The Real Population of Iowa

Dr. Christopher Jones is a Research Engineer at the University of Iowa.  He writes a blog that looks at water issues in Iowa.  One of his posts, from March of 2019,  Here, he calculates the 'human equivalents' of wastes produced by the livestock population of Iowa.  It's a fascinating read!  Click here!  

In the post, Dr. Jones applied the nutrient values of the waste from Iowa livestock, he found: 

• Iowa hogs: equivalent to 83.7 million people
• Dairy cattle: 8.6 million people
• Beef cattle: 25 million people
• Laying chickens: 15 million people
• Turkeys: 900,000 people

In total, these five species generate the waste equivalent to that produced by about 134 million people, which would place Iowa as the 10th most populous country in the world.

The human and animal populations were divided up in Iowa's watersheds, and the following table produced that shows the breakdown, and then lists an appropriately-populated city for comparison.   

Dr. Jones concludes this post saying:

"To finish up, I present this illustration not to make any value judgments on the livestock industry. Clearly it is an important part of our economy. I think we can and should, however, objectively and dispassionately ask ourselves how much we can accommodate while still being able to achieve our desired environmental outcomes. Denmark and the Netherlands both have livestock densities on the scale of Iowa. As a result, both of these countries have in the past suffered environmental consequences similar to our own, but, both country’s governments have intervened in more forceful ways than ours.

​I’m not saying this is good, bad, or in between, it’s just true. I think even industry advocates would say there is not much that limits further expansion in Iowa, except perhaps available land in certain areas of the state to apply the waste. Is it reasonable to think about what’s possible when trying to reconcile our desired environmental outcomes with the economic and regulatory considerations the industry wants? If we are going to be honest with ourselves, then I think the answer to that question is yes."

Dr.  Jones' blog has many other interesting posts and can be found at this link.  You can sign up to receive emails when new posts are posted, too.   Here's how Dr. Jones introduces his blog: 

"Water quality is a difficult issue for Iowans. How do we balance the needs of an agricultural economy with the desire for clean water and a healthy environment? Better information is without a doubt the best place to start. I plan to explore the scientific nuances of Iowa's quest for better water quality, with a focus on how we can work together to make progress."