TAMA & GRUNDY COUNTIES, Iowa — Farmers, conservationists, and state leaders are joining forces in a large-scale effort to improve Iowa’s water quality as construction begins on a new “batch and build” conservation project in Tama and Grundy counties.

The initiative, announced by Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig, will see the installation of 14 saturated buffers and four bioreactors — a combined 18 proven edge-of-field practices designed to filter nutrients before they enter local waterways. In total, these improvements will treat 24 tile outlets and protect water sources across the Middle Cedar Watershed.

Modern Model for Faster Progress

Iowa’s “batch and build” model streamlines the design and construction of conservation practices by grouping multiple farm sites into a single project. This allows for faster planning, bulk material procurement, and efficient contractor scheduling, which ultimately accelerates water quality progress.

This is the third project in the past two years led by Heartland Co-op to reach the construction phase, with two more batches already in the pipeline for 2026.

State and Partner Leadership

“Thank you to the farmers and landowners who said ‘yes’ to conservation by being part of this exciting water quality project,” Secretary Naig said. “With strong support and leadership shown by partners like Heartland Co-op, the Iowa Seed Association, INREC and others, we are accelerating the adoption of water quality practices in priority watersheds across Iowa. This project further demonstrates how we can make more water quality progress and do it more efficiently when partners work together. We’re proud of this project and we want to keep building the momentum by adding even more farms, practices and project partners in the years ahead.”

The Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship is providing technical design, engineering assistance, and cost-share funding. Heartland Co-op is handling landowner recruitment, site planning, and overall project oversight.

Other major contributors include:

• Iowa Seed Association – fiscal agent
• ISG Inc. – design services
• Laser Precision – contractor for installations

Landowners incur no out-of-pocket costs and receive a privately funded temporary construction easement payment for each treated tile outlet.

Industry Collaboration

“Heartland Co-op is thrilled to see the installation of more conservation practices on the landscape that reduce the loss of nutrients from our farm fields,” said Ruth McCabe, Conservation Manager for Heartland Co-op. “Our partnership with Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship and Iowa Seed Association makes this work possible, and we are proud of the cross-industry work we’ve accomplished with our partners thus far.”

The project also receives vital support from:

• Tama County Soil and Water Conservation District
• Grundy County Soil and Water Conservation District
• Cedar River Source Water Partnership
• Agriculture’s Clean Water Alliance
• BASF, Syngenta, Unilever
• Iowa Nutrient Research and Education Council

Why This Matters

The Middle Cedar Watershed feeds into the Cedar River, which serves as a drinking water source for thousands of Iowans. Nutrient runoff — particularly nitrates — has long been a concern, affecting both environmental health and public safety. Saturated buffers and bioreactors are considered highly effective at reducing nitrate loss by naturally filtering water before it enters streams.

Timeline

Construction is expected to wrap up by fall 2025, with monitoring and maintenance continuing in partnership with landowners.

By installing these 18 practices simultaneously, Iowa officials hope to set a precedent for future projects — showing that conservation can be faster, more cost-effective, and widely adopted when public agencies, private industry, and farmers work together.

Originally reported by North Tama Telegraph.