(DES MOINES) – Gov. Terry E. Branstad today received notification that President  Obama has authorized a Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for six counties impacted by ongoing flooding conditions along the Missouri River since May 25, 2011.

“I am pleased to see the Presidential Major Disaster Declaration for these six counties came through,” Branstad said. “As we are still actively fighting the flood, this declaration provides a much needed financial boost to our local governments.”

The declaration by the President will provide federal funding to Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Monona, Pottawattamie, and Woodbury counties under the Public Assistance Program. This funding will be available to eligible public entities and select nonprofit agencies to cover costs incurred for implementing emergency protective measures and for the anticipated need for removal of debris.

In addition, the declaration makes available Direct Federal Assistance, which may include sheltering supplies and swift-water rescue teams if needed. “Communities along the Missouri River have exhausted their budgets in responding to the flood,” said HSEMD Administrator Brigadier General Derek Hill. “This declaration not only provides Direct Federal Assistance to aid in the response, but also provides the funding to replenish local budgets and assist with debris removal when the flood waters recede.”

The Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division continues to evaluate the flood’s impact on Iowans. This most recent declaration does not include aid to individuals and businesses. However, the Division is working with local emergency management agencies to determine the number of homes impacted by the flood and the damages these impacted homes have sustained.

The Division, along with FEMA, the Small Business Administration, and local authorities will be conducting preliminary damage assessments next week to determine if the damages that have occurred thus far are sufficient to warrant the inclusion of the Individual Assistance Program in this Major Disaster Declaration.

The Governor also received notification that the Presidential Disaster Declaration includes funding to conduct hazard mitigation activities for the entire state. With this funding, Iowa will be able to minimize the impact of future natural disasters by taking steps now to strengthen existing infrastructure.

This Presidential Disaster Declaration is the 12th Major Presidential Disaster Declaration Iowa has received since March 2007.

August 5 Deadline to Apply for Grants through Watershed Improvement Review Board

DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey today encouraged eligible groups to apply for grants to support projects that will improve water quality or help prevent flooding in the state.  Between $743,000 and $1.2 million in grant funds are available to local watershed improvement committees, soil and water conservation districts, public water supply utilities, county conservation boards, cities and counties.

“These funds are available to support projects that address specific water quality problems or that can help reduce flooding in our state,” Northey said.  “Protecting and improving water quality is central to the work of the Department and these funds support projects that make documented improvements in our state’s water quality or address potential flooding.”

Projects eligible for funding include, but are not limited to, those addressing agricultural runoff and drainage, flood prevention, stream bank erosion, municipal discharge, storm water runoff, unsewered communities, industrial discharge and livestock runoff.

Each project can request up to $500,000 in funding over five years.

Potential applicants should review the RFA in full at  www.iowaagriculture.gov/IWIRB.asp to make sure their proposal qualifies.

All applications are due on Friday, August 5, 2011 and will be reviewed Friday, September 9, 2011 by the Watershed Improvement Review Board.  The Board is comprised of representatives from agriculture, drinking water and wastewater utilities, environmental organizations, agribusiness, the conservation community along with two state senators and two state representatives.  A funding announcement is expected to be made in September.

Application materials can be downloaded from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship website at www.iowaagriculture.gov/IWIRB.asp.

To receive more information or ask questions, contact Jerry Neppel at 515-281-3599.

No injuries were reported after a fire destroyed a farm tractor Monday afternoon, southwest of Atlantic. The call about the fire at 60435 585th Street came in at around 4-p.m.

Atlantic Fire responded to the scene and found a John Deere 7520 tractor fully engulfed in flames. The tractor is owned by Bill Pellett, of Atlantic. Pellett told KJAN News Brett Pellett was cleaning out a grain bin with a vacuum/auger attachment on the rear of the tractor in preparation for the fall harvest, when flames erupted from the front end of the tractor.

Pellett said he thinks an electrical problem may be to blame for the fire.

Bill Menner, USDA Rural Development State Director in Iowa, will be in Elk Horn, Greenfield and Corning on Tuesday, July 12th to listen to local community and economic development leaders, as well as the general public, discuss issues and opportunities they encounter in their ongoing efforts to keep rural Iowa vibrant and prosperous.
The sessions will take place at 9 a.m. at Elk Horn Town Hall, 4212 Main Street – Elk Horn, at 1:00 p.m. at Greenfield City Hall, 202 South 1st Street – Greenfield, and at 3:30 p.m. at the Adams County Fair Grounds in the Pavilion (north side of the 4-H Exhibit Building) – Corning. All three are open to the public.

In the last 10 years, 66 of Iowa’s 99 counties have seen a population decline.  While rural communities and areas are home to 1.7 million Iowans, more than half of Iowa’s nearly 950 cities now have fewer than 500 residents.
USDA Rural Development currently administers and manages more than 40 housing, business and community infrastructure and facility loan and grant programs designed to improve the economic stability of rural communities, businesses, residents, farmers and ranchers and improve the quality of life in rural America.

During the past year the agency helped a record number of Iowans receive funding for economic development projects and quality of life improvements. The agency’s investment in Iowa helped create or retain more than 2,200 jobs, aided 2,500 families in buying their own homes and assisted more than 250 communities as they made improvements to their facilities, services and infrastructure.

What:   Rural-Issues Listening Posts – hosted by USDA Rural Development
When and Where:
Tuesday, July 12th
9:00 a.m. – Elk Horn Town Hall – 4212 Main Street – Elk Horn
1:00 p.m. – Greenfield City Hall, 202 South 1st Street – Greenfield
3:30 p.m. – Adams County Fair Grounds – The Pavilion – Corning

For more information about finance programs through USDA Rural Development, please call the office located in Atlantic at (712) 243-2107 Ext. 4. This office serves communities, businesses and residents in Adams, Audubon, Cass, Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie, Shelby and Taylor Counties.
Further information on programs available through USDA Rural Development is available by visiting the agency’s web site at www.rurdev.usda.gov/ia.

