Iowa Agriculture Secretary Bill Northey and other farm leaders often praise the conservation work farmers do, going so far as to suggest those voluntary efforts are enough to solve Iowa’s water quality problems — a contention strongly rejected by the Des Moines Water Works, which wants regulations. But they apparently don’t want the public to have details about which farmers are doing what work. Iowa Public Radio, as part of a series of reports on water quality, asked the state for records describing who got $12 million in state matching money for conservation projects. The request was rejected by the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship, the attorney general’s office and the Iowa Public Information Board, IPR reported. Northey said recipients have private information “that they don’t necessarily want shared,” IPR reported. Said Randy Evans, executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council: “There is no way for the public to effectively monitor who’s receiving the state’s money and what they’re doing with it.”