Iowa Global Warming

Iowa environmental policymakers say a little-known state law prohibits them from enacting stricter air quality requirements than those passed by the federal government.

Several current and former members of the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission, which sets state environmental policy, say the state would have trouble limiting mercury and other toxic chemical emissions without fretting about legal challenges because of the law.

As a result, Iowa cannot easily follow the lead of several neighboring states, including Wisconsin and Illinois, which have passed laws calling for dramatic reductions in mercury and other toxic emissions in the coming years.

“It’s almost like, why even go through the commission?” EPC Commissioner Susan Heathcote said. “This is almost a waste of our time … when we don’t have the authority as a state to do anything but what the (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) requires.”

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The large, coal-fired power plants that emit the bulk of Iowa’s air pollution are no longer required to measure emissions of mercury – one of the most toxic chemicals they produce – following the withdrawal of a federal rule last year.

Environmental groups say they are counting on state and federal regulators to put a new monitoring standard in place quickly, but state officials say it could take until at least August before a new standard is brought before the Iowa Environmental Protection Commission for discussion and approval.

At issue is the ability to better measure the mercury infiltrating the state’s waterways, which experts say is notoriously difficult. Mercury, a potent neurotoxin that can also damage the kidneys and lungs, is typically ingested by people when they eat contaminated fish.

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