As travelers hit the road en-masse for the Independence Day holiday weekend, law enforcement agencies across the state will be out in force as well, watching for alcohol or drug-impaired drivers, and other traffic violations. Officials with the Iowa Department of Public Safety say a Special Traffic Enforcement Project, or “STEP,” will take place July 1^st thru the 4^th, with a special emphasis on taking impaired drivers off the road, and making sure motorists are buckled up.

Last year, Iowa recorded five traffic-related fatalities over the July 4^th weekend. That was two more than in 2009. Fortunately, none of the deaths over the past four-years were alcohol-related.

During a similar STEP effort in 2010, 214 law enforcement agencies, local and across the state, had contact with a total of 353 alcohol and/or drug impaired drivers. There were also slightly more than 1,000 citations or warnings issued for seatbelt violations, and nearly 5,000 tickets issued for speeding. In all, over 11,228 violations were recorded in 2010.

Officers also assisted 965 motorists, investigated 366 crashes, and apprehended 107 persons wanted on warrants.

Only minor injuries were reported following a motorcycle accident Thursday evening in Audubon County. According to the Sheriff’s Department, 30-year old Steven Robert Pedersen, of Atlantic, was injured when he was thrown from the off-road motorcycle he was riding, after he collided with the side of a passing vehicle. The accident happened at around 6-p.m., on Pheasant Avenue, near 130^th Street.

Officials say 40-year old Kasey Jean Mora, of Audubon, was traveling behind Pedersen’s 2008 Chukeda X Racer cycle and in the process of passing it, when Pedersen veered into the side of her 2006 Chevy Impala. Damage from the accident amounted to $1,400. Pedersen was charged with operating a non-registered motor vehicle, driving under suspension, and driving left of center.

A separate accident happened Saturday night, on Highway 71 near the intersection with Highway 44, in Audubon County. Sheriff’s officials say 42-year old Conda Marie Dennis, of Audubon, was traveling south on Highway 71, when her 1987 Olds Cutless entered the shoulder and the woman tried to drive back onto the road.

Her actions caused her to lose control of the car, which hit a cement guard rail. No injuries were reported. Damage to the vehicle amounted to $2,000.

An Ames resident was arrested Sunday night on a couple charges in Audubon County, following a traffic stop in Exira. 49-year old Jan Tracey Rasmussen faces charges of OWI, 3^rd offense, and driving while barred. Sheriff’s officials say Rasmussen also had an outstanding warrant for driving while barred, stemming from an incident which occurred on January 9^th.

She was brought to the Audubon County Jail and after being seen by the magistrate, was held on $5,000 bond.

A power outage Sunday morning in parts of Pottawattamie, Cass and Shelby Counties had nothing to do with the weather. Tina Potthoff, spokesperson for Mid-American Energy based in Des Moines, said a furry bandit was responsible. She says a raccoon made its way into a substation at 220 Pearl Street in Walnut. The result was a total of 806 customers who lost power.

In particular, 152 customers were left in the dark in Marne, while 654 persons in Pottawattamie County and a smattering of customers in Cass and Shelby Counties were left without power. The incident happened at around 5:04-a.m. Power was restored at around 10-a.m.

Potthoff says when a critter such as a raccoon or squirrel enters a substation, they typically get into the electrical wiring, which typically results in the animal’s demise, along with a power outage.

Governor Branstad says Missouri River flooding has already done “tens of millions of dollars” in damage. Branstad will be conducting an aerial tour of the sprawling Missouri River’s run along Iowa’s western border. “Today I’m going back to Sioux City and Council Bluffs to get a first-hand view of the flood situation and the work that’s been going on,” Branstad says. Branstad has asked for a presidential disaster declaration for the six counties that border the Missouri River, and Branstad says he “can’t imagine” the president won’t grant it.

“That’s important because communities like Hamburg and Council Bluffs and Sioux City and virtually all the communities along the Missouri River have expended a lot of money to protect themselves and they should be eligible for 80 percent reimbursement and also the state’s match as well,” Branstad says. “And so we anticipate this will be a substantial cost at all levels, but under the FEMA guidelines, the federal government should pick up at least 80 percent of this.”

Some concerns have been raised about a nuclear power plant just across the border in Nebraska which is surrounded by water, but Branstad says he’s been “assured” there is no danger to the public. “It is surrounded by water, but it is also actually shut down right now anyway for maintenance purposes,” Branstad says, “and they feel very confident there is no danger with it whatsoever.”

Branstad will fly in a Black Hawk helicopter from Sioux City to Council Bluffs this afternoon. He has on-the-ground meetings in both cities with local officials involved in the flood fight. Branstad will be along the Mississippi River tomorrow (Tuesday) to welcome President Obama to Bettendorf and the governor plans to visit with Obama about that presidential disaster declaration request for the Missouri River corridor. Branstad also spoke with the governors of Montana and North Dakota this past weekend to compare notes on the status of the Missouri River basin.

(Radio Iowa)

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad says he’ll press President Barack Obama to issue a disaster declaration along the Missouri River during the president’s trip to eastern Iowa. The governor told reporters at his weekly news conference Monday that he’s scheduled to meet with the president during Obama’s trip to Bettendorf on Tuesday and will use the occasion to seek a federal disaster declaration. That would allow the federal government to pick up roughly 80 percent of the costs of damage to public facilities due to flooding.

The governor has already requested a federal disaster declaration. Branstad says he is hopeful that request will be granted in the next few days. With the president scheduled to be in Bettendorf, Branstad says it makes sense to use that occasion to reiterate his request.