About Environment Iowa
We’re your state environmental group, protecting the places we love, advancing the environmental values we share, and winning real results for our environment.
Who we are
Environment Iowa is a statewide, citizen-based environmental advocacy organization. We believe there’s something special about Iowa — something worth protecting and preserving for future generations. Whether it’s the shimmering grassland prairies of the Loess Hills, or the majestic limestone formations of the Maquoketa Caves, Iowa’s natural wonders enrich our lives in countless ways.
Yet the places we love and the environmental values so many of us share are too often threatened by powerful industries, shortsighted politicians and more. Defending our environment requires independent research, tough-minded advocacy and spirited grassroots action. That’s the idea behind Environment Iowa. Together with thousands of supporters from all walks of life, we take the kind of action that wins tangible results for our environment.
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OUR STAFF
What we do
Funded by supporters like you, we research the challenges confronting Iowa’s environment and educate the public about what’s at stake. Through our research reports, news conferences, interviews with reporters, op-ed pieces, letters to the editor, and more, we raise awareness of environmental issues and promote sensible solutions. Our canvassers meet people where they are — in public places or door to door — raising awareness, recruiting new supporters and activists, and raising funds to support our work.
When decisions are being made about Iowa’s environment, our elected officials hear plenty from oil companies, developers and other powerful interests. We make the case for our environment and help people like you make your voice heard — using methods like petitions, emails, letters and phone calls, all delivered to the right people just when it matters most.
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Environment Iowa Research & Policy Center
Results
- Keeping our air clean. Our staff, volunteers, and members put pressure on the federal government to update the Clean Air Act. Our advocacy worked – the EPA recently released a new rule that would control toxic mercury emissions from coal plants and save up to 34,000 lives each year.
- Preserving Iowa’s land, water, and wildlife. In 2010, Iowa voters approved the Environment Iowa-backed constitutional amendment that established a trust fund dedicated to environmental protection and outdoor recreation.
- Protecting our rivers. A controversial Supreme Court decision left most of Iowa’s streams and wetlands vulnerable to unlimited dumping and pollution — which would eventually make its way into our larger rivers. When Congress refused to address the problem, thousands of our supporters wrote the Environmental Protection Agency, which is now taking action to restore the protections our waterways deserve.