Sierrans:

The following is a joint statement that Sierra and other environmental
groups have drafted as our initial response to the CAFO proposal announced
on Thursday by the bipartisan group of legislators who created it.

The draft of the proposal itself as a bill will be available to look at
online soon. I will get the Weblink out as soon as it is available. Because
we have not seen the draft and only know what it is described at we a taking
an enthused but measured response. Clearly, we know we like it better than
those big producers will.

See below.

Lyle


***********************

To our members:

We are pleased that the Iowa Legislature has listened to the people's
concern about the quality of their air and water and their fear about
preserving an Iowa way of life. Through the provisions in the livestock bill
introduced on Thursday, Legislators have stated that the public health of
Iowan's is important. The bill is a step in the right direction on the path
to a legacy of healthy water, healthy air, healthy communities and a healthy
economy. And by reducing Iowa's contribution to the "dead zone" problem in
the Gulf of Mexico, Iowans are in a unique position to help with a national
problem.

Key elements of the bill include:

-- A requirement for air quality monitoring around CAFOs and a $500,000
appropriation for air monitoring equipment.
--Requiring farmers to include phosphorous calculations in addition to
nitrogen when manure is applied on land.
--A ban on constructing CAFOs in a 100-year floodplain.
--Doubling of distances away from a body of water that a hog confinement
must be built.
--A requirement that separation distances be increased away from
environmentally sensitive waterways.
--Requiring water monitoring test wells to be built near earthen storage
basin lagoons.
--Changing the threshold for a permit to 2600 hogs.
--Establishing a per animal fee to provide revenues to DNR to oversee the
program.
--Including a representative of the Iowa Environmental Council on the
Master Matrix Technical Advisory Committee.

As a coalition of interest groups we must maintain a united front in support
of the legislation and the legislators who worked on it. Our work is not
finished; we must remain vigilant until the Governor signs a bill. Urge your
legislator to oppose amendments that weaken the bill and thank them for
their hard work on this complex issue. Reiterate the importance of
protecting Iowa's waterways and vulnerable areas and the importance of
funding the IDNR to enforce the protection of our air and water.

Nurturing the further development of this legislation is key this week.
The Council has an electronic copy of the bill.  If you would like a
copy, or to find out more about the legislation, please contact the
Iowa Environmental Council, 515-244-1194.

Elizabeth Horton Plasket
Executive Director
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