Iowans who have complaints, complements or questions about the Iowa Department of Natural Resources can speak up at a series of public forums starting next week. D.N.R. director Rich Leopold says it’ll be a good opportunity for citizens to share their thoughts about anything when it comes to conservation.

Leopold says he wants to know what’s working and what’s not with "the locals" as far as wildlife management, state areas, regulatory programs and more. The first of the meetings will be held at the Honey Creek Resort State Park near Moravia next Thursday, August 6th, at 6 P.M. Leopold says with the new fiscal year in place, there’s both good and bad news when it comes to D.N.R. activities.

He says state appropriations to the D.N.R. and most other departments have been drastically cut, with the "pain" being felt at many levels in the state parks. Still, he says there’s been good weather this year which has enabled the system to do a lot of promotions, as fishing and hunting licenses and park receipts are up. Once the series of public forums wraps up in late September, Leopold says all of the comments will be compiled.

He says they came back with a "to do list" after every meeting. This year, meetings are also planned in the following cities: Bedford, Bellevue, Clear Lake, Lehigh, Sioux City and Solon. The complete schedule can be found on line at www.iowadnr.gov .