Cutting down trees is a normal operation for most, but for one farm, it led to a world of trouble. On Dec. 7, the Daily News reported that Sharp Farms — owned by Todd Sharp — cleared some trees on its property and the operation left some debris in the North Skunk River adjacent to the Lynnville exit on Interstate Highway 80.

It caught the attention of State Sen. Dennis Black and Jasper County Conservation Director Keri Van Zante. Black, who also serves as Vice-Chairman of the Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee, was concerned the debris would have an affect on a bridge downstream, and at the time said the following:

“It’s unbelievable. I have never seen that amount of slash in a stream bed. The potential of flood waters with a big rain storm or winter storm melt endangers that bridge.”