utilities in Iowa? • Five Things You Should Know About Water Quality On The Lobe, including law suit update • Going forward . Let’s get started! DMWW Service Area • Urban • Suburban • Rural Safe Drinking Water Act Laboratory Testing • 60,000 analyses conducted Microorganisms 7 by DMWW for annual water production, at a retail cost of Disinfectants 3 $650,000 Disinfection Byproducts 4 Inorganic Chemicals 16 • There are also a number of Organic Chemicals 53 unregulated contaminants that are voluntarily monitored Radionuclides 4 to ensure the safety of our TOTAL 87* customers, i.e. Cyanobacteria and algal *30 related to agriculture toxins Surface Water is Dynamic Description of image. 1 Des Moines Lobe is Unique Hardin County, Iowa 1,800 Confinements and Feeding Operations in the Raccoon and Des Moines Watersheds Drainage on an Industrial Scale Sac County, Iowa Drainage Tiling: Increasing Water TreatmentQuantity Plant while Reducing Water Quality Recharge Ponds 61% of Iowa Drainage Districts Iowa Drainage Districts located in Des Moines Lobe HardinHardin County,County, IowaIowa One of the Most Changed Landscapes on Earth 2 Not Just Nitrate. Not Just Des Moines. Iowa is experiencing a water quality crisis. • Record Number of “Impaired Water Ways” in 2015 • Record Number of beach advisories in 2015 • Record Number of beach advisories in 2016 – AGAIN • Toxic Algae Blooms Making the News: Where will the next Toledo occur? Nitrate Concentrations Trending Up Up Trending Concentrations Nitrate mg/L as N 10.0 12.0 14.0 0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0 1931 1934 1936 trends.” talking about water quality ..”the peril associated with 1938 1940 1942 1944 1957 Raccoon River Annual Average Nitrate Concentration-N Average Annual Raccoon River 1959 1961 1963 1965 1967 1969 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 Raccoon River 2016 Nitrate Load (metric tons) 2013-2016 Largest 4-Year Loading in History for both RR and DMR Also: Des Moines River: 2nd highest nitrate loading year ever in 2016 Lower Limits May be Appropriate Friday September 30, 2016 For the First Time Ever… • August 2016 • Cyanotoxin is Detected in Des Moines Finished Water • Same Toxin Found in Toledo’s Water Supply in August of 2014 August 2014 Toledo, Ohio Close Call Last August 3.50 3.00 Des Moines 2.50 2.00 Toledo 1.50 1.00 0.50 0.00 7/25 7/26 7/27 7/28 7/29 7/30 7/31 8/1 8/2 8/3 8/4 8/5 8/6 8/7 8/8 8/9 8/10 8/11 8/12 8/13 8/14 8/15 8/16 8/17 8/18 8/19 8/20 8/21 8/22 8/23 Public Health and Quality of Life “Urban” versus“Rural”? Long History of 3 Water Quality Collaboration & Nitrate Treatment Expansion Aka: “These Problems are Not New” “Des Moines residents will never again have to worry about nitrates threatening the quality of the city’s drinking water.” “System will operate for only a few weeks out of the year…” The Des Moines Register, January 26, 1992 177 days of operation in 2015 at a cost of $1.5 million. Denitrification Costs Additional cost to meet EPA drinking water standard 2013 Costs Treatment Cost $722,500 Lost Revenue $186,200 Total 2013 Expense $908,700 2014-2015 Costs Treatment Cost $1,500,000 Total 14-15 Expense $1,500,000 Estimated Cost for Denitrification Facilities Upgrades $80 million Paid for by DMWW ratepayers History of Collaboration; Water Quality Results? • Agriculture's Clean Water Alliance: Formed in the 1990s, in association with ag retailers in the Des Moines and Raccoon watersheds • Watershed planning efforts: 2011 Raccoon River Master Plan: impaired by nitrate/ nitrogen (TMDL); impaired by E. coli; • Continued collaboration with groups and agencies e.g. explore RCPP; private funders; diverse partners “Collaboration” “Defendants deny that the drainage districts have taken any actions that detrimentally impact Des Moines Water Works customers….and deny that they have caused or contributed to any eutrophication or hypoxic conditions in the Gulf of Mexico.” - Defendants’ answer to Des Moines