This week in Iowa organizing…

Written By Matthew Covington

Our hearts go out to everyone and the communities affected by the tornadoes that tore across Iowa on Friday. We hope you and your loved ones are safe and secure.

In times of need and crisis, we come together for the people and places we love. Please check with local agencies or call 211 to see how you could help, and if you don't need to be in an area that was impacted please stay clear to let clean up crews do their work as communities begin the process of recovery.

We're all in this together,

Matthew Covington
Strategic Operations Director

 

At the Statehouse  

It's still done

Don't worry, the legislative session is still done! That said, here's a few articles since they adjourned of interest to us:

  • What Iowa lawmakers approved (and cut) in state's $8.9 billion budget [Bleeding Heartland]

  • Iowa legislature bans funding for "guaranteed income" programs [Axios]

  • Kim Reynolds picked this legislature, and it steamrolled an extreme path for Iowa [Des Moines Register]

  • Iowa politicians are still trying to teach history to your children [Iowa Capital Dispatch]

 

Take action 

 

April 30: Dear DNR...

Rastetter’s Summit Carbon Solutions is making a cash grab – and our water is on the line. The proposed CO2 pipeline would use an estimated billion gallons of water per year. And, the Iowa DNR is sitting on one of the requested water permits.

The fate of these permit applications lies in the hands of the Department of Natural Resources and what they decide. We're not done putting pressure on the DNR to deny these water permits - not even close! Join us Tuesday, April 30 at noon in-person at the CCI office or over Zoom for a Water Use Permit Letter Writing Party.

Do you know an organization or elected official that would use their influence to support us on this issue? Share this sign on letter that we released earlier this month with them.

Learn more about this issue by checking out our webinar from April 4 here.

 

Wednesday - May 1: Mayday Human Rights March

This Wednesday stand together with communities across Iowa and the nation to honor immigrants and refugees who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect, and to stand against the recently passed anti-immigrant Iowa law Senate File 2340.

May 14: 2 ways to take action on CO2 pipelines

Bruce Rastetter, through his Summit Carbon Solutions, wants to build over 1,000 miles of CO2 pipelines across Iowa. Join us in Stanton on May 14 @ 7pm to learn more about these projects and upcoming public hearings to make your voice heard.

We'll have a presentation from Jan Norris, panel of affected landowners, and a Q&A with attendees. More information and RSVP here!

AND, up north in Mitchell County, we'll be delivering hundreds of petition signatures to the Board of Supervisors urging them to pass an ordinance to protect our communities should a CO2 pipeline be built. We'll be meeting at 8:30am on May 14 at the Mitchell County Courthouse in Osage, more info and RSVP here!

 

Updates

Sustainers rock our socks!

We're going all out to reach our goal of 20 new monthly donors -- and we're thrilled to report we're just 2 away! Make the switch today! 

Here’s why CCI Sustainers make such a difference:

  • It’s revenue we can count on. We know these donations will come in each month. 

  • It gives us flexibility. We can take on emerging organizing issues like public education, the CO2 pipeline, and housing. More importantly, it also allows us to plan, to be forward-looking, and to be strategic.

  • It builds our strength. Member contributions, especially monthly pledges, mean we have so much more control over our organization. And it allows us take powerful positions, backed by our members, that foundations may not support.

As a small token of appreciation - any new or upgrading Sustainers in our spring campaign will receive a pair of our fabulous "Sock it to 'em, CCI!" socks. 

Become a Sustainer today! Click here to start your monthly pledge of $10, $15, $25 or whatever amount works for you. 

CCI Action plant sale fundraiser!

Our tenth (and final*) year! As always, the (Friday &) Saturday of Mother's Day Weekend (May 10-11). Organic veggie starts from several local growers, mostly heirloom varieties. Also, herbs, prairie plants, Iowa wildflowers, and other hearty yard perennial plant divisions. This year we have house plants, too!

View Plant Sale inventory here 

Reserve your plants here

This much-loved community event was started in 2014 by long-time CCI member Ben Zachrich after realizing that he could turn his passion for gardening into a way to help his community. "With the plant sale, there's a shared enthusiasm between everyone who supports the sale. Whether it's getting healthy veggies or beautifying their yard, we're bringing people together to address systemic failures and support CCI, and one another."

Invite your friends and plan to join us for this great fundraiser sale. If you have veggie starts, yard or house plant divisions, or one-gallon pots to donate, please let us know by replying to this email or calling Katie at Iowa CCI 515-255-0800.

*If you're interested in continuing the plant sale fundraiser tradition, reach out to ben_zachrich@yahoo.com.

 

Water Talk

 

Let's talk about water! Below we have a selection of some stories that caught our eye relating to water quality and ways to take action for our water.

Articles of interest:

 

Spring is the time for testing our water for nitrates!

Thank you to everyone who joined our call with Des Moines Water Works Chief Operating Officer Kyle Danley last Thursday. Like all water providers in Iowa, Des Moines Water Works faces challenges to provide water for the 500,000 residents it serves. 

  • DMWW manages water quality AND quantity and it has an extensive network for drawing and treating water to make it safe for drinking. 

  • Iowa's current drought is cause for concern for nitrate levels. They have an extensive gauge monitoring system that provides regular data to warn the utility of what may be coming downstream, which is critical for treatment planning.

  • Water treatment goes beyond nitrates. They're also watching algae blooms which consume nutrients and can create toxins like microcystin - an emerging contaminant.

  • We also learned that Maffitt Reservoir is a great spot for enjoying water! It's very clean with little to no nitrate concentrations. Worth protecting!

  • Citizen science has real value - Kyle Danley encouraged us to keep testing! The time we're spending to test water and enter data on the Clean Water Hub is important so we have powerful water data!

Water quality is a very real challenge in Iowa and has been for years, more people are taking notice. We need to keep building the collective power of the CCI testing group and keep getting louder about the science of Iowa’s polluted water.

Don't miss our next monthly call Thursday, May 30 - we'll announce our guest speaker soon.

 

What We're Reading 

These are a few links that are informing our work - we've shared them so that you can read, too!

  • Who killed Tennessee's universal school voucher bill? [WPLN news]

  • (CCI's Barb) Kalbach: Immediate action needed on corporate ag pollution [Iowa Starting Line]

  • Values, wise women, building power [Deep Midwest: Politics and Culture]

  • Sell our CO2 to pump more oil? It's likely, says Iowa-based carbon capture project [DeSmog]

  • A coal mine has upended life in a rural Alabama town. Now a fatal home explosion has residents demanding accountability [Barn Raiser]

Matthew Covington
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