Wednesday was a difficult day for The American Independent News Network, which is the larger entity that operates The Iowa Independent. Our chief executive and founder announced two of our sister sites would close and their content would be moved to The American Independent.
A recently introduced bill could have far-reaching impact on the U.S. sugar industry, including American Crystal Sugar, a farmer-owned cooperative that locked out 1,300 Midwest workers on Aug. 1.
The chairman for Herman Cain’s Iowa effort says the campaign “relied more on the word of farmers than Washington regulators” in deciding to run an ad containing claims the Environmental Protection Agency says are false.
The Iowa Senate will remain under the control of a slim 26-25 Democratic majority when it reconvenes in January 2012.
The Army Corps of Engineers needs to change the way it manages the Missouri River, Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad says, and the region overall needs a new approach to battling flooding along the major waterway.
Branstad said the floods along the Missouri River this year, which shut down miles of bridges and roadways for months, were different than other flooding events because of the length of inundation.
“And the length of it was certainly determined by the amount of water that was released from the dams upstream on the Missouri River,” he said.
Last week the state withdrew from the Missouri River Association of States and Tribes, a group of 28 tribes and eight states meant to facilitate management of the waterway. Branstad said Monday Iowa’s voice wasn’t being heard in that organization.
“And in fact the agencies that have been involved in this for a number of years have felt that our voice has been ignored,” Branstad said. “Missouri chose not to be a member and Nebraska and Iowa have withdrawn.”
Flooding didn’t get the emphasis it deserved from MoRAST, Branstad said, which he and other governors believed was the primary responsibility of group.
Branstad made the comments at a press conference Monday morning, where he praised Iowa Department of Transportation Director Paul Trombino for working quickly to restore highways hit by Missouri River flooding this summer.
The quick repairs have helped limit the economic impact of the flooding, Branstad said. A total of 77 miles of state highways were closed at the height of the flooding, including three major Missouri River crossings.
Trombino said repair costs are near $50 million at this point, but all projects are eligible for 100 percent federal reimbursement. Repairs to Interstate Highway 680 were finished quickly enough to receive full funding from Washington, D.C.
The state will absorb some costs, Trombino said. For instance, weirs and dikes are being built along Iowa Highway 175, which the federal government considers betterment rather than repair.
“But we feel the long-term preservation of the roadway and the bridge was in the interest, so we made some additional improvements, such as armory shoulders, again, to get prepared for any issue that comes in the future,” Trombino said.
Flooding in the Hawkeye State is unpredictable, Branstad said, noting recent years have seen events in eastern Iowa, central Iowa and now western Iowa. Dubuque also saw flash flooding this year because of an overnight downpour.
“We need to do the best we can but it’s never possible to predict exactly where you’re going to have it,” Branstad said.
Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division Director Derek Hill is reviewing the flooding along the Missouri and preparing a report, which Branstad said will give an indication how to address future flooding situations.
“We intend to work with the governors of the other states to try to have a strong voice on behalf of our constituents,” he said.
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