Luther granted federal funding for flood prevention

After massive flooding infiltrated the Oneota Valley two summers ago, Luther applied for and received a perpetual lease to restore and maintain land as natural prairies. Not only will this project help prevent flooding in the future, but the federal government will pay Luther roughly half a million dollars for doing so.

This school year the lease will come into effect as Luther begins to fill fields and farmlands with more natural plant life.

Rich Tenneson, director of Facilities, explained what the lease entails.

“The land is still our land, but what we’re guaranteeing is that we will never develop that land or raise crops on the land,” Tenneson said.

The land, spreading to the east and west of U.S. Hwy 52, includes farm fields affected by the flood. Because of the lease, farmer Bob Jewell, who as rented the land from Luther for several years, will have to stop farming in the designated areas permanently.

While Jewell is considering putting some of his own land into the program, he also expressed some uncertainty.

“We’re a little on the fence about it,” Jewell said. “It would take away from a lot of production.” Although fi nances are an issue, Jewell thinks the lease will be, for the most part, benefi cial for him. “What they’re offering in dollars is pretty attractive, and we agree with taking care of the land and protecting it,” Jewell said.

Tenneson explained that land leases such as Luther’s are becoming a national trend. “The national government is trying to do more of this to protect the fl ooded areas in the long run,” Tenneson said. The lease was made possible through the Emergency Watershed Protection program, a national program to provide an alternative to farmers with frequently fl ooded farmland. While Luther won’t know the exact amount they will receive from this lease until they know the acreage they will convert, the current estimate is $495,000.

This money can then be used for investments for the school. Tenneson believes the lease will benefi t Decorah as well as Luther.

“If [Luther] were to ever develop any of these areas, we’d have to haul in fi ll, and that would mean we’d just have more pressure put on whatever’s left, so the water would come in faster into Decorah in the event of another fl ood,” Tenneson said. “We’re guaranteeing the fl ood security for the city.”

Allowing natural grasses to grow in place of crops helps hold soil together, thereby keeping potential fl ood damage to a minimum, according to Tenneson.

“We’re talking about land that’s very susceptible to fl ooding,” Tenneson said. “There are defi nitely advantages of putting it out of production.” One of these advantages is environmental, according to Tenneson.

“Corn on corn on corn tends to be harder on the soil because of the pesticides and herbicides, and [the lease] will eliminate that,” Tenneson said.

The farmland is also less fertile than it was before the fl ood, making it ineffi cient to farm. “[The fl ood] really scoured the ground in a couple of areas and set the land back a couple of years. I may never see it return to its former state in my lifetime,” Jewell said.

Tenneson estimates that construction may take into next spring or summer. Since much of the land is already kept in its natural state, the restorations will
not cause a drastic change in the landscape, Tenneson says. “Instead of seeing corn, soybeans, or hay, you’ll see either prairie or trees. It should enhance the overall look of the land.”