David Osterberg speaks in Davenport

Davenport, IA -Last night, CCI members in the Quad Cities hosted a talk by David Osterberg, former state legislator and co-founder of the Iowa Policy Project. David spoke about the massive problems with Iowa's current agricultural policy of "voluntary compliance" with environmental standards. Under this policy, farmers are encouraged, rather than required, to implement conservation practices that protect the environment. David provided statistics showing that most farmers do not take advantage of current incentives for conservation practices, and that they would continue not doing so even if those programs were expanded.

Almost fifty people attended the meeting, including state senator Joe Seng. Senator Seng is the chair of the Senate Agriculture Committee, so he holds a lot of power over legislation relating to agriculture in Iowa. Attendees of last night's meeting urged him to use his position to adopt strong, effective public oversight over agriculture, rather than the current failed policy of voluntary compliance.

As the 2014 legislative session approaches, contacting your legislators to ask them to stand up for cleaning up Iowa's water is crucial. Stay tuned to learn about more opportunities to influence your elected officials!