Located right on the Mississippi River and home to the Bellevue State Park, the Bellevue downtown scene during the summer months has become a hub for tourists wanting to attend the city’s farmer’s market, visit the local shops and restaurants, and stop at the new local brewery. With an influx of people visiting the town, finding available parking can be difficult at times.

In collaboration with the City of Bellevue and Jackson County Economic Alliance, Zach studied current parking and traffic patterns and presented to the Bellevue City Council a list of recommendations the city could implement to optimize and expand parking availability in the downtown area.

Jackson CED exists to strengthen Jackson County communities in Jackson County by leading the transition away from fossil fuels toward local and inclusive clean energy. Jackson CED has a three-pronged community building mission:

To positively affect the local economy by retaining energy dollars in Jackson County.
To slow climate change by promoting wise energy use.
To facilitate fair access to clean and local energy.
A Clean Energy Action Plan will provide the blueprint to accomplish specific renewable energy objectives. The action plan will help local leaders, legislators, and the public understand the economic and social benefits of transitioning to clean energy. Data, cost-benefit analyses, stakeholder input, and best practices will serve as the basis for developing action and implementation steps.

The planning team will gather stakeholder input in order to both provide education on the topic of clean energy and to understand real or perceived or real barriers and constraints. Additionally, the planning team will develop materials that facilitation implementation of the action plan.

Jackson CED has identified specific projects to include in the action plan:

A GIS map of existing renewable energy installations (e.g., solar, wind, geothermal) in Jackson County
Marketing materials for the public that emphasize successful local, clean energy installations (including scope of ownership and diversity of applications) and financial and environmental impacts of locally owned renewable energy
An information packet for legislators to influence legislation that supports clean, locally owned energy.
A study to assess financial and environmental implications of implementing renewable energy sources (e.g., solar, wind) for generation of power at Jackson County facilities.
Models to show alternatives for the small towns in Jackson County (and, by extension, small towns across Iowa) to own and operate a micro-grid utility consisting entirely of renewable energy production (e.g., solar, wind) and battery storage devices. Target communities are those with populations below 500.
The Clean Energy Action Plan will include key elements needed for decision-making and implementation of specific projects, such as: policy requirements, equity implications, financing and ownership alternatives, cost-benefit analyses, budget impacts (i.e. return on investment, or ROI), and resource/operations requirements. The final document will make specific recommendations to help Jackson County communities take meaningful steps toward a clean energy future.

Background

An effective path toward cleaner water and flood management in Iowa includes a strong emphasis on a watershed approach, which considers the entire area of land that drains into a body of water, such as river or lake. A watershed approach incorporates both technical data and robust stakeholder participation, so that policies and actions are realistic and data-driven.

Watersheds are not confined to traditional jurisdictional boundaries, and to accomplish local watershed-based planning, many cities, counties, and soil & water conservation districts have formed Watershed Management Authorities (WMAs) through voluntary, intergovernmental agreements. The first WMA in Iowa formed in 2012, and today, there are more than 20 WMAs recognized by the state of Iowa (Iowa Water Center).

The Maquoketa River in Eastern Iowa has a watershed that spans seven counties, including large portions of Delaware, Dubuque, Jones, and Jackson Counties, and smaller portions of Fayette, Clayton, and Buchanan Counties. While efforts to improve water quality and promote best management practices in this watershed have been happening for quite some time, the Maquoketa River Watershed Management Authority (MRWMA) is a relatively new regional and intergovernmental organization. With 35 jurisdictions having joined the agreement, the Maquoketa River WMA exists to reduce flood risks and improve water quality. One way that theyâ€ve had success in educating the public about the importance of the watershed is through recreational water uses, such as the new whitewater park in Manchester.

The WMA contracted the services of Limestone Bluffs Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D), a non-profit organization, to carry out the functions of the coalition.

Limestone Bluffs and representatives of the MRWMA seek assistance to complete the plan. The WMA has a strong foundation in place, including an active technical committee, support from state organizations (such as the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship), broad stakeholder support, outreach to residents and local governments, and an active volunteer base for completing monitoring water quality and other activities.

Planning – Phase 2

Following the development of other WMAs over the past ten years, the next phase of activity after forming a board and completing the first plan is filled with marketing, outreach, events, training, certification, technical analyses for decision support, site-specific scoping and pilot project implementation. The planning team will assist MRWMA as they operationalize the plan, particularly through watershed-wide site-specific cost-benefit analyses to scope out the locations and acres of green infrastructure needed to reach the intermediate and long-term outcomes of interest for water quality and flooding in each sub-watershed.

In conjunction with the technical analyses, the planning team will continue to engage stakeholders, with a focus on understanding how needs and opportunities differ among the three subwatersheds as well as separate jurisdictions. The first planning team conducted a survey to understand perceptions and interest in watershed activities. More in-depth analysis of the data can help inform actions and strategies moving forward.

As part of the continued and ongoing education and outreach efforts, MRWMA seeks assistance with creating an accessible online resource for stakeholders.

The planning team will consider opportunities to expand and promote best management practices, particularly for agricultural land uses.

The full scope of work for the second phase of the MRWMA plan will be developed in conjunction with the MRWMA board members and committees.