Recent rainfall across parts of the Midwest helps, but it may not alleviate a serious drought in the region.
Tag: Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk
The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is an editorially independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism in partnership with Report For America and funded by the Walton Family Foundation. Wisconsin Watch is a member of the network.
Posted inEnvironment
Wisconsin towns brace for next fight on local control over large farms
A proposed pig CAFO spurred five northwest Wisconsin towns to regulate big farms. After one rescinded its ordinance, others wonder if they’ll face lawsuits.
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
Midwest drought: Corn and soybeans suffer as forecasters expect no quick relief for farmers
Arid conditions are expected to persist in eastern Iowa, Missouri, Illinois and Wisconsin. River barges are affected, too.
Posted inEnvironment
With billions on the table for water infrastructure, small communities risk being left out to dry
Water system operators are stretched thin, covering around-the-clock responsibilities to keep water running safely and reliably.
Posted inEnvironment
Lost in translation: How USDA barriers leave immigrant farmers and ranchers behind
Federal agriculture funding is a vital resource, but immigrant producers face language and cultural obstacles to benefiting from it.
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
Lo que se pierde en la traducción: Como las barreras producidas por el USDA dejan abandonados a los agricultores y los ganaderos inmigrantes
Los fondos federales para la agricultura son recursos esenciales, pero los productores inmigrantes se enfrentan con barreras lingüísticas y culturales que no les permiten sacar provecho de ellos
Posted inEnvironment
Does the Mississippi River have rights?
Black and indigenous organizers from across the Mississippi River basin called to grant the river legal standing at a summit in late May. It’s part of a nascent movement that has won meaningful success abroad and is picking up steam in the U.S., with far-reaching implications.
Posted inEnvironment
Gulf “dead zone” predicted to be twice the size of national goal. Again.
Scientists have released their 2023 forecast for the so-called “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico — predicting it will be around 4,100 square miles this summer.
Posted inEnvironment
Investigating 3M and PFAS pollution: How the Mississippi River Ag & Water desk collaborated
When radio reporter Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco traveled to the Iowa-Illinois border in early November, he found many residents unaware.
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.