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The eyes of dead fish and the message “know what you drink” adorn a new billboard near Avoca that urges Iowans to monitor nitrate levels in their water.

The billboard is the first of several that the Nishnabotna Water Defenders, a nonprofit organization advocating for water quality in southwest Iowa, plans to install.

The group formed in March, a year after a couple hundred thousand gallons of fertilizer polluted the East Nishnabotna River and resulted in more than 750,000 dead fish.

Terry Langan, co-president of the organization, said the purpose of the billboards is to inform locals of what is in their water, alert them to the free nitrate testing kits available from the Izaak Walton L

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