Why Iowa’s swans are thriving and how DNR monitors our water | The Spokesman Speaks Podcast, Episode 218
Published
6/8/2026
Welcome to Episode 218 of The Spokesman Speaks podcast. In this episode, we dip into water quality with two DNR experts. Water quality resource coordinator Adam Schnieders discusses Iowa DNR’s extensive – and growing – water quality monitoring capabilities. And avian ecologist Anna Buckardt Thomas shares how Iowa’s trumpeter swans are making a remarkable comeback.
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Resources Mentioned in this Episode
- DNR water quality monitoring sites: AQuIA public information portal, BioNet database, ADBNet
- Learn more about Iowa’s conservation progress on the Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy site and at ConservationCountsIowa.com.
About The Spokesman Speaks Podcast
Since 1934, The Iowa Farm Bureau Spokesman has been Iowa’s leading agriculture news source, and today it has the largest readership of any ag newspaper in Iowa. While The Spokesman newspaper is available exclusively to Iowa Farm Bureau members, The Spokesman Speaks podcast is available publicly, providing the ag news and farmer education that matter most. You can find episodes of the podcast here or subscribe and listen in your favorite podcast app, such as Apple Podcasts, Pandora, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Audible, TuneIn Radio, Audacy, YouTube or AgriAmerica.com.
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