Speak Out as Another Iowan for Clean Water: Attend a Water Quality Meeting in Iowa The Sierra Club's 1999 lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency to require the agency to fully enforce the Clean Water Act in Iowa highlighted the impaired waters problem in Iowa, and the fact that the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and federal EPA were not meeting their obligations to complete TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load) allocations and cleanup plans for impaired waters. Before this time, little attention had been paid to this issue in Iowa. But now, Iowa's governor is paying attention, and he's asking the rest of Iowa to take notice, too. In January 2003, Governor Tom Vilsack announced that "by 2010 there should be no - I repeat no - impaired waters list in Iowa." To reach this goal, Governor Vilsack also announced that a series of regional water quality meetings would be held throughout Iowa during October, culminating in a state water quality summit in November. This means that the Iowa Chapter of the Sierra Club needs to be out in front on this issue, providing input at the regional water quality meetings and the state water quality summit. Below is a schedule for the regional water quality meetings. We hope you attend the meeting in your area and ask questions about water quality in your part of the state. If you have information about particular waterways, share that with the Iowa DNR. If you know stories of successful water quality protection or restoration projects in your area, share those, too, as examples of real solutions that can be implemented to address water quality problems in Iowa. And maybe most importantly, remind the DNR and Governor's office that we want real solutions to come out of the state water quality summit, not just another water quality plan that gets put on a shelf and forgotten. We all need to take responsibility for the water quality issues in Iowa, so please attend the regional water quality meeting in your part of the state. Regional Water Quality Meetings All meetings are scheduled from 6:30 - 9:00 PM at the facility indicated. October 7, 2003 October 8, 2003 Kirkwood Community College Northeast Iowa Community College 6301 Kirkwood Blvd. SW 1625 Highway 150 Cedar Rapids, IA 52404 Calmar, IA 52132 Iowa Room in Iowa Hall (3rd floor) Wilder Auditorium October 14, 2003 October 16, 2003 Des Moines Area Community College Rathbun Regional Water Association 2006 South Ankeny Blvd 16166 HWY J29 Ankeny, IA 50021-3993 Centerville, IA 52544-8307 Auditorium Water Treatment Plant October 21, 2003 October 22, 2003 Southwestern Community College North Iowa Area Community College 1501 W. Townline 500 College Drive Creston IA 50801 Mason City, IA 50401-7299 Room 220 Muse Norris Center Room 180C October 23, 2003 October 30, 2003 Western Iowa Technical College Iowa Lakes Community College 4647 Stone Avenue 2021 Main Street PO Box 5199 Emmettsburg, IA 50536 Sioux City IA 51106 Auditorium Building A, Room 920, Large Lecture Hall General Agenda for each session: 6:30 PM Status of Water Quality and Water Quality Trends in Iowa 6:50 PM Iowa's Nutrient Budget and Nutrients in Iowa's Waters 7:10 PM Iowa's Impaired Waters 7:30 PM Break 7:40 PM Local Water Quality Program 8:00 PM Public Participation 9:00 PM Adjourn Questions or comments should be directed to Bernie Hoyer (515-281-7247) or [log in to unmask] You are also encouraged to attend the state water quality summit on November 24 and 25 in Ames. There will be space for about 200 members of the public to attend and registration materials will be available on the DNR's website: www.iowadnr.com The time is now to tell the DNR, Governor's office, and rest of the state that Iowans deserve clean water, and that all of us have a role to play in protecting Iowa's water quality. Please attend the regional water quality meetings and state summit, to make your voice heard as "Another Iowan for Clean Water." Thank you for your help! Erin E. Jordahl Director, Iowa Chapter Sierra Club 3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280 Des Moines, IA 50310 515-277-8868 [log in to unmask] www.iowa.sierraclub.org - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Make your voice heard! Find out how to get Take Action Alerts and other important Sierra Club messages by email at: http://www.sierraclub.org/email