DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — A voluntary state program that aims to improve water quality practices at farms around Iowa is entering its fourth year amid growing differences about the best ways to clean up the state’s waterways. The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship has announced the sign-up period is open for its cost-share program that allows farmers to offset the expense of implementing some water quality practices. The money will be available in July.

The agriculture department says the program is among several water quality initiatives. Some agriculture experts say it’s not enough for long-term benefits. The Iowa Legislature failed this session to figure out a sustainable funding source for water quality initiatives. There is also tension over whether cleanup efforts should include regulation or expanded voluntary efforts like the cost-share program.

The City of Atlantic’s Parks and Recreation Board is expected to receive a letter of resignation, Monday, from Parks and Rec Director Roger Herring. Herring announced his intentions to retire back in Sept., 2014, and at that time requested the Board begin a search for his successor. In Dec., 2014, Seth Staashelm was hired as the Assistant Parks and Rec Director, with the idea being he would succeed Herring in the Director’s position. Herring’s last day will be June 30th. He began working as Parks and Rec Director in June, 2011.

Atlantic Parks & Rec Asst. Dir. Seth Staashelm (Left) & Director Roger Herring (right), at the Parks & Rec Board mtg. 12/14/15

In other business, the Board will receive updates on the Schildberg Rec Area Lake #2 Transportation Alternative Program (TAP) grant, and the Vision Iowa grant, along with other, regular park programs and various features updates, such as the Connector Trail, Dog Park, Kiddie Korral and East Shelter house renovation.

Their meeting takes places in the Council’s Chambers at City Hall, beginning at 5:15-p.m., Monday.

Connections Area Agency has announced that the State of Iowa is continuing its Farmers Market voucher program for older Iowans.  With this program, seniors meeting income requirements can obtain vouchers that they can use at participating area Farmers Markets to buy $30.00 worth of fresh, locally grown produce.  If you have questions about eligibility, please check with your local senior center.

Applications for the vouchers will be available at your local senior center the week of May 23^rd, 2016.  Your completed application guarantees you a booklet, but there is a limited number, so contact your local senior center if you are interested in this program.   Once you have a completed application, you can return to your local Senior Center to pick up your vouchers on or after June 14^th.

Applications for Council Bluffs residents will be available at The Center, located at 714 S. Main Street on May 23^rd, 2016 as well. The distribution date for Council Bluffs vouchers will be once again held at The Center on Tuesday, June 14th from 9am – noon.  Again, your completed application guarantees you a booklet, so you may come at any time on June 14^th to the Center to present your completed application and obtain your vouchers.  Seniors (age 60 and older) in all other communities in  Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page, Pottawattamie and Shelby counties will receive their vouchers through their local senior center.

Program Criteria:

• Must be at least 60 years of age or older
• Annual income must be less than

$21,978          Single

$29,637          Married

• Only one original application allowed per individual.  No photocopies or duplicate applications allowed.  Married couples can jointly apply on one application.

Dates to Remember:

• May 23rd, 2016:  Applications are available at all local senior centers and The Center in Council Bluffs.
• June 14, 2016:  Council Bluffs Farmers’ Market vouchers are available for pick up at local senior centers in Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Montgomery, Page Pottawattamie and Shelby counties. Council Bluffs distribution will be held at The Center, 714 S. Main from 9am – Noon for seniors with a completed application.

Two students from Griswold had their egg recipes place in the top 5 during the Iowa Egg Council’s “Incredibly Good Eggs” Recipe Contest, held May 4th at Iowa State University, in Ames. Neve Perdue took 1st place in the Student Division, with her Spring Vegetable Egg Drop Soup. Her recipe earned her the top honors and a $500 cash prize. Tina Perdue, placed 5th with her “North African Baked Eggs with Chickpeas and Feta,” recipe.

The top 5 winners in each category, adult and student, were judged by a panel of experts, with the recipes being scores on taste, appearance, originality, and use of eggs in their dish.

