Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig today announced the expansion of the Streamside Buffer Pilot Project to include farmers and landowners living in all 22 counties in the Greater Des Moines Watershed. The expansion is part of the Greater Des Moines Watershed Program, a targeted initiative to accelerate and scale up the use of conservation practices in counties upstream from the Des Moines metro to improve water quality. Funding for the project expansion is provided by the Farm to Faucet water quality package signed into law on June 1.
The Streamside Buffer Pilot Project was launched in August 2025 to help farmers and landowners establish perennial buffers along streams, rivers, creeks, and drainage ditches to reduce nutrient runoff and soil erosion and improve water quality. The pilot initially focused on the North Raccoon, Boone, Middle Cedar and Turkey River watersheds and all of Dubuque County. Through this expansion, farmers and landowners living within the Greater Des Moines watershed are invited to enroll. Those 22 counties include Audubon, Boone, Buena Vista, Calhoun, Carroll, Clay, Dallas, Dickinson, Emmet, Greene, Guthrie, Hamilton, Hancock, Humboldt, Kossuth, Palo Alto, Pocahontas, Polk, Sac, Webster, Winnebago, and Wright. Farmers and landowners in the Middle Cedar and Turkey River watersheds and Dubuque County are still eligible to participate.
Streamside buffers help filter nutrients from runoff before they enter streams and rivers, reduce soil erosion, improve wildlife habitat, and support broader water quality goals.
Source : iowaagriculture.gov