While many victims of the June flooding and tornadoes received relief in the form of checks, some 80 northeast Iowa businesses and individuals also got relief they could feel between their toes. Linda King of the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says they received thousands of square feet of free carpeting.

King says the carpet came from a company in California that was anxious to help out those people affected by the disasters. King works for the D.N.R.’s Waste Exchange Program which coordinated the carpet exchange.

She says the carpet first came to Des Moines, and the rest was then sent to the Parkersburg area. Some 110 rolls or carpeting, over 50,000 square feet, ended up in the Parkersburg area, after some of the carpet was dropped off in Des Moines.

King says the carpet would likely have gone to waste if it hadn’t been used in Iowa, and it was appreciated. King says the D.N.R. and Iowa Waste Exchange have received at least 50 thank-you’s from the Parkersburg area. The Waste Exchange looks to help companies recycle unneeded supplies that would normally end up in a landfill.

King says they’ve had a lot of calls from other states offering such material since the disasters hit. King says they’ve been very busy giving disaster victims things they can use, such as wood, carpeting and paint that have been donated by other states. For more information about the Iowa Waste Exchange go to the waste exchange link on the Iowa D.N.R.’s website .