Iowa communities and farmers are adopting conservation practices that lead to cleaner water by keeping agricultural run-off from entering water supplies.

Coal was once a major industry of Iowa. The last mine was closed in 1971.  Current efforts are being made to save the land once home to these mines in southern Iowa.   

Chichaqua Bottoms Greenbelt has unique water quality characteristics compared to other places in Iowa.

White-nose syndrome is a disease in bats that has the potential to alter the ecosystem of the caves.

Nuclear plants in Iowa have progressively closed since 2013.

The Loess Hills formation took thousands of years to form, and is a very fragile and unique collection of dust and silt.   

Several habitats support a wide variety of plant and animal life at Chichaqua Bottoms Greenbelt.

Prescribed burnings are one land management strategy to encourage a healthy prairie ecosystem.

Ripples are visible from a variety of sources and hitting a variety of objects in the relatively still waters of Chichaqua.

Brood III of the periodical cicadas emerged in Iowa in 2014 after 17 years underground.

Bird populations, including the turkey vulture, can provide insight into the health of the ecosystems.

The physical characteristics of the shovelnose sturgeon, including its scoots, pectoral fins, and downward facing and suctioning mouth, make it suitable as a bottom-feeder in the swift current of Iowa's waters.

Tadpoles are a part of the frog lifecycle.

The mussel is a keystone species in the Mississippi River, providing critical benefits to the river ecosystem. 

Agricultural fields require specific amounts of fertilizer to maintain yields, however forests maintain biomass without the use of additional fertilizers.

In Iowa, plastic snow fences are often strategically placed in yards and alongside roads to improve road quality in the winter.

Purple loosestrife is an invasive species in Iowa that grows rapidly and impacts wetlands

Soybeans go through stages of growth using water and sunlight.