A proposal to create a federal funding program to protect the Mississippi River is back in front of Congress. Advocates say it would mirror those of other major watersheds and is long overdue.
Author Archives: Madeline Heim / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Madeline Heim is a Report for America corps member who writes about environmental challenges in the Mississippi River watershed and across Wisconsin. Contact her at 920-996-7266 or mheim@gannett.com.
Posted inEnvironment
Here’s how the locks and dams on the Mississippi River work — and why they exist
The construction of locks and dams has transformed how the Mississippi River runs. Here’s what to know about them.
Posted inEnvironment
How much trash does the Mississippi River funnel from Midwest to Gulf of Mexico?
How much trash does the Mississippi River take along with it? That’s what a group of researchers and environmental advocates wanted to find out when they began a litter analysis.
Posted inEnvironment
Farm conservation programs offer solutions to climate threats, but they’re vastly underfunded
The Biden administration has called the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s farm conservation programs a “linchpin” in the nation’s climate strategy, yet they remain vastly underfunded.
Posted inEnvironment
Mississippi River basin residents worry about environment, but few know they live in the basin
A survey of residents in 10 states, including Wisconsin, points to a need for better communication from river scientists and advocates.
Posted inEnvironment
The Mississippi River’s floodplain forests are dying. The race is on to bring them back.
Floodplain forests play a pivotal role in the river ecosystem – creating wildlife habitat, improving water quality, storing carbon and slowing flooding. But they’re disappearing.
Posted inEnvironment
Midwest states, often billed as climate havens, suffer summer of smoke, drought, heat
The lingering presence of wildfire smoke has made for an unusual start to summer across the Midwest. It also comes during a near-record drought crisping fields across the Corn Belt and the threat of hotter summers to come.
Posted inEnvironment
Wildfire smoke is new hazard in upper Midwest
Canadian wildfire smoke brought air quality alerts to the Midwest. Such episodes will grow more common as the earth warms, climate experts say.
Posted inEnvironment
Mississippi River shipping infrastructure is aging. Who should pay for the repairs?
Around 175 million tons of freight travels on the Mississippi River each year, and from the river’s headwaters to southern Illinois, a series of locks and dams guide barges through the journey.
Posted inEnvironment
Mississippi River floodwaters swamp upper Midwest
A very wet winter is bringing major spring flooding along the upper Mississippi River. In some communities, the floodwaters are among the top three on record. Though the water is expected to crest and start receding in most places by next week, its impacts will linger.
Posted inEnvironment
Heavy, wet snow brings spring flooding risk to northern Wisconsin and Minnesota
Flooding outlook along the upper Mississippi River is “much above normal,” National Weather Service says.
Posted inEnvironment
Road salts wash into Mississippi River, damaging ecosystems and pipes
Chloride levels are increasing at all Wisconsin monitoring sites and across the Upper Mississippi River basin.