To the hundreds of thousands of people who live in the Raccoon River’s watershed, it was no surprise that the river has only been dubbed one of the most vulnerable in the country, sacrificed for the benefit of the agribusiness of corporations and distant shareholders. But we can do something about it – by asking the federal government to do its job.
The raccoon’s waters should be part of public trust – waters that the state must protect for public use. Unfortunately, as our lawsuit last year (Iowa CCI and Food & Water Watch v State of Iowa) made clear, the State of Iowa has abandoned that responsibility and widespread industrial agriculture in the river basin.
The state has relied heavily on an industry-friendly “voluntary” approach to reducing agricultural pollution in rivers and lakes. Unsurprisingly, it failed. More than 750 factory farms operate in the raccoon watershed, which means billions of gallons of manure are applied to farmland every year, often at rates well above the soil’s ability to absorb it. The excess flows into the raccoon and its tributaries. This has led to a water crisis of epic proportions.
CONNECTED: Runoff puts Raccoon on the list of the 10 Most Endangered Inland Waterways
Des Moines relies on the raccoons to wash the water. To provide residents with clean drinking water, the city must operate one of the largest nitrate removal systems in the world. The cost of this treatment is borne entirely by the interest payers, not the polluters. Not only do people in rural areas of the watershed struggle with the burden of living near the polluting factory farms themselves, but they also often rely on private drinking water wells, which are often contaminated with dangerous nitrates.
A look at the raccoon on the list of Most Endangered Rivers in America underscores what we have long known – Iowa is in a water crisis. The industrial takeover of the Raccoon River is now in the national spotlight. The dominance of corporate agriculture, the failure of various state agencies, and the refusal of Iowa elected officials to address this crisis is shockingly clear.
The Federal Environment Agency could be part of the solution. The EPA has delegated authority to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to protect waterways from Iowa’s factory farms and must hold DNR accountable for its inaction. Our legislation also refuses to act. Despite much of the Iowans support for a moratorium on factory farms, according to a 2019 survey by GQR on behalf of the Center for a Future Worth Living, lawmakers will allow these farms to continue growing unabated.
Where others have failed us, the EPA needs to intensify inspections and enforcement actions in the Raccoon watershed. As the Most Endangered Rivers Report suggests, Raccoon and Iowa can’t wait a minute longer.
Chance lies in the fate of the raccoon. Rivers connect us in rural and urban areas – they remind us that we have a lot in common. Together we can initiate change. Iowans across the state deserve clean, safe drinking water and a system that puts our health and safety above business benefits.
Emma Schmit is an organizer at Food & Water Watch and lives in Rockwell City in the upstream part of the Raccoon River watershed. Adam Mason is the state director for Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement and lives in Des Moines, on the downstream part of the Raccoon River watershed. Contact: [email protected], [email protected].
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