Mississippi
MPCA to test entirety of Mississippi River this year • Minnesota Reformer
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency will be testing water quality along the entirety of the Mississippi River within the state’s borders in 2024, the agency announced this week.
The MPCA typically only tests portions of the river in any given year, and this year’s effort to sample over 50 locations from Bemidji to the Iowa border represents a first for the agency in what could be read as increasing concern about emerging threats to water quality, including 3M-manufactured chemical compounds known as PFAS.
Water quality within Minnesota’s stretch of the river has improved dramatically over the past four decades, according to a fact sheet from the Metropolitan Council. But levels of some contaminants — including nitrogen from excessive fertilizer use and chloride from road salt — are rising.
“By monitoring our lakes and rivers, we are supporting safe drinking water, enjoyable recreation, tourism, and Minnesota’s strong economy,” said MPCA Commissioner Katrina Kessler. “Our work protecting the mighty Mississippi from its headwaters here in Minnesota is critical to maintaining a healthy river downstream, all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.”
The data will include traditional water quality measurements like temperature, transparency and pollutant levels. Crews will also collect and measure samples of fish and invertebrate life from the river.
The MPCA will also be screening for PFAS contamination for the first time, following the imposition of strict federal limits on the compounds.
In the metropolitan area, Mississippi River water quality degrades downstream of the junction with the Minnesota River, which carries large amounts of agricultural runoff. But it improves downstream of the St. Croix River, which is surrounded by undeveloped areas.
Farm runoff from Minnesota and other Midwestern states contribute to a massive “dead zone” stretching of thousands miles around the Mississippi delta in the Gulf of Mexico. Chemicals in fertilizer fuel massive blooms of algae, which rapidly deplete oxygen levels, making the area unsuitable for many forms of marine life.
Closer to home, nearly the entirety of the river within Minnesota boundaries is on the state’s impaired waters list. Impairments include high levels of fecal bacteria, mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in fish, PFAS, aluminum and sulfates.
Mississippi
It’s 2,350 miles long, spans 31 US states and is home to a 100kg animal with a tongue that looks like a worm | Discover Wildlife
The Mississippi River flows for around 2,350 miles through the heart of the US. It drains an area of 1.2 million square miles – that’s roughly 40% of the country – and at certain points is 11 miles wide. It is North America’s second longest river, behind the Missouri River.
Rising from Lake Itasca in Minnesota, the Mississippi winds southwards through a range of environments, draining water from 31 US states before reaching its delta at the Gulf of Mexico in Louisiana.
The sheer size of the river and the diversity of habitats it passes through make it a refuge for a huge range of animal species, including more than 260 fish, 326 birds, 50 mammals and at least 145 amphibians and reptiles, according to the National Park Service.
There are many weird and wonderful animals living within the Mississippi’s vast waters, but surely one of the strangest is the alligator snapping turtle.
This prehistoric-looking reptile is massive. It can weigh up to 100kg and males can grow well over half a metre long, making it the largest freshwater turtle in North America.
And as if its size wasn’t enough, the alligator snapper has a host of other characteristics that make it one of the Mississippi’s most striking creatures, including a dark, spiky shell (known as carapace), a brick-like head and a sharp, hooked beak. With such a formidable appearance, it’s easy to see how the turtle got its ‘alligator’ name.
But perhaps the turtle’s most curious feature is a worm-like appendage found on its tongue, which it uses as a lure to catch prey, such as fish, amphibians and invertebrates. Alligator snappers are also quite happy scavenging for food.
More amazing wildlife stories from around the world
Mississippi
Mississippi House of Representatives passes bill to make NIL earnings non-taxable
NIL money comes with a price. More specifically, a tax bill.
The Mississippi legislature is trying to reduce that burden for college athletes who play there.
Via Bea Anhuci of the Mississippi Clarion Ledger, the Mississippi House of Representatives has passed a bill that would exempt NIL earnings from state income tax.
It’s a recruiting tool for Ole Miss and Mississippi State, one that would put the Mississippi schools on equal footing with other states that host SEC universities. Florida, Tennessee, and Texas have no state income tax, and Arkansas carved out NIL earnings from the state’s income tax burden in 2025.
Mississippi currently charges a four-percent tax on anyone making more than $10,000 per year.
NIL earnings remain subject to federal income tax.
The bill will have to also pass the Mississippi Senate, and the governor would then be required to sign it into law.
Mississippi
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