USDA Mississippi River Basin Initiative Project Funding Announced

Click for larger view

USDA Secretary Vilsack today announced the funding (at $8.4 million) of 23 projects in Arkansas, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin to protect Mississippi River Basin water quality under the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s (NRCS) MRBI (“Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative”). The projects are funded through NRCS’s Cooperative Conservation Partnership Initiative (CCPI).

A complete listing of the 23 projects and their funding levels can be seen here.   

Through the MRBI, NRCS works with producers to implement voluntary conservation practices to manage nitrogen and phosphorus use in agricultural fields to minimize runoff and reduce downstream nutrient loading. Participating MRBI states include Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wisconsin.  An overview of and more details on the MRBI can be found here.