Iowa
February 11: Local writers address Iowa’s path to sustainability
Linda Schreiber is a member of the League of Women Voters of Johnson County.
Water pollution, flooding and drought, soil erosion, and extreme weather events are grabbing increasing attention across Iowa. What’s going on – and what can we do about it?
These and other Iowa environmental problems – and their solutions – will be the focus of Project GREEN and the Iowa City Public Library’s Second Sunday Garden Forum 2024, on Sunday, February 11, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. The forum, which is free and open to the public, will also stream live on Iowa City Public Library’s YouTube channel.
The forum’s discussions will be based on the book Tending Iowa’s Land: Pathways to a Sustainable Future (University of Iowa Press, 2022), which includes chapters by 28 Iowa premier scientists and environmental activists. Book editor Connie Mutel will lead a panel with five authors who contributed chapters on soil, water, climate and biodiversity problems. Ample time will be allowed for audience participation and questions.
Cindy Parsons, co-president of Project GREEN, said she is pleased Connie will return to present her newest book with colleagues and fellow writers. “Connie is Iowa’s Aldo Leopold. She combines her passion and knowledge of the environment with excellent writing and editing skills to remind all of us of our moral responsibility to care for Iowa’s land.”
Tending Iowa’s Land synthesizes the details of today’s interacting environmental dilemmas. This hopeful and action-oriented book proposes that Iowans can foster the state’s native resilience by nurturing elements of tallgrass prairies – the complex plant communities that dominated our state into the early 1800s. Tending Iowa’s Land received the 2023 Midwest Book Award for Nonfiction – Nature.
Mutel is the author or editor of fourteen books. Seven of these focus on Iowa’s natural environment. Her books, as well as other writings and educational efforts across the state, have established her as a devoted advocate for nature in Iowa. Before retiring, she was a Senior Science Writer at IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering in the UI College of Engineering.
Ecologist Pauline Drobney guided the initial restoration of Iowa’s 8,654-acre Neil Smith National Wildlife Refuge on former farmland. Until her retirement, she directed midwestern prairie and savanna research for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. She will describe the prairie’s amazing abilities to create a self-sustaining landscape, and the benefits and techniques of re-introducing diverse native plantings throughout our agricultural landscape. Pauline wrote the chapter on the tallgrass prairie.
Iowa State Geologist Keith Schilling serves as Director of the Iowa Geological Survey at the UI. His broad and prolific research on soil- and water-related issues is reflected in his chapters on soil erosion and water pollution (with Chris Jones). Schilling will discuss soil erosion and regenerative agriculture techniques that address this problem as well as problems with soil degradation, water pollution, carbon emissions, and biodiversity loss.
Jerald Schnoor, UI Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, former department chair, and the winner of numerous awards, has for decades focused his teaching and research on water quality and environmental health. His publications and students have advanced climate change efforts and water sustainability around the world. With his passion and creativity, Schnoor was the perfect author for the final book chapter “Regenerating Our Future: A Call to Action,” which he will discuss.
Award-winning organic dairy farmer Francis Thicke considers greenhouse gas emissions with every farming decision he makes, from how and what he feeds his cows to where he sells milk products. Thicke earned his doctorate in soil science and previously worked as a USDA Soil Science Program Leader for the Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. Both his academic and farming experiences fed into his chapter on using agriculture to help control climate change, which he will talk about.
As the UI IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering Director, Professor Larry Weber has created multiple Iowa initiatives to examine flooding, water pollution and landscape sustainability. Through his efforts with the Iowa Flood Center and Iowa Watershed Approach (IWA), Weber has developed a broad understanding of our state’s complex water issues and their solutions, which form a basis for his chapter and description of “Water-Centered Land Management.”
Project GREEN (Grow to Reach Environmental Excellence Now) was launched in 1968. The nonprofit supports efforts to educate citizens about the importance of conservation practices and preserving the natural environment. The organization celebrated 55 years of service to the community in 2023.
With the college football season right around the corner, the Iowa State Cyclones will be hoping to have a strong campaign with a new regime coming in. However, a lot of their success might depend on one key player.
Following the departure of Matt Campbell to the Penn State Nittany Lions, the Cyclones saw their roster get completely gutted. Most of their players entered the transfer portal, leaving new head coach Jimmy Rogers with plenty of work to do.
Fortunately, Rogers and the coaching staff were able to get out there and bring in a lot of new players from all over the country. While Iowa State might be lacking star power and aren’t going to be as talented as they were last year, they do have a good amount of depth.
There should be quite a bit of competition for spots in camp, but there are some players who should clearly be starters that transferred in.
