(Radio Iowa) – The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship awarded nearly two-point-seven (2.7) million dollars in its latest round of matching grants for14 urban water quality projects. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig (like egg) says state grant dollars will support water quality features, like native plantings, bioretention cells and a stormwater wetland.  “This is where stormwater manage meets water quality improvements,” he says. Naig made the announcement Monday at the Legacy Woods Nature Sanctuary in West Des Moines where water drains into Jordan Creek and then the Raccoon River.

“I hope it will inspire folks who spend time here to consider what they might do on their own property but also, other cities can come and see how this can be incorporated into the landscape,” Naig says. The park is adding bioretention cells to collect and filter stormwater with the help of native plants, a specific soil mix and a layer of rock. Ag Department urban conservationist Ann Seda says a stormwater wetland will collect overflow in bigger rain events. “And there again, the water will be treated to get the nitrogen uptake in that wetland before it discharges to Jordan Creek and then further downstream to the Raccoon River,” she says.

Cost-share grants through the state’s Water Quality Initiative have supported 140 projects in the last decade. Naig says they play a role in Iowa’s Nutrient Reduction Strategy goals.