Iowa court rejects water utility?s effort against districts

DES MOINES (AP) ? A divided Iowa Supreme Court on Friday upheld a legal doctrine going back 100 years that allows agriculture drainage districts to maintain immunity from lawsuits seeking monetary damages.

The ruling presents an obstacle for the Des Moines Water Works, which is pursuing a lawsuit in federal court in Sioux City filed in March 2015.

The water utility for 500,000 Iowans alleges the three counties that oversee 10 agricultural drainage districts should be required to obtain federal water pollution discharge permits and pay the utility the more than $1.4 million it has spent to remove nitrates from the water supply.

The decades-old rules that govern drainage systems ? first established in Article 1 of the Iowa Constitution and updated by the Legislature periodically ? have largely been untouchable in the agriculture-heavy state. But attorneys for the utility say agriculture has changed dramatically in the last 100 years and that the health implications of farm chemicals in water are clearer, justifying a fresh look by the courts.

The majority concluded Friday that changes in environmental laws have not undermined the basis for the drainage districts? immunity, because the districts have limited purposes for existing and limited governmental power.

?While attitudes toward the environment may differ today from when the first drainage tiles were placed generations ago, tort claims based on alleged pollution are nothing new,? the court said.

The court said Iowa law ?immunizes farmers who comply with fertilizer label instructions from liability for nitrate contamination, including money damage claims or cleanup costs. We defer to the legislature whether to reassess that policy choice.?

The opinion is written by Thomas Waterman and fully supported by Edward Mansfield and Bruce Zager. Chief Justice Mark Cady and Brent Appel agreed with the outcome but said they believe Water Works likely has some avenues to pursue action against the drainage districts.

The case returns to federal court for further proceedings.

The utility wanted U.S. District Judge Mark Bennett, who initially oversaw the case, to ask the high court to clarify the issue of immunity for drainage districts and whether the utility has a constitutional right to challenge the drainage districts. Attorneys for the agriculture drainage districts sought clarification from the Supreme Court.

Bennett said the novel legal issues presented in the case deserve the attention of the state?s highest court because of its public importance and that many of the legal issues haven?t been directly addressed by Iowa?s highest court or federal courts.