Pete Nakos of On3 recently predicted who would be the starting quarterback for every team in the Big 12. Unsurprisingly for the Cyclones, it was Jaylen Raynor who was the choice.
Raynor an Easy Pick
After bringing in the three-year starter from the Arkansas State Red Wolves, Raynor instantly became the favorite to be the starter for the Cyclones in Week 1. Him being predicted as that guy should come as no surprise, and his ability to play against elevated competition on a weekly basis will be key.
There is a lot to like about Raynor’s game, and he could certainly help Iowa State exceed expectations next year.
Last season with the Red Wolves, he totaled 3,361 passing yards, 19 passing touchdowns, and a 66.5 completion percentage. It was career-highs for him in all three of those categories, showing some nice improvement in his junior season.
As a dual-threat player, he also totaled a career-high in rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. The junior recorded 423 yards on the ground to go along with seven rushing scores.
Overall, the numbers for Raynor were really solid, and there is reason to believe he might be even better in his senior season. For the Cyclones, with all of the new players on the roster, there will undoubtedly be some competition for starting spots around the field. However, it should certainly be Raynor who is under center to start.
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CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Syringes from injectable weight loss medications are turning up in drug drop-off boxes across eastern Iowa, creating a safety hazard for law enforcement officers who handle the containers.
Sgt. Erich Lear of the Linn County Sheriff’s Office said emptying the drug drop-off box is part of his daily routine — and the box fills fast.
“It’s probably a 30-gallon tote, and I’d say 3 out of the five days of the week it’s completely full,” Lear said.
Needles found mixed in with other medications
Lear said he has noticed over the past five years that people are placing medicine, nasal sprays and syringes in the bin. He said many of the syringes come from people discarding GLP-1 medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
“That tote that I pull out — there’s nothing that protects me from needles other than my observation and using gloves when I sort through things,” Lear said.
The Hiawatha Police Department said it is also seeing an increase in improperly discarded syringes.
Where syringes should go
The Cedar Rapids Linn County Solid Waste Agency is the proper disposal site for sharps. The agency said it has seen syringe intake increase by more than a ton in recent years.
“We’re talking about two thousand pounds of sharps and syringes coming in,” said Joe Horaney of the solid waste agency. “Before 2021 we were around 1.9, maybe 2 tons a year — now we are over 3 tons a year.”
Horaney said any Linn County resident can bring syringes to the facility, provided they are contained properly.
“We just ask that you have it in a heavy plastic container — so one of those medically certified red biohazard containers,” Horaney said. “If you don’t have that, it can be a heavy plastic container like an old laundry detergent [bottle].”
A third-party company picks up the sharps from the facility and incinerates them.
Some drop-off programs discontinued
Lear said another reason sharps are appearing at drop-off locations is that some agencies have ended their disposal programs. The Marion Police Department said it stopped offering the service after people continued to place broken glass, liquids and other garbage inside the box.
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While most of the focus for the Iowa State Cyclones will be on the football program for the next couple of months, the basketball program will also be getting set soon for a new campaign. Coming off a strong season, expectations for them will be high.
The 2025-26 season will go down as a memorable one for the Cyclones. This was a team that exceeded most expectations and ended up being one of the best teams in the country.
Iowa State started out the campaign with a 16-0 record, and the group looked like a real contender. While there were some hiccups during a challenging conference schedule, the Cyclones were one of the best teams in the country.
In March Madness, Iowa State was a number two seed, proving to be one of the top eight teams in the country. As they get set for next season, their goal will undoubtedly be to be ranked highly again. However, they may have to prove themselves a bit.
Joe Lunardi of ESPN recently updated his very early bracketology report for the upcoming 2026-27 campaign for the Cyclones. After being a number two seed last year in the NCAA Tournament, he currently has them on the five line.
Iowa State Has Work To Do
While being a five seed in the NCAA Tournament would indicate a Top 25 season for the Cyclones, expectations for the program are higher than that at this point.
Iowa State has become one of the more consistent programs in the country over the last several years, and they will undoubtedly want to take a step forward this coming season.
Due to a lot of production leaving, it is understandable that how they are viewed now could be very different from how they are perceived come March. Due to all of the new players that are coming in, it is going to take time for them to gel.
The Cyclones have a few key returning players led by Killyan Toure, Jamarion Batemon, and Blake Buchanan. Both Toure and Buchanan were starters for the team last season, and that should remain the same this year. However, Batemon also played a significant role coming off the bench, and his scoring ability might put him next to Toure in the starting lineup this coming year.
Overall, while the team did lose a lot of production, they have a good amount of depth with the new players coming in and some key freshmen returning. If things go right and the team gels quickly, they should be better than a five seed.
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