(Radio Iowa) — During the springtime, Iowans will occasionally come across a nest of bunnies or a lone fawn in their back yards, even in town. This is the time of year wildlife rescue centers get a flurry of orphaned animal calls. Humane Society spokeswoman Marissa DeGroot says many of these calls can be false alarms, especially when you’re talking about species like rabbits and deer. DeGroot says, “Sometimes it can be difficult to tell if the baby animals are in need of assistance, if they’ve truly been orphaned, or if maybe mom is just keeping her distance in order to keep her babies safe.”

Baby squirrels, raccoons and even opossums can look cute and helpless, but you likely won’t be doing them a favor to pick them up and try to nurse them in a shoebox. For several species, DeGroot says the parents will keep their distance from the nest in order to protect their babies. “For a lot of animals, the parents might only come and visit the young maybe at dawn and dusk,” DeGroot says. “So you just want to be aware that even with the best of intentions, sometimes you end up almost kidnapping a baby wild animal.”

If you do think you’re dealing with an orphaned animal, contact your local animal rescue and don’t handle things yourself.  “Identify if an animal is in immediate need of help or if it’s a situation where you might want to take a step back and observe.” An Iowa D-N-R official says many wildlife babies die soon after being “rescued” from the stress of being handled, talked to, and placed into the unfamiliar surroundings of a slick-sided cardboard box. Should the animal survive, they often succumb to starvation from improper nourishment, pneumonia or other human-caused sicknesses.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The state of Iowa has been sued again in federal court by animal rights groups for passing a law last month designed to prosecute people who get hired at farms in order to work undercover to report on animal living conditions. The measure was approved by lawmakers on March 12 and signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds two days later. It creates a trespass charge for anyone using deception to gain access to a farm to cause physical or economic harm.

The lawsuit filed Monday in Des Moines by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and four other groups claims the new law violates constitutional free speech and due process rights. Lawmakers passed it two months after a federal judge struck down a similar law they passed in 2012, saying it violated free-speech rights. That ruling is on appeal to the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

(Radio Iowa) — Iowa farmers soon may have the option to grow industrial hemp. A bipartisan group of lawmakers has been working on the issue for the past three years. Senator Kapucian, a farmer from Keystone, says the effort got “extra momentum” after the new Farm Bill effectively legalized hemp again in the U.S. “Let’s let our Iowans do what they do best. They’re innovative, entrepreneurial,” Kapucian said. “They will take it to the next level, they will develop the processing and let them see how far they can go.”

A bill approved by the Senate designates two state agencies to oversee the crop and would let Iowa farmers grow up to 40 acres of hemp, starting in the 2020 , growing season. Senator Tom Shipley, a farmer from Nodaway, says “That 40-acre limit is there so lots of people can take advantage and participate in this program rather than just a handfull.”

The hemp plant is a cousin of marijuana. Smoking it does not make you high, but for decades it’s been illegal to grow it under FEDERAL law. Senator Dan Zumbach, a farmer from Ryan, says hemp can be part of a new era in agriculture. “This is something we haven’t seen since World War II, but it’s better,” Zumbach said, “…and 45 years from now, this will be a normal crop in our fields with assets we can’t imagine.”

Senator Kevin Kinney, a farmer from Oxford, says hemp could become a leading commodity in Iowa, behind corn and soybeans. “I have been contacted by many future hemp farmers who are ready to start producing,” Kinney says, “and see the market for hemp products.”

The plant’s seeds and its stalks can be used to make fabric and paper as well as oil and building materials. The bill that passed the Senate last week is scheduled for debate in the Iowa House this week according to Representative Jarad Klein, a farmer from Keota. “It’s a very labor intensive crop,” Klein says. “I think there’ll be some niche market availability there. If somebody can make a profit at it and be successful, in agriculture, I’m all for it.”

