Developments in Industrial Waste
Treatment in Iowa
Philip F. Morgan, Associate Professor
Sanitary Engineering,  State  University of Iowa
Iowa City,  Iowa
The outstanding development in the industrial waste problem in
the state of Iowa during the past year has been the enactment of a
new stream and lake pollution law which gives the State Department
of Health considerably more authority than it previously had in dealing
with all types of pollution problems. It now has power to control
". . . in light of the use to which the water is being, or may be put . ."
". . . all substances and materials which render the water detrimental
to the public health, or unwholesome, or. unfit for domestic use or as
a public water supply, or deleterious to the health of animals, fish, or
aquatic life, or detrimental to the practicable use of the water for
recreational purposes, . . ." "Any person, firm or corporation, or any
officer or agent thereof" who violates the orders of the State Depart¬
ment of Health and who is found guilty in accordance with prescribed
court procedure will be subject to a fine of not to exceed one thousand
dollars.
Under this act no sewerage system which proposes to discharge
any materials, as described above, shall be installed until a written
permit for such sewerage system has been granted by the Department
of Health. Furthermore, no changes, additions, or extensions of any
existing sewerage system and no extension of or addition to any factory,
manufacturing establishment, or business enterprise, the operation of
which will substantially increase the amount of polluting material, shall
be made until plans for such changes, additions, or extensions shall have
been submitted to, and a written permit obtained, from the Depart¬
ment of Health.
To further protect the lakes of Iowa the new law states that no
sewage or other wastes as defined above "whether treated or untreated
shall be discharged directly into any state-owned natural or artificial
lake. . ." Since all lakes of any appreciable size that are used for
recreational purposes are state-owned, this part of the law provides for
almost absolute elimination of lake pollution. Furthermore, the dis¬
charge of treated effluent to tributaries of these lakes is possible only
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