Letters to the Editor: Commentary on life in a small town

I am a citizen of the town of Larrabee. About a year ago after a trailer fire on an empty lot we had asked the current owner (who has since passed) and the city mayor at that time if we would be allowed to cut down three dead trees on the property for our use for firewood, both agreed.

There is a lien on the property for the cleanup of the fire, and we are very happy that the city will get this money reimbursed!

We have cut, split and neatly stacked the wood on the lot. Nothing else was said and the property looks way better!

A new mayor has the office now and we were recently informed that the lot is is in the process of being sold. I asked the mayor if we could remove the split wood from the property before the sale is closed.

I was advised to contact the attorney that is completing the paperwork for the sale. [The attorney] said this is the first he had heard about any wood, and didn’t think it would be a problem, but to check with the mayor.

The mayor is denying access to get the wood. The mayor’s husband opened a business entity and is the buyer of the property and sales split wood on the highway.

Also, the buyer and the mayor are paying the neighbor for mowing the property and he was just appointed to the open council seat. Just seems a bit unethical to a lot of us in town.

(The appointment of the council person may now being petitioned by citizens.) We did get permission from the land owner to take the wood from property and now have it in our possession.

Neighbors let us use their dump trailers and 8-10 neighbors, along with a few neighbor kids, helped us collect the wood and stack it.

That is the way this town should be!

Tammy Roethler, Larrabee

Iowa’s health and water crisis

Growing up in rural Iowa, I spent a lot of time at nearby waterways. Walking the banks, wading in the water, admiring the animals, insects, foliage, and the simple yet complex beauty of nature. I learned to tell the quality of a waterway by the ecosystem in and around it or the lack of one.

Now, Iowa faces a public health and water crisis that demands immediate action. Our state ranks second in the nation for new cancer cases, with 87 of 99 counties exceeding the national cancer rate. With no comprehensive plan, this trend will continue or even get worse.

The average nitrate concentrations in Iowa’s drinking water increased between 2003 and 2017, with a concentration averaged across 236 towns reaching as high as 5 parts per million (ppm).

Recent studies show that extended exposure to nitrate levels at half the EPA’s maximum drinking water limit of 10 ppm can still have adverse effects on health, potentially increasing the risks of preterm birth, birth defects, and various types of cancer.

With increasing nitrates in our water, rural hospitals closing, thousands of Iowans lost or losing healthcare coverage,

we have increasing cancer risks and no where to go for help. That’s unacceptable!

For a healthy Iowa, we need healthy water. Contact your elected officials, talk to candidates running for office, start nitrate testing in your area, demand mandatory agricultural practices that protect our waterways. Iowans health needs to be a major priority! If we all do a little, we can make big changes and improve the quality of life for all Iowans! Our lives literally depend on it!

Heather Casey, Iowa resident and Iowa CCI member