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Conservation
www.FarmProgress.com November 2013 Wallaces Farmer

Rathbun alliance has good year

By KATHLEEN CHESTER

Key Points
Rathbun Land and Water Alliance won several awards this year for its work. RLWA is recognized for its outstanding natural resource protection efforts. Several landowners in watershed were presented with environmental awards.
As for grade stabilization structures and basins, 523 have been constructed, more than enough for five ponds to be built in each of Iowas 99 counties. These and other soil saving practices reduce the annual delivery of sediment to Rathbun Lake by a staggering 40,000 tons and phosphorus by 172,107 pounds.

HE year 2013 was like a night at the Oscars for the Rathbun Land and Water Alliance, as they received several awards in the categories of conservation and water quality protection. As with movies, good projects take production time. In 1997 the Rathbun Land and Water Alliance was established to promote cooperation between public and private sectors to protect land and water resources in the Rathbun Lake Watershed in southern Iowa. In 2003 the RLWA was one of only 20 organizations in the U.S. to receive the EPAs Targeted Watershed Initiative Grant. More than a dozen organizations and agencies at the local, state and federal levels partnered with the alliance to begin installing conservation practices in the watershed. This partnership resulted in the development of the Protect Rathbun Lake Project, and the progress theyve made to reduce contaminants to Rathbun Lake during the past 10 years is noteworthy: To date, 550 cooperating landowners in the 354,000-acre watershed have installed best management practices on priority land, which had been determined to have the potential to deliver the most contaminants to Rathbun Lake. Theyve installed nearly 1.3 million feet of terraces, which if built end to end would span the state of Iowa from Glenwood to Burlington.

Alliance honored multiple times

RLWA and watershed landowners received numerous awards this year: Governors Iowa Environmental Excellence Award. This is the premier environmental honor in Iowa, recognizing leadership and innovation in the protection of Iowas natural resources. This prestigious award was given at a ceremony June 27 at the Wallace Building in Des Moines and honored the Rathbun Land and Water Alliance for its comprehensive environmental ethics and outstanding contributions to the environment. It is always rewarding to showcase and celebrate the innovation Iowans exhibit in protecting our natural resources, said

EXCELLENCE: Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad (from right) presents the Iowa Environmental Excellence Award to RLWA President John Glenn, RLWA secretarytreasurer Bruce George and RLWA board member, Ralph Alshouse. Pictured at left are Iowa DNR Director Chuck Gipp and Iowa Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds. Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad. Outstanding Watershed Award. At the 67th annual Iowa Soil and Water Conservation District Commissioners Conference at the Sheraton Hotel in Des Moines on Sept. 4, the RLWA was awarded the Iowa Outstanding Watershed Award. Jim Frederick, president of the Conservation Districts of Iowa, says the alliance has worked diligently to protect and improve Rathbun Lake, which provides drinking water to 80,000 people in southern Iowa and northern Missouri. Its impressive how many landowners have worked with the alliance to install conservation practices on priority lands to stop the delivery of contaminants to the lake. Landowner awards. Seven Rathbun Lake Watershed landowners were among the 63 families from across the state of Iowa to receive the Iowa Farm Environmental Leader Award during a ceremony at the Iowa State Fair, Branstad, Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey and Iowa Department of Natural Resources Director Chuck Gipp were all on hand to present the award. RLWA president and Rathbun Regional Water Association CEO John Glenn said the important role the landowners play in the protection of Rathbun Lake cant be overstated. Of the more than $26 million in financial support that project partners provide to carry out water protection activities, nearly $4 million is contributed by the landowners, said Glenn. We recognize the commitment and investment that Iowa farmers have made to protect the soil and improve water quality, and these awards are an opportunity to highlight their good work, Branstad said. These farmers are leading the way in environmental stewardship. Reynolds added, Iowa farmers are passionate about the work they do and how they care for our natural resources. Northey added, Iowa has tremendous farmers who are not only the most productive in the world, but who also understand that we must care for the soil and water and preserve it for the next generation.

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OUTSTANDING: Representing the Rathbun Land and Water Alliance at the 67th Annual Conservation Districts of Iowa Commissioners annual meeting, John Glenn (right) accepts the 2013 Iowa Outstanding Watershed Award from Jim Frederick, president of Conservation Districts of Iowa. Much more is to be done on the watershed, which covers 354,000 acres. The alliance and its partners will begin a new initiative that will set the stage for future Rathbun Lake protection efforts, as they recently committed the leadership, technical expertise and financial resources required to develop the Rathbun Lake Water Quality Improvement Plan. Glenn said the preparation of this plan will involve an increase in water quality monitoring activities, extensive field data collection, and development and application of sophisticated watershed and water quality models. Development of the plan will include a detailed evaluation of the impact of best management practices that have been installed by landowners in the watershed, he said. Results from ongoing water quality monitoring will be used to evaluate the benefits of Rathbun Lake protection efforts. Chester writes for RLWA.

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