Visit iowaegg.org on the web for the recipes created by the Perdues and other contestants.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The lawsuit filed by the Des Moines Water Works in federal court against several upstream agriculture drainage districts has been delayed by nearly a year. Originally scheduled for trial in August, a judge rescheduled the three-week trial for June 26, 2017.

Water Works Board Chairman Graham Gillette says that will give the Iowa Supreme Court time to resolve constitutional questions the federal judge posed to it prior to trying the case. Gillette says a delay also gives state leaders time to reconsider providing money for agriculture practices that would reduce water pollutants.

The water utility for about 500,000 central Iowa customers blames farmland runoff for high levels of nitrate that cost millions of dollars to remove. Water Works officials want farm drainage districts regulated under the federal Clean Water Act.

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey today (Thursday) announced that he will be making stops in Pottawattamie, Cass and Adams Counties on Friday, May 13th. Northey will tour the Union Pacific Railroad Museum in Council Bluffs, have lunch at the Downtowner in Atlantic and then visit Corning Meat Processing Services.

Bill Northey, IA Sec. of Agriculture

The details of the visits are as follows:

Friday, May 13, 2016

Pottawattamie County – 11:15 a.m., visit the Union Pacific Railroad Museum, 605 S. 3^rd St., Council Bluffs

Cass County – 1:15 p.m., have lunch at The Downtowner, 14 E. 4^th St., Atlantic

Adams County – 3:30 p.m., visit Corning Meat Processing Services, 501 Davis Ave., Corning

Northey, a corn and soybean farmer from Spirit Lake, is serving his third term as Secretary of Agriculture. His priorities as Secretary of Agriculture are promoting the use of science and new technologies to better care for our air, soil and water, and reaching out to tell the story of Iowa agriculture.

ISU Extension and Outreach Montgomery County will be hosting three different day camps available to youth in Montgomery County this summer. Registration fee is $20 per camp. The fees for service will be used to offset direct expenses and to support the 4-H Youth Development County Extension Program. Registration includes snacks, supplies and insurance. Youth are responsible for bringing a lunch.

Details about each camp are as follows:

Digging Up Dinosaurs will be held on June 15th from 9 AM to 3 PM at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. This camp is open to all youth who have completed Kindergarten through 3rd grade. Explore the mighty dinosaurs traveling back millions of years ago to the days when dinosaurs roamed the earth. Discover how dinosaurs lived and how big they were. Enjoy dinosaur crafts and become a paleontologist as you discover fossils.

Planet Energy will be held on June 22nd from 9 AM to 3 PM at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. This camp is open to all youth who have completed 4th through 6th grade. Youth will work with members of a team to design, create, build, and test wind-powered devices. Youth will visit a local farm to explore wind as a potential energy source in their community and how wind turbines power a farming operation.

Farm Adventures will be held on June 29th from 9 AM to 3 PM. Youth will meet at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. This camp is open to all youth who have completed 3rd through 6th grade. Slip on your boots and join us for a fun, educational and hands-on day camp at the VanMeter Farm. Learn about farm safety, livestock and crop production right here in Montgomery County. Youth will explore a local farm operation and discover a variety of interesting facts about cattle, corn, soybeans and farm equipment.

Registration forms are available online at www.extension.iastate.edu/montgomery or at the Extension office. Registration is due by June 3rd to Montgomery County ISU Extension and Outreach, 400 Bridge Street, Suite 2, Red Oak, IA 51566. Upon registration, a completed health form is required for all non 4-H participants. Financial assistance is available.

For more information, contact Chelsea Cousins, County Youth Coordinator at Montgomery County ISU Extension and Outreach, at 712-623-2592 or ccousins@iastate.edu.

What makes a reptile, a reptile? What lives in our lakes? How old is the earth? What is going on in outerspace? Cass County youth will get to answer these and many more questions, when they attend several daycamp experiences this summer. The camps are being sponsored by the Cass County Conservation Board and Cass County Extension.

