The study is the second one by the Department of Natural Resources. It found increasingly bad air, hunters struggling to find pheasants and rivers still in poor condition. A decline of protected habitat, such as grasslands and woodlands, directly affects the lack of game birds and water quality issues.

In 2009, Iowa saw one of its largest investments in environmental protection and natural resource development. An investment over $100 million, largely a result of federal stimulus funding, I-JOBS and the Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) program, will no doubt have positive effects on our environment, both short term and long term.

On the positive side, fishing license sales increased 14 percent since 2008 and anglers are experiencing record levels of walleye and breaking pan fish harvest records in Iowa’s natural lakes. Also, the number of boats certified in the state increased by 15,000 over the previous year – excluding kayaks traversing 249 miles of water trails that are expected to grow by 930 miles due to increased development.

Also, 2009 saw Iowans return to the campfire with camping activities up 4 percent compared to the previous two to three years – a trend that could be interrupted as state budget cuts will mean fewer seasonal workers and closure of some nonrevenue-generating areas within state parks, he said.

However, sales of hunting licenses dropped due to harsh winters and wet springs that have reduced prospects for turkey and upland game, like pheasants, quail and cottontail rabbits.

The pheasant population is down due to a major hit to habitat linked to a decline of 64,000 acres enrolled in the conservation reserve program (CRP) in 2008 and a 354,000-acre drop since 2007 – marking the lowest level since 2000. Hunters harvested 383,000 birds last year – a drop of more than 248,000.

Water quality in Iowa’s streams made considerable improvement last year, Leopold said, but the overall quality score still remains in the poor category. Meanwhile, 65 of Iowa’s 132 publicly owned lakes that are monitored had good water clarity with the rest of the lakes were a murky, cloudy blend due to sediment and algae as statewide water clarity and nutrient levels remained similar to previous years.

Iowa’s air quality continues to get a little worse every year. The latest report indicated that air pollution levels exceeded public health thresholds 125 times from 2007 to 2009 at sites across Iowa – up 33 percent from the previous reporting period mostly due to high levels of fine particles.

Topping the list of communities with total days exceeding air quality standards during the most-recent reporting period were Davenport with 26, Muscatine with 20, Clinton with 18, Cedar Rapids with 16, Waterloo and Iowa City each with eight, Des Moines with five and Sioux City and Clarion each with four days.

Last year, the state of Iowa’s environment report was issued in a report card format with eight classifications receiving letter grades and the overall status rated at a B minus grade. Leopold said DNR officials decided to dump that format this year because people focused too much attention on the grades rather than the trends and what could be done to change them.

Roller dams have a recirculating current and anything drawn into the current is pulled under and barreled into a wall.

AS a fisherman (or fisherwoman, as the case may be), you are used to having buckets of fish parts left over after cleaning your fish. Instead of throwing them out, try making your own fish fertilizer. Commercial fish fertilizer available in stores can cost more than $30 per gallon,  I found one that was over $200 dollars for 6 gallons! You can make your own for (almost)free. Homemade fish fertilizer has the added benefit of using fresh fish which improves the levels of enzymes and other beneficial elements. Although the process is a bit smelly, once you see how the plants in your garden react to the fish fertilizer, you will be hooked.

DIY Fish Fertilizer Step 1: Start with approximately 1 gallon of fish parts from your fish cleaning session. This can include heads, skeletons and innards. Put in bottom of 5 gallon lidded bucket. Add 1 cup sugar to help in the decomposition and enzymatic processes. Fill bucket ¾ full of water. Stir until sugar is mixed through the solution. Put lid on tight and keep bucket away from your house and your neighbors’ houses. Decomposing fish doesn’t smell the best! You can pour molasses into the bucket to control odor and contribute healthy microorganisms to your organic fish emulsion fertilizer.

DIY Fish Fertilizer Step 2: Open lid and stir daily to mix and aerate the fish fertilizer in the bucket. After about a week, you will start to see some bubbling and foaming on the top of the bucket. This shows you that decomposition has begun. Continue to stir daily.  Add shredded newspapers, dried leaves, sawdust or brown grass clippings to the bucket to feed your fish fertilizer as it decays.

DIY Fish Fertilizer Step 3: After two weeks, your solution is ready. Strain out solids from your fish fertilizer using several thicknesses of cheesecloth tied securely over the top of the bucket. You can add the fish solids to your compost pile at this point. Make sure your compost pile is secure from predators as raccoons and possums will otherwise love the buffet you set out for them.

DIY Fish Fertilizer Step 4: Keep your fish fertilizer in a jug or bucket with an air hole in it. The decomposition process will continue if there is still sugar present in the solution. Just like still-fermenting wine, you won’t want to seal it closed or the gasses may explode the container.

DIY Fish Fertilizer Step 5: When ready to use your fish fertilizer, dilute the concentrated mixture with water on a 1:4 ratio. For example, use 1 cup of fish fertilizer to 4 cups of water. You can put fertilizer into a spray bottle to give the leaves of your plants a foliar spray, or you can add to your watering can or automatic sprayer to let the fertilizer soak into the soil to condition plant roots.

I may like catching smallmouth bass the most, but thats definitely not all I try to catch. I’m enjoy catfishing, catching walleyes and even big carps. The site is about going to be centered around fishing in Central Iowa and not neccessarily catching ONLY bass. But hopefully I will catch enough bass that I actually have something to talk about with you all.

Make your catch be heavy and your tackle bag light.