Mark Moran - Public News Service

Rural Iowa farmers are helping climate scientists get a better understanding of soil moisture levels across the state, data only available at the local level until now.

Amid growing concern over Iowa's water quality, scientists have sued the Environmental Protection Agency for neglecting to provide nitrate assessment data for state waterways commonly polluted with the chemical.

Research from the University of Iowa shows a 20% increase in the number of large wildfires in the United States last year is damaging air quality in Iowa and other Midwestern states.

Cancer patients in Iowa will be unable to seek legal action against chemical makers under a recent Supreme Court ruling in favor of glyphosate manufacturers. Glyphosate is the pesticide found in the weedkiller Roundup.

Iowa Western Community College in Atlantic will invest nearly $1 million in vocational degree programs, including manufacturing, construction, electrical and plumbing training.

Nebraska mental health service providers have seen a surge in calls from Medicaid recipients since new work requirements went into effect last month.

Heat-resistant plants could help farmers respond to abnormally dry conditions spreading across Iowa and the wider region.

Rural advocacy groups have launched an initiative to raise awareness of rural issues and support producers who grow healthy food in Nebraska.

Supporters of small and independent agriculture producers in Iowa have launched an initiative to raise awareness of rural issues as the midterm elections approach, pushing back against what they call the outsized influence of corporate and foreign-owned agricultural operations.

Iowa family farmers said the long-overdue Farm Bill under consideration in Washington favors large corporate agricultural interests over independent producers.