One of the best things the Iowa Legislature did this year was appropriate $250,000 to study the state’s declining underground aquifers, starting with the Dakota Aquifer that underlies Northwest Iowa and serves as our principal water source. Legislators said they are concerned about increasing consumption brought by data centers that require lots of water. Interesting that the Jordan and Dakota aquifers were dropping long before Microsoft even thought about Iowa, thanks to huge thirst from ethanol and livestock production.

The Iowa Geological Survey will begin to assess the capacity of the state’s four aquifers. Some modeling has been done on the Dakota, which found that the pocket shared by Storm Lake and Cherokee is near its production limit. This is an ethanol and livestock center, and it is apparent that we cannot handle a whole lot more.

Aquifer modeling is an expensive proposition, and this appropriation does not reflect the urgency that water demands. It makes sense that the authorities start where they have more complete data, and in counties where the Dakota has dropped more than 10%. The legislature should devote more resources to water availability and quality, but this is at least a start.

“As we go forward, it is going to be more critical we know what (water) we’ve got and what depth it is,” Rep. Norlin Mommsen, R-Dewitt, chair of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Committee, told the Cedar Rapids Gazette. “There are a lot of unknowns out there.”

For example: We don’t really know how much more industrial expansion, and what kind, Storm Lake and Cherokee can accommodate. We aren’t sure how regional water systems tapping into the Dakota are influencing our supply. As scientists examine causes of aquifer decline, they no doubt will study how expanded drainage systems hamper aquifer recharge by moving surface water away. These are complicated questions on a landscape so radically altered in a short span of time.

They demand fast and comprehensive answers. Good that the legislature is finally paying attention.

Avian flu spreads

The nation is paying more attention to avian flu as it jumps from fowl to cows to humans. A third dairy worker in Michigan came down with the virus, reporting respiratory problems. This is of particular concern to epidemiologists because previous cases have been limited to eye infections. Coughing can spread the illness among humans.

Also, scientists discovered the flu virus in the meat of infected dairy cows. None of it is known to have entered the food supply chain. Cooking meat to medium kills the virus, health authorities say.

Of course, we are well familiar with avian flu that has repeatedly destroyed millions of chickens and turkeys for a decade. Yet we still have a dim understanding of precisely how the virus spreads, what role livestock concentration plays, and what the implications are for humans.

We do not routinely test cattle or dairy workers. Protective equipment is not deployed to livestock workers. We do not vaccinate egg-laying hens, although effective vaccines are available. Research funding into livestock disease has been stunted through a decade of mindless budget sequesters.

The main emphasis has been on biosecurity in and around confined livestock operations. When it fails, as it does, millions of chickens are disposed of. If workers in Texas and Michigan are infected, they presumably can spread it to others. That’s how pandemics begin. We are no better organized today than we were for Covid in 2019. Locking down the barn can’t keep out the bug, obviously. The industry and government must do more quickly to protect our food supply and public health. The USDA is moving to implement some livestock testing and is gearing up vaccine production. It’s not enough, as another turkey flock went down this week in Cherokee County.