Since its humble beginnings in 2007, the Water Resources Internship has grown into a cornerstone of Iowa Learning Farms’ education and outreach efforts. What started as a small initiative has blossomed into a dynamic summer program that has trained 81 college students and 6 high school students, immersing them in real-world conservation outreach through the Conservation Stations, Water Rocks!

The Swampbuster provision has been in the news recently, so I thought it would be a good time to provide a refresher on what the provision is, how it came about, and why we care about wetlands in the agricultural landscape.  The wetland conservation provision, commonly referred to as the Swampbuster provision, was originally introduced in the 1985 Farm Bill.  The provision’s purpose is to greatly reduce any further loss of wetlands for agricultural use by linking wetland conservation to eligibility in certain USDA programs. 

Please join us for the Iowa Learning Farms webinar at noon CST, Wednesday, Feb. 19, featuring Christine Sprunger, associate professor of soil health, Michigan State University. Sprunger’s research focuses on the intersection of agriculture and the environment, where she investigates how climate change impacts crop production, nutrient cycling, soil food webs and rhizosphere dynamics. In addition, much of her work addresses how crop diversity, perenniality, and reduced tillage contribute to important ecosystem services such as soil carbon sequestration and nitrogen use efficiency.

From improving water quality, providing flood storage and critical habitat, oxbows are a crucial ecosystem here in Iowa. But what exactly is an oxbow? An oxbow wetland is a meander of a stream, river or creek, that has become separated from the flow of water. Oxbow wetlands store excess water that might otherwise lead to flooding, filter water to improve water quality and provide habitat to a variety of wildlife.

Please join us for the Iowa Learning Farms webinar at noon CST, Wednesday, Jan. 22, featuring Andrew Rust, freshwater restoration specialist, The Nature Conservancy. Rust works throughout Iowa facilitating efforts to restore wetlands in key watersheds across the state. His primary role involves engaging landowners and conservation practitioners to rehabilitate oxbow wetlands in areas of the highest impact, aiming to improve water quality, create habitat for critical species such as the Topeka shiner and enhance flood retention.

In the first webinar of 2025, Dr. Adam Janke shared findings from a study analyzing bird diversity and abundance between restored wetlands and constructed wetlands. You can watch the full webinar, Exploring the Ecology of Water Quality Wetlands in Iowa, and I encourage you to stick around through the Q&A at the end. Wetlands have many benefits to the environment, animals, and humans.

Iowa Learning Farms, in partnership with the Iowa Nutrient Research Center and Iowa Geological Survey, is hosting a free virtual field day on Thursday, January 23 at 1 p.m. CT. Join us for a live discussion with Keith Schilling, state geologist and director of the Iowa Geological Survey, Matthew Streeter, Iowa Iowa Geological Survey soil scientist, Jen Merryman, Iowa State University Natural Resources Ecology and Management University assistant teaching professor and Clark Porter, Porter Family Farms manager.