Author
Drought in Iowa retreats slightly with rainfall
Widespread rainfall in the past week helped alleviate some of the worst drought conditions in Iowa, according to a Thursday report by the U.S. Drought Monitor. A wide area of exceptional drought — the worst of four classifications — in far northeast Iowa was upgraded to extreme drought in the latest report. That area has […]
Pipeline opponents decry handling of Summit hearing schedule
A tentative plan announced Wednesday by state regulators to extend a carbon dioxide pipeline hearing into next week was too hastily arranged and might affect landowners’ ability to participate, according to an attorney who represents more than 100 of them. “It’s just preposterous to just jerk us around day after day, week after week, thinking […]
State regulators reject subpoena request for Rastetter testimony
An agriculture mogul who has a significant role in a pending carbon dioxide pipeline proposal will not be required to testify during its permit proceedings, the Iowa Utilities Board decided Tuesday. Several people sought a subpoena to compel the under-oath testimony of Bruce Rastetter, a co-founder of Summit Carbon Solutions. Pipeline opponents wanted him to […]
Widespread rainfall slows crop harvest in Iowa
Significant rainfall late last week impeded the harvest of Iowa’s corn and soybeans, but it helped replenish some soil moisture that has been sorely lacking in the ongoing drought. About 9% of the state’s corn crop has been harvested for grain, along with about 11% of soybeans, according to a Monday report by the U.S. […]
DNR issues fines for asbestos violations at mobile home park and former school
An eastern Iowa mobile home park demolished some of its homes without testing them for asbestos and did not dispose of them in a way to prevent asbestos exposure of its residents, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The demolitions at Fawn Creek Court in Anamosa last year spawned two of four fines […]
Local officials have potential to block carbon dioxide projects
Iowa cities and counties have the authority to restrict building permits for the carbon-capture facilities that would feed proposed carbon dioxide pipelines in the state, the Hardin County attorney argues in a recent state regulatory filing. That has the potential to empower local elected officials to restrict or block the controversial pipeline projects by depriving […]
‘Exceptional’ drought grips eastern Iowa, relief might be coming
Two areas of eastern Iowa have recently developed exceptional drought, the worst dryness classification issued by the U.S. Drought Monitor. That high level of drought is affecting all or parts of nine counties, primarily in far northeast Iowa. The total affected area represents about 5% of the state, and that is the highest percentage of […]
DNR: Paint dye poured into storm drain turned ditch water red
An employee of a West Des Moines home improvement store errantly poured a mixture of water and paint dye down a stormwater drain and caused ditch water in Clive to turn red, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The DNR recently fined Home Depot $5,500 for the incident, which happened Oct. 26, 2021. […]
Landowners testify Summit ignored requests for route changes
A Lyon County landowner in the path of Summit Carbon Solutions’ proposed carbon dioxide pipeline system alleged on Tuesday that the company punished him for not signing an easement by choosing a less-desirable route through his property. Gregory Kracht was among several landowners who testified at the start of the fifth week of the company’s […]
Early corn harvests spur optimism about yields despite drought
Farmers so far have reported average or better corn yields despite their worries about the effect of this year’s drought, according to several Iowa State University Extension field agronomists who monitor different areas of the state. Virgil Schmitt, the field agronomist who monitors far southeast Iowa, said farmers have been telling him: “Gosh, I don’t […]
Summit permit process in North Dakota has reached ‘uncharted waters’
It’s not yet clear how utility regulators in North Dakota will proceed with their reconsideration of a pipeline permit for Summit Carbon Solutions. The state’s Public Service Commission granted the company’s reconsideration request with a split vote on Friday. It had unanimously denied Summit’s permit application in August because the company didn’t sufficiently show that […]
Carbon pipeline company has not ‘taken any state off the map’ after SD permit rejection
A recently failed permit application is not necessarily the end of a carbon capture pipeline company’s goal of building in South Dakota and four other states, according to a company spokesperson. “We have not taken any state off the map,” Elizabeth Burns-Thompson, of Navigator CO2, told South Dakota Searchlight in an interview Friday. The South […]