The Rockin’ Reptiles camp will be held for youth completing kindergarten through 2nd grade. Youth have the opportunity to attend camp at three different locations on different days:
May 31 & June 1 — 9 AM-12 PM @ Lake Anita (Shelter #5), Anita – Registration Deadline May 20
June 6 & 7 — 9 AM-12 PM or 1 PM-4 PM @ Sunnyside Park (Camblin Shelter), Atlantic- Registration Deadline May 31
June 15 & 16 — 9 AM-12 PM @ Cold Springs Park, Lewis – Registration Deadline June 6

At the Rockin Reptiles camp, youth will learn and play as we explore reptiles. Make crafts, friends and play games! To Earth & Beyond, 3rd – 5th grade youth can explore many things outerspace, planets and especially our earth. Explore the solar system through crafts, games and fun! Please bring a sack lunch. This camp will be held at three different locations on three different days,
June 2 — 9 AM-4 PM @ Lake Anita (Shelter #5), Anita – Registration Deadline May 20
June 3 — 9 AM-4 PM @ Cold Springs Park, Lewis – Registration Deadline May 20
June 9 — 9 AM-4 PM @ Sunnyside Park (Camblin Shelter), Atlantic – Registration Deadline June 1

Adventure Camp is open to youth completing grades 6th-8th grade. Youth will learn outdoor skills related to fishing, hiking and Dutch Oven cooking (lunch) over a campfire! This camp is offered Thursday, June 23 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM at
Cold Springs Park, Lewis. Registration Deadline June 17. Busing is available from Cass Co. Community Center. The bus will depart at 8 AM, and return by 5 PM.

Registration forms are available at the Cass County Extension Office or online at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass. There is a $10 registration fee for all camps which includes all camp supplies, and a snack. A medical information form will be
required for all youth. If you have any questions, contact Beth Irlbeck, Cass County Extension, at 243-1132, or Lora Canning, Cass County Naturalist, at 712-769-
2372 with questions, or visit the Cass County Extension website at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.

Officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Wednesday, said a cattle feedlot owner reported to authorities a leaking runoff holding basin. Lee Schon found the leak Wednesday morning, at the base of the basin’s bank located about six-miles southeast of Carroll. Schon quickly tried to repair the leak, but the DNR says the seepage will likely continue until the soil drys out enough to fix the basin.

The feedlot runoff was flowing about 400-feet across a field into an unnamed tributary of the Middle Raccoon River. A DNR field specialist took samples of the discharge, and is working with Schon to minimize the effects, downstream. Early indications from field test results and high stream flows are that there will likely be little impact to aquatic organisms.

Schon plans to land apply runoff remaining in the basin to a nearby pasture, when soil conditions permit, and the DNR says it will continue to monitor the situation and work with Schon to ensure permanent repairs are completed.

Officials with the AKSARBEN Foundation have announced Ward Umbaugh, of Adair is one of 50 students from seven states (including 16 Iowa students) named as a 2016 winner of AKSARBEN AG Leaders Scholarship. Other scholarship winners from southwest Iowa include Heath Downing, from Creston, and Hayden VanMeter, from Red Oak.

Each scholarship awardee is a 4-H member who has exhibited at the AKSARBEN Stock Show and Rodeo in Omaha, and will receive $2,000 toward their education. They must be a high school senior and 4-H Exhibitor who has participated in the stock show for three or more years. The scholars also plan to attend a two or four year college or university and have expressed interest in pursuing a career related to agriculture or a non-agriculture career within a rural community .

Established in 1895, the AKSARBEN Foundation represents the premier employers in Nebraska and western Iowa.  The Foundation’s mission is to leverage collective business leadership to build a more prosperous Heartland by funding and guiding best practice, needs-based scholarship programs, awarding over $1 million annually; promoting the Heartland’s cultural heritage through top-ranking community celebrations, attended by over 100,000 annually; and honoring community leaders who carry on the Heartland’s tradition of philanthropy and volunteerism.