Pesticide drift: regions in IA where more/less common? (Ames: buying a house, buying)

[Midwest&Back]

I've seen articles about pesticide/herbicide drift in IA. Now, I understand why pesticides and herbicides are used--I'm not here to debate if they're good or bad. My question is this: Are there any specific regions in IA where drift is a lot more common, and other areas where it's a lot less common? My uneducated guess is that since agriculture is widespread, the issue of potential drift could come up in most parts of the state, but it would be interesting to learn more about it from people who live there.

[jmgg]

Originally Posted by Midwest&Back

I've seen articles about pesticide/herbicide drift in IA. Now, I understand why pesticides and herbicides are used--I'm not here to debate if they're good or bad. My question is this: Are there any specific regions in IA where drift is a lot more common, and other areas where it's a lot less common? My uneducated guess is that since agriculture is widespread, the issue of potential drift could come up in most parts of the state, but it would be interesting to learn more about it from people who live there.

Your question is more based on field size in proximity to a neighbor's field. Family farms are smaller in much of Iowa than in many parts of our country possibly giving you more fence line neighbors. In fact, you'll find larger fields in NW and North Central Iowa than the rest of the state simply due to land not being as rolling and tree lined. This might drop the fence line neighbors to one, and you could get lucky that this person makes a strong effort to minimize/stop drift.

Any time that you have neighboring farms closer together, you'll have more issues with complaints about chemical drift. If you're buying farm land with the hope of organic farming, you could have problems depending on whether or not your neighbors make an effort to prevent this. Some do, some don't. Just like buying a house in town when you're not from there, it's hard to pick your neighbors, and it only takes one to make life miserable.

[Midwest&Back]

Thanks, jmgg. Your points about field size and number of farms are good ones that I hadn't thought of!

[lthenderson]

I would make sure that the land to the west of where I wanted to prevent drift were not farm fields as our wind mostly comes from that direction.

As a former beekeeper, I asked many a farmer if they could refrain from spraying when there was any breeze at all that might push it towards one of my nearby bee yards. I don't think I ever had a farmer tell me no.

[601halfdozen0theother]

The northeast corner of Iowa has a large number of organic farms, and there is plenty of support for these farms and farmers in that region. Depending on what crops you want to raise, that would be a good location for you. I'd also suggest contacting the Practical Farmers of Iowa regarding this issue; they're a wonderful organization and chock full of good contacts, information, and ideas. They're based in Ames but have a strong presence throughout the state, including Western Iowa, and even have a growing presence in surrounding states. https://practicalfarmers.org/

[Midwest&Back]

Thanks for the info, lthenderson and 601. I'm not planning to actually farm; just hoping to grow some organic food for myself. And, in general, my personal preference is to avoid living in an area with lots of chemical spraying nearby, if I can.