bill stowe - nitrogen

Impacts of Nitrogen Fertilizer Use on Escalating Water Treatment Costs

Bill StoweCEO and General Manager

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Iowa’s Industrial Agriculture Reality

20,455,666 hogs in Iowa83.5 pounds of manure per head/per day

Treatment Plant

Recharge Ponds

Drainage Tiling: Increasing Water Quantity while Reducing Water Quality

Iowa Drainage Districts

Hardin County, Iowa

Tragedy of the Commons: Free use of water resource

to move waste

Raccoon River January 2016 Nitrate Load - University of Iowa

IIHR - Hydroscience and Engineering

Nitrate (NO3) in Water

• EPA Safe Drinking Water Standard: 10 mg/L.• Nitrate levels above the standard are a public

health risk. Particularly at risk are infants below six months of age who, if left untreated, could become seriously ill or die.

• Nitrate treatment not addressed through traditional lime softening/filtration system. Side-stream treatment is required.

Number of Days Source Waters Above the 10 mg/L Nitrate Safe Drinking Water Standard

Costs to Water Treatment Facilities At Farm vs. Downstream

Des Moines Denitrification Costs2015 O&M Costs $1,500,000Estimated Cost for Denitrification Facilities Upgrades $80 million

Paid for by ratepayers

$1.50-$22.00 per pound on the farm $15.00-$47.00 per pound at municipal treatment plant

– NACWA

Iowa’s Wasted Resources• Billions of dollars in federal ag subsidies with

no greater use of conservation practices• No tie between federal subsidies and long-term

accountability

“Fooling Ourselves: Voluntary Programs Fail to Clean Up Dirty Water,” Environmental Working Group, February 2016

Solutions for Water Quality Improvement

1. Treat pollution at the source: in-field or edge-of-field solutions.

2. Transparent measuring and monitoring of protection of public health – NPDES compliance.

3. Agricultural accountability for environmental protection – Resources follow accountability, not vice versa.

Sac County, Iowa

No other business besides agriculture can run a pipe without regulation

into the waters of the state.

Why is agriculture different?

____ THINK DOWNSTREAM ____