skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Iowans Work to Save "Actual" Earth on Earth Day

play audio
Play

Friday, April 22, 2016   

DES MOINES, Iowa - The nutrient-rich topsoil that's taken away to level the land when homes and other new buildings are constructed doesn't often get replaced.

While some cities and towns require that it's put back, many don't, and construction companies often sell off the soil.

But Kari Carney, executive director of 1000 Friends of Iowa, says homeowners and Iowans in general end up paying the price.

"Homeowners make the assumption when they buy houses in developments that they've got dirt underneath the turf. But the turf quickly dies and then, they're spending a small fortune putting chemicals, trying to get something to grow," she says. "You know, if it rains, that all ends up running off and contributing to water pollution."

Because there's no topsoil to soak it up, she says much of that polluted rainwater ends up flooding streams and rivers.

Carney's group works on responsible land use in Iowa. She says there are ways to save the soil - when people know that it's a problem.

"If people are buying new homes, they can stipulate in their contracts that they want to have that topsoil returned to the site, to the lot of their house," says Carney.

And, even though the Iowa Department of Natural Resources introduced a rule in 2012 requiring four inches of topsoil to be replaced, Carney says it was altered last summer.

"They added the words 'unless it's infeasible.' So, there's no description of what that means," she says. "So there's no teeth, no enforcement. So, what we've been doing then is going asking communities to introduce these rules and pass ordinances."

The group offers a toolkit explaining ways to prevent the problem, online at 1000FriendsofIowa.org.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021