In February 2011, concerned citizens of Muscatine, Iowa, organized to discuss pollution and air quality issues, forming Clean Air Muscatine (CLAM). In April of the same year, members of CLAM gave testimony to the Environmental Protection Commission, highlighting local corn milling plant Grain Processing Corporation (GPC). The Environmental Protection Commission recommended GPC be referred to the Attorney General for violating air and water quality standards. CLAM and the Attorney General sued GPC for their exceedances of sulfur dioxide and high particulate matter in the air, which caused a haze, odor, and made it difficult to breathe. CLAM worked closely with community members living in the Southend neighborhood, where GPC was located. They gathered responses to health surveys and made a documentary called “Southend,” which was shown in Muscatine schools and across the community.

In 2014, the Muscatine County courts handed down a decision that forged a new agreement between the State of Iowa and GPC in which manufacturing and pollution control practices would be changed to lower particulate matter emissions and improve air quality in Muscatine. GPC was fined $1.5 million for non-compliance. The lawsuit and settlement laid out timelines for improvement, and CLAM continued to monitor progress. A class-action lawsuit was settled in 2019 that required GPC to pay over $50 million in damages, covering more than 2,000 houses located within a mile and a half of GPC.

Following the decision, CLAM continued to advocate for environmental concerns in Muscatine and across Iowa, advocating for renewable energy sources and against coal use. CLAM was a member of the RE-AMP Network, an organization focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

In 2021, CLAM reorganized under the name Muscatine County Energy District. This name change reflected the group’s focus on promoting renewable energy use and organizing against the use of coal.