Iowa Flood Conditions Keep Project AWARE Off River
Ames Tribune
It was
supposed to be a canoe trip down the Des Moines River from Humboldt to
Des Moines, picking up trash and learning more about the environment.
But flood conditions will keep Project AWARE off the river this year. Nearly 60 volunteers turned out anyway this weekend for the start of the week-long excursion.
“Water,
Water everywhere … enough already!” said Brian Soenen, coordinator of
the event, in a message to participants shortly before getting started.
Monsoon-like
rains throughout Iowa have swelled the Des Moines and other rivers to
bank-full or beyond. Safety made Soenen call off the river paddle. Not
to mention that all the trash is now underwater.
So the
focus of the trip shifts this year from the water, to the watershed.
Work will address upland influences on the river. Prairie restoration
and trash pick-up around impoundments are planned.
Project AWARE
(A Watershed Awareness River Expedition) began last year with a float
down the Maquoketa River. The event was organized by the state
Department of Natural Resources Keepers of the Land, AmeriCorps and IOWATER, a statewide volunteer water quality monitoring effort.
(more)
Heavy rain raises level of bacteria at beaches
Des Moines Register
Heavy
rains are causing higher bacteria levels at Iowa beaches, according to
a state environmental agency that posted swim advisories at seven state
park beaches this week.
The Iowa
Department of Natural Resources began water quality testing this year
shortly before Memorial Day weekend. Since then, 34 weekly swim
advisories have been posted. That compares with 55 last year.
Heavy
and frequent rains in the past month washed more manure into lakes,
which increases the level of E. coli bacteria, said Janice Boekhoff, a
research geologist with the department.
(more)
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