Under the bill, farmers must get a state license to grow hemp. Officials from the Iowa Departments of Agriculture AND Public Safety are to oversee hemp production, to ensure its not being grown as cover for marijuana.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The federal Natural Resources Conversation Service is providing money to plant cover crops on damaged farmland. The aid is aimed at recovery work on cropland directly affected by the severe weather in March. The highest priority cropland includes land that can’t be planted with a cash crop and/or can’t be harvested this year.

Experts say cover crops prevent erosion, improve soil’s physical and biological properties, supply nutrients, suppress weeds, improve the availability of soil water and break pest cycles. Cover crops have grazing potential and can help stabilize repair work.

Producers are encouraged to apply by May 17 or June 21 at their local U.S. Department of Agriculture Service Center. Information also can be obtained online.

DES MOINES – In anticipation of the 100th anniversary of Iowa state parks in 2020, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources; the Iowa Arts Council, a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs; and Iowa State University are bringing 20 artists to 20 state parks this summer. From April through August 2019, faculty and graduate student artists from three of Iowa State University’s colleges — Design, Agriculture and Life Sciences, and Liberal Arts and Sciences — will each be matched with a state park, creating artwork that reflects their time as artists-in-residence. Todd Coffelt, chief of the State Parks Bureau at the DNR, says “The 20 Artists, 20 Parks program highlights two important contributors to quality of life in Iowa — arts and the outdoors. By focusing on the unique natural and cultural aspects of our state parks, we are able to tell their story in a new and inspirational way.”

In southwest Iowa, works by Amy Harris will be featured at the Lake of Three Fires State Park, in Bedford, and works by Olivia Valentine will be found at Viking Lake State Park, in Stanton.

Paintings, sculpture, textiles and other art forms inspired by the park will be organized into an exhibit that will travel to at least three art venues in 2020. Additionally, each artist will return to his or her park to share a program about the artist-in-residence experience. Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs Director Chris Kramer, who oversees both the Iowa Arts Council and the State Historical Society of Iowa, said “We can’t wait to see what these 20 Iowa artists create through this unique collaboration to mark the state parks’ centennial. The 20 Artists, 20 Parks program is such a creative and authentic way to celebrate our state’s art, history and natural beauty.”

Parks selected for the arts project represent diverse ecological, geological and cultural experiences that make Iowa unique. The 20 parks that are included in the new project are featured on the Iowa Culture mobile app, a free and interactive tool to discover arts, history and cultural destinations across Iowa. More information about how to visit the parks is on the app, which the public can download for free from Google Play and the App Store. Visitors can also find state park information on the DNR website.

(Radio Iowa) — A hearing in Glenwood Wednesday focused on the Corps of Engineers management of the Missouri River leading up to the flooding on the Missouri River. Michael Stenzel of Hamburg was on hand to listen as the land he farms with his dad remains flooded. “As of right now, we’ve probably got a hundred acres out of the three-thousand that is not covered by water,” Stenzel says.

He says their closest ground to the river is a quarter of a mile away, but they see issues because the Corps water releases put the river at such a high level. He says when the river is run at a high level, they constantly fight seepage into the nearby farmland. Stenzel is the president of McKissick Island Dike & Levee, and drainage district, where he says they went through about 45-thousand dollars in fuel last year for pumps to try and keep the five-thousand acres dry.

Stenzel says the way the river is managed with the various wing dams slows it down too much. “I feel that the river needs to be sped up,” Stenzel says. “When a river runs fast and hard — you’ll see the scouring in the bottom of the river — so therefore the channel will be a little bit deeper. We’ll be able to hold a few more gallons coming through.”

Stenzel says another thing that added to the problem was the lack of communication from the Corps.  “In 2011, they came to us two weeks before and told us, ‘Hey this is what the dam’s going to do, this is how much water is going to come,’ so we had some time to prepare. This time they didn’t do it,” according to Stenzel. “My father and I, our operation, we lost 50-thousand bushels of beans and a 140-thousand bushels of corn, and probably 11 grain bins.”

