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State offers to fund pumped wetland on county land; board to review maintenance agreement or easement
Summary
The Iowa Department of Agriculture proposed a state-funded pumped wetland on a three- to four-acre county-owned parcel near Harris to remove nitrates; the board expressed interest and asked staff to arrange follow-up with the Soil & Water Conservation District and review maintenance-agreement and easement options.
County staff and the Iowa Department of Agriculture presented a preliminary design on Jan. 14 for a pumped wetland on a small county-owned parcel in drainage district 64, southwest of Harris. The department indicated it would fund construction and asked the county to consider an easement or maintenance agreement to secure long-term function.
What was presented: the design calls for a pumped wetland where a solar-powered pump would lift drainage-ditch water into the wetland for denitrification and treatment; treated water would return to the ditch. The state prefers off-channel pumped wetlands to avoid Army Corps mitigation requirements for in-stream work, making this design more feasible for permitting and cost.
Why it matters: the state's nitrate-reduction goals and federal expectations for downstream water quality mean county participation could bring funding and improved water-quality outcomes without direct local construction cost. However, the county must consider long-term maintenance obligations including vegetation management, tree control and occasional structural repairs.
Maintenance and legal arrangements: the Department of Agriculture shared sample documents: (1) a permanent easement that would protect the site in perpetuity and (2) a maintenance agreement model typically used when government entities hold the land. Department staff said the maintenance agreement could be adapted to the pumped-wetland components (pumps and solar arrays) and that local Soil & Water Conservation Districts typically hold easements and maintenance responsibilities.
Board response and next steps: supervisors expressed interest but asked county staff to review both the easement and the maintenance-agreement language with county counsel and to meet with the local Soil & Water Conservation District at their next meeting. Staff agreed to provide copies of the sample documents for board review and to coordinate with the county conservation office and SWCD.
Ending: the county and IDALS will proceed with final design and permitting steps only after the board and local conservation partners review and agree on the preferred maintenance and legal framework.
