DFIA Environmentalist Throws Her Hat in the Ring
In
her first race since college days, DFIA Environmentalist Molly Regan
has taken out nomination papers for the Scott Soil and Water
Conservation Commission.
There are 5 people on the Scott County non-partisan, volunteer commission, with 3 seats up for grabs this year.
Molly
obtained over 50 signatures on her petition before the Kerry rally the
other day, with the help of fellow Deaniacs Monica Kurth and Paul
Elgation, and got her last signature yesterday.
According to Iowa's Washington Evening Journal, this year, Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioners (SWCDs)
will be elected in 100 districts throughout Iowa. The commissioners are
elected volunteers and have been working with voluntary, private land
conservation in Iowa since as early as 1939. Commissioners help guide
soil and water conservation programs in the district and watersheds,
identify local issues and concerns, and influence state and national
conservation programs. SWCDs work closely with a number of local, state
and federal agencies, particularly the Iowa Department of Agriculture
and Land Stewardship-Division of Soil Conservation and the USDA Natural
Resources Conservation Service.
This is an opportunity to become involved in environmental work at the local level.
Nomination forms, including a
petition, are available in your county auditor's office. At least 25
eligible voters must sign the petition. Nomination papers need to be
filed at the auditor's office by Aug. 25, in order to be on the ballot
in November. Only one person per township within a district can be
represented on the district board.
For more information, go here.
Iowa Bicyclists learn about conservation practices
Iowa Farm Bureau
Riders
on the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa (RAGBRAI)
learned how Iowa farmers are working with state and federal agencies to
protect the environment.
The
“Iowa Conservation Team” worked to educate all riders, including
Iowans, out-of-staters and international riders, about conservation
practices they were seeing as they huffed, puffed and ate their way
across Iowa.
The goal
was to show that Iowa farmers, who lead the nation in creation of
buffers and have reduced soil erosion significantly, are protecting the
environment.
(more)
Iowa Middle School Teacher Receives Award
Disney
The
DisneyHand Teacher Awards, dedicated to honoring the most creative and
inspiring teachers in America, this year bestowed Hector Ibarra, a 6th
and 7th grade teacher from West Branch Middle School in West Branch,
Iowa, with the first Youth Service America Award. The honor, presented
by multi-platinum performing artist and former special education
teacher Clay Aiken, was given to Ibarra for his exemplary use of
community service as a teaching methodology.
Since
1993, Ibarra's flagship youth service learning program, Timber Stand
Improvement, has successfully linked science to the community. Some of
Timber Stand Improvement's success includes planting more than 2,000
oak, hickory and walnut trees in Iowa's Cedar Valley Park; collecting
4,265 used oil filters and extracting 37.2 gallons of oil, preventing
the substance from entering the Cedar County landfill; encouraging
retrofitting of inefficient shower heads and sink aerators; planting
amaryllis bulbs for senior citizen homes and local businesses; and
holding a student-run reading program for elementary, preschool and
daycare children.
(more)
Marvel chemicals pop up in animals all over world
Chicago Tribune
Chemicals
used to make Teflon and Scotchgard have been promoted as modern marvels
for their ability to keep food from sticking to pots and fast-food
packaging, repel stains on carpets and furniture and make water roll
off coats and clothing.
Now
scientists are finding that the chemicals also have managed to spread
throughout the world. Researchers have detected them in polar bears
roaming near the Arctic Circle, dolphins swimming in the Mediterranean
Sea off the coast of Italy and gulls flying above ocean cliffs outside
Tokyo.
Known as
perfluoronated compounds, the chemicals also were recently detected for
the first time in the Great Lakes, one-fifth of the Earth's fresh water
and the source of drinking water for more than 7 million people in
Illinois and 33 million others in the United States and Canada.
(more)
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