Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk

A person bends down and submurges a clear bottle into a green creek. They are wearing black boots. There are orange leaves scattered around them.

Citizen Scientists in the Midwest Help Experts Gather Environmental Data

A new policy brief from the United Nations argues that citizen science is crucial to global water security. Ground and surface water are facing increasing threats from pollution and climate change, and scientists need help. Citizen science, which is done by non-professional scientists, is part of the solution, according to the report. And it’s happening…

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A photo of an alligator snapping turtle. The turtle is at the center of the photograph, looking straight ahead. It has dark gray coloring with pink splotches. It is being held by someone wearing tan clothing.

Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks Reintroduces 40 Alligator Snapping Turtles to Sunflower State

An aura of excitement filled the air near the Neosho River in Kansas on a hot September morning. State wildlife officials gathered around several large, gray bins, snapping photos and eagerly chatting. Why the excitement? Forty, dinner-plate-sized alligator snapping turtles, about to be released into the wild. The last known living alligator snapping turtle collected…

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Runoff enters the Appomattox River, a major tributary of the James River, which flows into southern Chesapeake Bay in Virginia.

Farm to Trouble: Could the Mississippi River Benefit from This Strategy to Improve Water Quality?

A Chesapeake Bay program could be a model for the Mississippi River as it deals with runoff that fouls water and contributes to a dead zone off the Gulf Coast.

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Jeff Broberg examines water from a spring on April 11, 2024, near Altura, Minnesota.

Farm to Trouble: Mississippi River Basin Farm Runoff Pollutes Upstream Waters

Worsening local effects on health and recreation in Midwest states are spurring action on problems that also cause the Gulf of Mexico’s chronic “dead zone.”

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