Contact your legislators TODAY and ask them to oppose HF 316!
An attempt is being made at the Iowa Legislature to “reorganize” Des Moines Water Works after 150 years of delivering safe and affordable drinking water to Iowans. House File 316 was introduced by Rep. Jarad Klein, a Farm Bureau member from Keota in SE Iowa, far from DMWW service area.
Today’s Des Moines Register editorial states: “Bill Stowe, the CEO and general manager of the Water Works, says the bill is payback. He says lawmakers are retaliating for the utility’s lawsuit against rural drainage districts that allegedly channel high levels of nitrates into the Raccoon River, forcing the Water Works to spend millions on cleanup so the water can be made safe to drink. A new board could drop the lawsuit.”
The lawsuit was filed to protect Iowa residents. Water quality is not a partisan issue and it does not care what your socio-economic status or your address is. This is a health and quality-of-life issue for Iowans.
10 parts per million (ppm) of Nitrates in drinking water is the MAXIMUM that the United States Environmental Protection Agency supports for human consumption and we drink close to it every day.
The Des Moines City Council voted behind closed doors last week in favor of the bill. Mayor Cownie justified his support for Klein’s bill by stating it was the “lesser of two evils” (in reference to a similar but even worse bill introduced last session).
In what world should Iowans have to choose a scenario that involves evil in our drinking water? This session, legislators were supposed to be talking about SOLUTIONS to complicated, state-wide water quality issues, not dismantling over 100 years of community investment that Des Moines Water Works has coordinated.
IRR Vision: clean, free-flowing Iowa rivers teaming with life, surrounded by diverse landscapes, and connecting vibrant communities.
We cannot turn our backs on Des Moines Water Works, the ONE entity that is willing to stand up and fight for cleaner water, the life source we require. The systemic pollution of our most precious natural resource must be stopped. We need you. We need your voice to be heard. We need our elected officials to understand that we will not stand for this attack on the environment. We do not want to be the next Flint, Michigan. We will fight for the health and safety of Iowans, and we expect our public officials to do so as well.