Ambient Water Monitoring Strategy for Iowa: 2016-2021, November 30, 2016

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Ambient Water Monitoring Program provides consistent, unbiased information about the condition of Iowa’s water resources to support decisions affecting the development, management and protection of these resources. To strengthen its services, the program worked with a variety of stakeholders and other DNR programs to develop a five-year strategy for Iowa’s ambient water monitoring efforts. The strategy identifies opportunities to improve the program’s effectiveness in several categories: monitoring objectives, sampling design, data management, products and services, and program evaluation and coordination. Iowa DNR managers and technical staff will use the new strategy to guide decisions affecting the ambient monitoring program over the next five years. The strategy should also serve as a robust informational resource for stakeholders, policy makers, legislators and the public.

Stream water‐quality monitoring conducted in support of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (2016)

Monitoring of nitrogen and phosphorus in streams and rivers throughout Iowa is an essential element of the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (INRS). Sampling and analysis of surface water is necessary to develop periodic estimates of the amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus transported from Iowa. Surface and groundwater monitoring provides the scientific evidence needed to document the effectiveness of nutrient reduction practices and the impact they have on water quality. Lastly, monitoring data informs decisions about where and how best to implement nutrient reduction practices, by both point sources and nonpoint sources, to provide the greatest benefit at the least cost. The impetus for this report comes from the Water Resources Coordination Council (WRCC) which states in its 2014‐15 Annual Report “Efforts are underway to improve understanding of the multiple nutrient monitoring efforts that may be available and can be compared to the nutrient WQ monitoring framework to identify opportunities and potential data gaps to better coordinate and prioritize future nutrient monitoring efforts.” This report is the culmination of those efforts.

Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy stream water quality monitoring in Iowa : measuring progress (2016)

The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (NRS) is a research- and technology-based approach to assess and reduce nutrients—nitrogen and phosphorus—delivered to Iowa waterways and the Gulf of Mexico by 45 percent. To measure progress, researchers track many different factors, from inputs (e.g. funding) and the human domain (e.g. farmer perspectives) to land management (e.g. on-farm practices) and water quality. Monitoring Iowa streams provides valuable insight into measuring water quality progress and the reduction of surface water nutrient loss. The Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy (NRS) aims to reduce the load, or total amount (e.g. tons), of nutrients lost annually. Researchers calculate the load from water monitoring results, which measure concentration combined with stream flow.

Management Strategy for Iowa’s Water Resources, December 2007

In Iowa, the Department of Natural Resources (DNR)is responsible for regulating water allocation and use through the issuance of water use permits, but improvements are necessary in this process to assure sustainable supplies into the future. In recent years, there have not been resources dedicated at the state level to properly track and assess water quantity issues. Resources for water use and water quantity monitoring (groundwater level and surface gauges) have continued to decline and have resulted in data becoming outdated and in a format that is difficult to analyze in order to make good decisions.