Iowa Utility Expected To Sue Government Over Nitrates, Water Quality

A water company in Iowa is expected to take its local government to court over high nitrate levels after the area experienced an uptick in water pollution this year.

"Des Moines Water Works is expected to pursue a lawsuit against three northwestern Iowa counties that manage drainage districts with high concentrations of nitrates," the Des Moines Register reported.

"Water Works' lawsuit would aim to hold Calhoun, Buena Vista and Sac counties responsible for the high nitrate levels in the Raccoon River, a primary water source for Des Moines," the Sioux City Journal reported.

The way nitrates affect water quality is the focus of the case, according to the report. Graham Gillette, chairman of Water Works, framed the decision as a no-brainer.

"We really feel we have no choice," he said, per the report. "This is the only way that we see that we can engage the government, especially the state of Iowa, in a serious discussion about regulating those pollutants that are dumped into our source water."

Rivers near Des Moines are highly polluted, according to the Associated Press.

"Two rivers that supply water to 500,000 people in the Des Moines area show nitrate levels spiking to levels that make it unsafe for some to drink, a concentration experts haven't before seen in the fall that likely stems from especially wet weather in recent months," the AP reported in November.

Not everyone is disillusioned with the region's nitrate policies. Farm interests have spoken out in favor of state-level policies. The Iowa Agriculture Water Alliance, headquartered at the Iowa Soybean Association, supports the state effort to combat nitrates.

"The strategy is a science-based initiative to reduce nitrate and phosphorus loads in Iowa waterways by 45 percent from point and nonpoint sources. The coordinated, bi-partisan approach to reduce nutrient loads is the most significant catalyst for improving environmental performance in Iowa in a generation. State lawmakers overwhelmingly approved $22.4 million to support the strategy in the spring of 2013," the group says.

For more on nitrates, check out Water Online's Nutrient Removal Solution Center.