Environmental covenants and institutional controls

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has drafted a model environmental covenant for use in its Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) program and its Land Recycling Program (LRP), and reviews and approves the covenants and LUST institutional controls submitted to it. Citing Iowa Code Chapter 455I, DNR says certain provisions must be incorporated into a covenant, and there is broad discretionary authority to incorporate others.

In a Phase I ESA

ASTM E1527-21 lists state institutional and engineering control registries among its standard sources; the general reading is on the State/Tribal Institutional and Engineering Control Registries page. The pages read name no Iowa registry of controls, so this handbook pairs no Iowa list with that type. DNR's Environmental Covenant page says covenants and LUST institutional controls are submitted to DNR for review and approval, and that environmental covenants are among the documents filed with the county recorder's office.

Four Iowa details shape the search.

• The instrument changed in 2005. The Uniform Environmental Covenants Act, 2005 Iowa Acts, S.F. 375, took effect July 1, 2005. DNR says the act created a new real estate instrument, the environmental covenant, which is required in place of the "restrictive covenant" used in the LUST program and replaces the "environmental easement" used in the LRP. DNR says it would not approve either older instrument in the existing format after July 1, 2005.
• Covenants go to the county recorder. DNR says its Model Recording Cover Sheet must be used for recording both LUST and LRP environmental covenants, and that Iowa Code section 331.601A set uniform formatting requirements for all documents filed with the county recorder's office, including environmental covenants.
• LUST controls come with documentation. DNR's LUST Institutional Control Guidance sets the supporting documentation and research that must accompany any LUST institutional control submitted for review and approval. The page links authority certification letters for a county and a local government, a letter on the restriction on installing wells within a contaminated area of concern within city limits, and a Listing of Approved City and County Private Well Ordinances.
• A Registry listing is recorded too. DNR says that when a site is listed on its Registry, a notice of listing is recorded in the county recorder's office and becomes part of the property's chain of title.

The page links environmental covenant models labeled Aboveground Storage Tank (AST), CSS, Land Recycling Program (LRP) and UST, a Property Interest Certification Form, DNR's Environmental Covenant Preparation Guidance and its Environmental Covenant Submission Process Tips. DNR notes that whichever model is used, the submission must comply with Iowa Code 455I.

Where to look a site up

The pages read do not say where approved covenants or institutional controls can be searched.

Getting the file

DNR's Records Center, at 6200 Park Ave, Suite 200, Des Moines, is open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except state holidays. DNR's Open Records Request page says requests to inspect public records go to the Office of the Chief Information Officer through the Iowa Information and Public Records Request Portal, and may also be made in person at a record center, by email to dnr.records.request@dnr.iowa.gov, or by mail.

Sources

Iowa Department of Natural Resources pages, read October 12, 2026:

• Environmental Covenant, last modified April 3, 2025.
• Land Recycling Program, last modified September 21, 2026.
• Site Registry, last modified December 23, 2025.
• Open Records Request, last modified March 13, 2026.