(Radio Iowa) – More details have been released as the investigation of the accidental death of a Kossuth County man near a hog facility continues. According to the Kossuth County Sheriff’s Office, the investigation has determined that M&M Pumping LLC of West Bend was using the open concrete tank on the property south of Algona for the storage of peptones and soybean wash water. On September 4, the contents of the tank began to foam over for an unknown reason. At that time, 33-year-old Randy Meyer of Whittemore was attempting to agitate or stir the contents of the tank with a tractor and auger when he was overcome by the odor of gasses.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency performed air quality screening assessments around the facility on September 16 and 17, testing for a limited number of pollutants. The Iowa DNR is working with the EPA to collect additional air samples so they can more comprehensively identify and characterize the odors being emitted from the storage tank. The DNR is working with the responsible parties, as well as state and federal officials, to address the environmental concerns during the removal and proper disposal of the waste material.

(Radio Iowa) – This is Farm Safety Week as harvest season gets rolling, and all farm hands are warned to stay especially vigilant for field fires during the drought. Iowa State University Extension ag engineer Kris Kohl says after a series of rural fires in 2012, a study was conducted that focused on variables like temperature, humidity and wind.  “We didn’t get any correlation to super high temperatures or really low humidity,” Kohl says, “but when you hit wind, if the wind was over 20 miles an hour in dry conditions, things can take off and burn really bad, really fast.”

Combine/Field fire east of Earling (File photo)

Kohl suggests farmers use a leaf blower to blast the dust and debris off their hot machinery, especially when the weather is perfect for a wildfire. “When we get to those kinds of conditions where we’ve got wind speeds predicted over 20 miles an hour, those are the days you’ve got to really watch out and make sure the combines are clean,” Kohl says. “Probably clean them off every couple of hours to make sure we don’t get a field fire taking off.”

Kohl recommends producers have a disc attached to a large tractor rather than trying to use water to battle any potential fire out in the fields.

w/Kate Olson.

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The Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department Board met Monday evening at a cool and windy East Ridge Park. During their meeting, Parks and Rec Director Bryant Rasmussen brought up one of what he called “A hot topic”: A Memorandum pertaining to the City of Atlantic taking over operations at the Sunnyside Pool. That includes the hiring of life guards and their job duties. The YMCA currently runs the facility. Rasmussen said their Aquatics Director handled all the scheduling of the lifeguards and other such matters.

The Board passed a motion saying the City wishes to take over the day-to-day operations of the pool. Rasmussen said he doesn’t think that will step on any toes at City Hall.

The Parks and Rec Board will hold an open meeting 5-p.m. Oct. 4^th at City Hall in Atlantic, separate from the previous meetings that have been held within the community, under the direction of YMCA Director Dan Haynes.

Atlantic Parks & Rec Board: Director Bryant Rasmussen (Left), John Krogman (Center,away), Stuart Dusenberry (Center, near), & Erin McFadden (right); Not visible, Jolene Smith.

Already several representatives have come through to look at the pool and discuss the options that are available, and what the associated costs might be. Currently, he said there are multiple options and price ranges that are being examined. In other business, Rasmussen said construction is finished on the washed-out part of the Schildberg Recreation Area trail, with the installation of rip-rap, but Heuton Construction said additional dirt work was necessary to remove and add-in. Their recommendation was to wait until spring to replace that trail, in order to allow the dirt to settle. Rasmussen said he is working to get on the calendar with some concrete workers to get the trail finished as soon as possible in the spring.

And, he said the City’s plan for shoring-up Bull Creek was approved by the Army Corps of Engineers.

DES MOINES – Today (Friday), Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a proclamation relating to the weight limits and transportation of grain. The proclamation is effective immediately and continues through October 17, 2021. The proclamation allows vehicles transporting corn, soybeans, hay, straw, silage and stover to be overweight (not exceeding 90,000 pounds gross weight) without a permit for the duration of this proclamation.  

This proclamation applies to loads transported on all highways within Iowa (excluding the interstate system) and those which do not exceed a maximum of 90,000 pounds gross weight, do not exceed the maximum axle weight limit determined under the non-primary highway maximum gross weight table in Iowa Code § 321.463 (6) (b), by more than 12.5 percent, do not exceed the legal maximum axle weight limit of 20,000 pounds, and comply with posted limits on roads and bridges.  

 See the proclamation here. 

