Stories

Reversing an earlier decision, Iowa’s three public universities will begin a groundwater-monitoring program at a quarry in Waterloo that they use to dump coal ash.

Student activists at Iowa State University want their school to alter its coal ash disposal method by the end of 2009, and they began their campaign Monday to make that happen.

Students at Iowa’s state universities say getting their schools to change their coal ash disposal methods will be a priority during the coming school year, and a new organization could make that easier.

Iowa’s three largest public universities have determined that their coal ash disposal method does not pose a risk to the public health, a decision some say was made without sufficient evidence or regard for experiences with contamination in neighboring states.

When Iowa’s Department of Natural Resources last year began to draft tougher regulations on the disposal of coal ash, the toxic byproduct of burning coal, it faced an enormous backlash. And joining the fight against regulation was the University of Iowa.

Iowa State University President Gregory Geoffroy has announced that the university's athletic program can have a religious adviser, the Des Moines Register reported today:
Geoffroy approved a "volunteer life skills" position for the department to provide faith-based counseling and referrals to athletes but warned that the adviser would be watched closely.
"In carrying out the volunteer [...]

As presidential candidates trek across Iowa and the war in Iraq rages, bread-and-butter issues also are at the forefront of many Iowans’ minds. With rising health-care costs and factory jobs trickling out of the state, economic development has become one of Iowa’s greatest challenges and is an issue that 2008 presidential hopefuls of both parties [...]

The recent announcement that the Iowa State University athletics department wished to hire a chaplain for the football team has brought criticism from a variety of sources, including ISU professors and the Des Moines Register. Iowa Independent talked with athletic directors and chaplains from other Iowa schools about the issue, though several declined to comment.