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Extension reports 4‑H growth, 117,000 lbs of produce from county plots and rising stream nitrate/E. coli levels
Summary
Iowa State Extension’s Bremer County director told supervisors 4‑H enrollment rose to about 330 youth, extension plots and an orchard have yielded roughly 117,000 lbs of food since 2010 (via grants/volunteers), and water‑quality sampling showed elevated nitrate and E. coli levels last year tied to heavy rains.
Ron Lent, Bremer County extension director, and Jenna Stefen, the 4‑H youth assistant coordinator, presented the extension impact statement and updates on programming and environmental monitoring.
Stefen said 4‑H program enrollment increased from about 290 youth last year to about 330 currently, and described school‑based programs, leadership curricula and county‑fair activities that supported that growth. "We serve 650 people" at one recent omelette brunch, she noted as an example of community outreach.
Lent summarized food‑security and production efforts: the extension’s community garden plots and orchard on Second Street Southwest — grown with volunteers and grant support since the 2009 flood — have produced more than 117,000 pounds of food in aggregate. "That production has not cost the county one cent," Lent said, citing grants and volunteer labor.
On water quality, Lent said stream sampling (Buck Creek and Crane Creek) is funded in part by the county and done in partnership with the Upper Wapsipinicon Watershed Group. He explained last year’s wetter‑than‑average weather drove spikes in nitrate and E. coli samples: "If you get a wet spell it'll flush" nitrates from soil into streams, he said, and E. coli readings rose in summer months when warmth and moisture coincide.
Lent noted the DNR threshold for NO3‑N drinking water at 10 mg/L and that several sampled locations exceeded typical seasonal levels; he asked the board to continue funding sampling and said he will provide a summarized report for the board.
Supervisors thanked extension staff and volunteers and signaled continued support for sampling, educational programs and a planned county project to repopulate plantings at the courthouse.
No board action was required beyond accepting the update; extension staff will share the sampling summary and follow up about the June state Farm and Food conference in Waverly.