(Radio Iowa) – Iowa is seeing a number of dairy producers leave the industry while many of those who remain are growing in size, according to a survey from the Iowa State University Extension. I-S-U Extension dairy specialist Jennifer Bentley says it’s been a shift over the past several years. “We’re still as a herd size in Iowa a little less than 250 cows per herd, but we are seeing dairy farms exit the dairy industry,” Bentley says, “however, a lot of our dairy producers are increasing their herd size.”

The surveys are done every five years and the results of the 2020 survey were just released. Bentley says the new survey shows producers are adapting to advances in automation. “Technology practices are increasing with robotic dairies, we’re starting to see more producers implement that into their operations with facilities,” Bentley says. “When we take a look at other technology practices or management practices, a lot of the genetics, more genomics being used on the farm.”

She says the pandemic has been tough on dairy producers. “A majority of them would say that yes, COVID-19 significantly had an impact on their dairy operation,” Bentley says. “We are seeing increased mental health stress on farms. Our survey results showed, over the last five years, dairy producers in general are experiencing more stress.”

Bentley says the typical dairy herd in Iowa has less than 250 predominantly Holstein cows with a rolling herd average between 18- and 26-thousand pounds.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – Atlantic Parks and Recreation Department Director Bryant Rasmussen reports that on Saturday September 18th, 2021 the Parks and Recreation Department will be hosting Hyggefest at the Sunnyside Bandstand. In order to host the event, the Parks Department needs to close a small section of road between the Bandstand and the Kiddie Korral Shelter from 4pm-7pm.

The access road running past the skatepark will remain open to allow through traffic. There is a map to show the road closure as well as the through route. (See below) A reminder also, the Parks and Recreation Department is partnering with Brad and Lorrie Rasmussen, to bring you music in the park. The event takes place this Saturday also, beginning at 5-p.m.,  at the Sunnyside Park Bandshell, during Hyggefest. An accumulation of local talents is lined-up for a night of music and entertainment. Bring your own lawn chair/blankets, food and drinks.

(Radio Iowa) – Last year’s powerful derecho damaged or destroyed an estimated seven million trees across Iowa, according to a new report from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.

Nick McGrath, a community disaster recovery coordinator, hired by the DNR and the nonprofit Trees Forever, says diversity is key when Iowans replant trees. “I think this does provide a really sad but unique opportunity to replant for resiliency,” McGrath says. “So, taking a look at what is left after the storm and maybe those species are what we should be focusing on.”

Damaged trees following the derecho. (Trees Forever photo.)

According to the report, derecho damage to the urban tree canopy alone amounts to $20 million a year in lost benefits. McGrath discussed how long it might take to replace what was lost. “I think we could see some real results in 30 to 60 years, maybe, if we start now, but the more we delay, the longer it takes,” McGrath says. “If you think about the trees that we lost, if you want to regrow your 100-year-old oak, it’s going to take 100 years.”

The DNR’s analysis finds the derecho damage to the urban tree canopy alone amounts to 90-million dollars’ worth of lost carbon storage. The August 10th, 2020 storm impacted 27 counties along the Highway 30 corridor, primarily in central and east-central Iowa.

(By Kate Payne, Iowa Public Radio)

(Radio Iowa) – State funding totaling nearly one-point-five million dollars has been approved for four trail projects. The D-O-T’s Craig Markley says a project on the Heart of Iowa Nature Trail in central Iowa won funding. He says it would pave a trail in Story County, with a grant of 400-thousand dollars. The total project cost is 674-thousand. A grant of 220-thousand was approved for the Raccoon River Valley Trail in central Iowa. “This would be a connection to the High Trestle (Trail). This continues filling in that missing link if you would between Woodward and Perry — where it would link those two very long loop trails,” Markley says.

He says the total project cost is 393-thousand dollars, and this will add to what is already a very good trail system in that area. The Grant Wood Trail in eastern Iowa’s Linn County was awarded a grant. “This would be hard-surfacing about three miles of current granular trail east of Marion, and that would be at a 400-thousand dollar cost,” he says. The total project cost of the Grant Wood Trail is 735-thousand dollars. The final award was to the Keokuk River Trail. “This would be the construction of one mile of new trail located along the Keokuk riverfront starting at Victory Park, and heading southwest towards the boat ramp,” Markley says.

That project won a grant of nearly 494-thousand dollars — with the total project cost of more than one-point-one million dollars. Markley says the requests for funding were way above the amount available. “We received 37 applications with a total project cost of nearly 37 million dollars. And the total amount requested was right at ten times the amount available — so almost 15 million requested for the one-point-five (million) available,” Markley says.

He says the projects are scored on a variety of criteria to determine which ones receive funding.