Water Works’ Federal Clean Water Complaint “It’s unclear how, exactly, city dwellers are supposed to cooperate with farmers whose operations pollute the drinking water. Perhaps cooperation means to shut up and stop complaining.” - Richard Doak, Retired Opinion Editor of The Des Moines Register The Des Moines Register, August 30, 2015 Nutrient Delivery to the Gulf of Mexico - USGS Farm fields in the Corn Belt that use tile drainage are the largest contributors of nitrogen pollution to rivers that empty into the Mississippi River and, ultimately, the Gulf of Mexico. Nitrate Treatment Expansion . But It Is Not Enough Proposed 80-acre Nitrate Removal Constructed Wetland McMullen “Chain of Lakes” 5 DMWW Files Suit in Response to Escalating Nitrate Concentrations and Risks What do we Hope to Accomplish • Cleaner source water! • Stop pollution where it starts • Value public health for all in the w’shed • Clear Responsibility • Accountability The Lawsuit • The complaint seeks to declare the named drainage districts are “point sources,” not exempt from regulation, and are required to have a permit under federal and Iowa law, just as any other business that discharges in the waters of Iowa. • The complaint states that the drainage districts have violated and continue to be in violation of the Clean Water Act and Chapter 455B, Code of Iowa, and demands the drainage districts take all necessary actions, including ceasing all discharges of nitrate that are not authorized by a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. Status of Lawsuit, Where from Here • All counts of the lawsuit were dismissed in an opinion issued on March 17, 2017 • Appeal – decision by DMWW Board of Trustees • “These contentions are best directed to the Iowa legislature” --Judge Leonard Strand • What is our state public policy for cleaner water? Where from here? Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy: Iowa Public Policy Approach • Sources not currently regulated account for 92% of the total nitrogen • Reduce nutrient pollutants by 45% § No timelines § No commitments to measurement or metrics § No resource commitments to voluntarism • Regulate 10% of nutrient contributors and pursue voluntarism (non-regulation) of 90% • Three important ways IA can improve approach to WQ….. MYTH: Random Acts of Conservation will Produce Cleaner Water Times have changed. Scientific technology has advanced. Tile drainage is no longer 468.2 PRESUMPTION AND CONSTRUCTION OF LAWS. 1. The drainage of surface waters “for the public from agricultural lands and all other lands or the protection of such lands from overflow shall be benefit.” presumed to be a public benefit and conducive to the public health, convenience, and welfare. Point Source or Non-point Source: Can You See the Difference? Wastewater Treatment Plant Discharge Agricultural Tile Drainage Should one be regulated while the other is unregulated? Regulation Protects Community Interests • Pharmaceuticals à Patient Safety • Restaurants à Patron/Public Safety • Air Traffic à Travelers/Commerce Safety • Traffic Laws à Motorist Safety • Air Quality à Human and Wildlife Safety • Water Quality à Heavily regulated in urban environment, but voluntarily “regulated” in agriculture Has voluntary environmental protection worked? DDT… Lead in gasoline … Phosphorus in detergents Ensure Public Access to Water Quality Data • Provide context (400,000 cover crop ac. out of 23 million row crop acres = “exciting momentum”) • Monitoring vs. modeling • Support funding for online access to real time WQ data Des Moines Water Works Business Commitment and Surface Water Strategy Invest in Improve Advocate for Infrastructure + Technologies + Clean Water = Regulate to Protect Source Waters Safe, Affordable and Abundant Water You Can Trust for Life Thank you for your time, interest and advocacy for clean water in Iowa! Jennifer Terry (515) 283-8706 [email protected] .
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