IOWA – Today Progress Iowa is releasing a new video ad calling out Attorney General Brenna Bird for taking campaign contributions from corporate polluters while failing to hold them accountable — even as Iowa communities face some of the highest cancer rates in the nation.
The ad highlights a stark contrast: while attorneys general and environmental agencies in neighboring Midwestern states have won $448 million in settlements for air and water pollution violations since Bird took office, AG Bird has announced just two settlements during that same period.
“Whether it’s Iowans battling cancer or taking water cleanup into their own hands, Brenna Bird has shown us who she is, and we believe her,” Rich Gradoville, Iowa resident and cancer survivor said. “Iowans are tired of trying to clean up the dangerous messes she ignores.”
The Nishnabotna River is one example. In 2024, the river faced one of the worst contaminations in Iowa history. Instead of seeking full restoration of at least $225,000 as requested by our own Iowa DNR, Bird settled with the company for a total of $100,000.
“She stalled. She delayed. She tried to bury the issue and minimize any consequences for a massive organization,” Mike Delaney, founder of the Raccoon River Watershed Association said. “The result was a slap on the wrist with no changes that I’m aware of about how those nitrogen storage tanks are managed. This isn’t just one river in one county. It could happen anywhere. And if it happened in the Raccoon or Des Moines River watershed, the consequences for the Des Moines Area Waterworks would be tremendous. Especially if the AG only fights for us when forced, and for less than half of what we need.”
Ad Script
Iowa has some of the highest cancer rates in the nation.
But instead of prosecuting polluters, Brenna Bird took their money.
Bird took over a hundred grand from the executives of a plant that emitted cancer causing toxins while local residents were in the dark,
and Bird took money from a chemical company that produces a pesticide made with glyphosate, which has been linked to cancer.
While neighboring states take on corporate polluters, and see far lower cancer rates, Brenna Bird takes their money.