While the Senate hearing was designed to try and move things ahead and make changes to prevent future flooding — Stenzel says its slow-moving nature is frustrating to farmers. “The political process is not what farmers want to hear. Farmers are the type of person who will get out, they will do whatever they need to do to get the job done,” Stenzel says. “That’s why farmers are not politicians.”

Stenzel says he was just starting to see his operation get back to where it should be following the flooding in 2011, and now that was all washed away again. “We’re going to be in such a hard deep hole — we might not ever get out,” Stenzel says.

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst called for the field hearing by the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and was on hand with Senator Chuck Grassley and other officials.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A monthly survey of rural bankers in parts of 10 Plains and Western states shows about one of every five expects an increase in farm loan defaults stemming from last month’s devastating Midwest floods.

The Rural Mainstreet survey for April, released Thursday, shows the survey’s overall index dropping from 52.9 in March to 50 this month. Any score above 50 suggests a growing economy, while a score below 50 indicates a shrinking economy.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss, who oversees the survey, says “43.8 percent of bank CEOs indicated that the recent floods were having a negative impact on their local economy.”

Bankers also noted that farm loans for April surged as the borrowing index climbed to 81.3, the highest recorded since the survey began in 2006. Bankers from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wyoming were surveyed.

AMES, IA–The Iowa FFA Leadership Conference was held at Iowa State University in Ames on April 14-16, 2019. The new Iowa FFA Officer team was elected at the final convention session.  Tyler Comes from the Atlantic FFA Chapter was elected as the Southwest District State FFA Vice President.  Comes had to complete an application and then go through a series of interviews.

Tyler Comes

The interviews are designed to set the ballot for the 2019 State Leadership Convention.  On Monday, Comes gave his speech in front to the Southwest District Delegates and waited until Tuesday night to find out his fate. “I was more nervous and anxious for this than anything else that I’ve ever done. I’m extremely happy and thankful for everyone who helped me along the way and pushed me beyond my expectations.”

Atlantic FFA Advisor Eric Miller stated, “I am very proud of all the things Tyler has accomplished.  Tyler has worked very hard at the local level, district level and I have high expectations for him at the state level.”

The Iowa FFA Officer team will embody the FFA motto,  Learning to do, doing to learn, earning to live, and living to serve. These nine leaders will live out their year of service speaking with FFA members from across the state, presenting leadership camps and workshops, and traveling around Iowa and the United States. They will have the opportunity to take part in Iowa FFA Foundation activities, the Iowa State Fair, Iowa FFA Legislative Symposium, the National FFA Convention, and a wide variety of FFA Career Development Events. Their largest responsibility will be to coordinate and conduct the 91st Iowa FFA Leadership Conference for over 6,000 FFA members, advisors, parents, and guests.

The local members of the 2019-2020 Iowa FFA Officer Team include:

Reporter: Walker McDermott, CAM FFA

SW Vice President: Tyler Comes, Atlantic FFA

w/Kate Olson.

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NEW MARKET, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has relaxed the fishing regulations at Windmill Lake, near New Market, to allow anglers to more freely harvest fish before the lake is renovated this fall to eliminate common carp. Anglers with a valid fishing license may harvest any size or number of largemouth bass, channel catfish, and all other fish species from Windmill Lake. Any number of fishing poles or jug fishing will be allowed, but anglers must stay in sight of these lines at all times, and follow all other fishing regulations and area rules.

Trot lines will be allowed (name and address must be attached), but no more than five trotlines per angler with a valid fishing license. These trot lines cannot have more than 15 hooks total. Trot lines may not be set across the entire water body.  Nets, dynamite, poison, electric shocking devices, or any stupefying substances are not allowed. It is illegal to sell fish or stock captured fish into public waters. All navigation rules still apply.

Liberalized fishing regulations for Windmill Lake will be in effect from now through October 15, 2019. Specific regulation changes include:

Removal of bag and length limit restrictions on largemouth bass.
Removal of bag limit on channel catfish.
Removal of bag limit on crappie and bluegill.
Removal of the two line/two hook fishing restriction, but anglers must stay in sight of these lines at all times.