Mississippi River Basin Blog: Mississippi River Basin Water Resource Weekly News

~Most of the Water News - None of the Spin~

Noteworthy @UpperMiss Twitter Postings for the Week

Water Quality -

Iowa's largest water provider - Des Moines Water Works votes to sue three northwestern Iowa counties over high nitrate levels in the Raccoon River http://ow.ly/H2W5z
Environmental groups seek to force federal regulation of clean water in Ky., W.Va. http://ow.ly/GZNjP (also see article, below)
Environmental groups file three lawsuits seeking greater USEPA regulation of West Virginia and Kentucky coal mining http://ow.ly/GZD3W
New multi-institution study shows blue-green algae can drive lake nitrogen, phosphorus cycling http://ow.ly/GZPr4 (full research paper here: http://ow.ly/GZPr5)
New Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) promises to go after proposed Clean Water Act jurisdiction rule this year http://ow.ly/H02tR
Following a 2014 brain-eating amoeba scare, pure chlorine treatment approach to end next week in St. John Parish, Louisiana http://ow.ly/H036n

Water Resource Management (Floodplains, Dams, Navigation, Wetlands, Flooding, Supplies, etc.) -

St. Louis Post-Dispatch editorial: EPA should kill New Madrid Floodway project once and for all http://ow.ly/GVdsf
Proposed coal ash landfill in Missouri River floodplain moves closer to construction despite environmentalists' objections (eastern Missouri) http://ow.ly/GRvnI
First phase of a three-year, $15 million Arkansas River 2.8-mile levee reconstruction begins http://ow.ly/GS9Xb
Louisiana Sen. David Vitter (R) looks to restart debate over U.S. EPA's authority to veto Army Corps of Engineers dredge-and-fill permits http://ow.ly/H38CI

Agriculture -

USDA’s Economic Research Service paper: “Options for Improving Conservation Programs: Insights from Auction Theory and Economic Experiments” http://ow.ly/GRup0
South Dakota farm tops 300 bushels per irrigated acre in statewide corn contest http://ow.ly/GNLSo
Nebraska and Arkansas both are in the top five states in acres of irrigated farmland (2013 survey); Nebraska is #1 http://ow.ly/GZtXb
Many U.S. farmers will tighten their belts further in 2015 as they contend with continued low grain and soybean prices http://ow.ly/GRtxd
Magnitude of the projected 2015 farm economy downslide is the largest in the last quarter century http://ow.ly/GRu28
USDA begins its celebration of the International Year of Soils to highlight the importance of healthy soils http://ow.ly/GSD0B
EPA: insecticide used on corn, other U.S. crops poses worker health risks, also can contaminate drinking water http://ow.ly/GZKFs
Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., plans to travel to Cuba to assess the markets for Missouri agriculture http://ow.ly/H3ayt
Growing number of small businesses provide local farmers and their customers with marketing, transportation, logistics services http://ow.ly/H3aZj

Climate and Weather -

US drought update: long-term precipitation deficits persist across many areas of southern Plains; upper Midwest, central, northern Plains: status quo http://ow.ly/wmTdv
Japanese data release makes it official: 2014 takes the title of hottest year on record http://ow.ly/GS2Bs
Op-ed: Scientists are "playing dumb on climate change" by setting rigorous statistical bars http://ow.ly/GRwiB
NOAA National Climate Summary Information data sets for December and for all of 2014 http://ow.ly/GVf3O

Biodiversity, Wildlife and Invasives -

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/MN DNR e-DNA study indicates that Asian carp presence may still be minimal in Upper Mississippi River http://ow.ly/GS8AR
Wild buffalo playing a crucial role in restoring Illinois grasslands http://ow.ly/GNSKV
Sighting of extremely rare ivory gull along Mississippi River draws flocks of bird watchers to Quincy, Illinois http://ow.ly/GS6OE

In the Cities -

Fort Smith, Arkansas agrees to upgrade sewer system to reduce discharges of raw sewage

into local waterways http://ow.ly/GRrwk
Future Iowa City Riverfront Crossings district park to take shape this year, with new wetland, recreational opportunities http://ow.ly/GSdcr
How Harbor Town in Memphis changed from what might have been a Mississippi River highway to a green, mixed-use Riverside community of over 3,000 people http://ow.ly/H0sNL

In the States-

Ohio Farmers Union president op-ed: "Yes: Ohio farmers’ harvests depend on healthy waters" http://ow.ly/H0njz
Pennsylvania Gov.-elect Tom Wolf faces daunting challenges, including a $2 Billion budget hole http://ow.ly/GNVSu
West Virginians discuss establishing agriculture in the state's coalfields as a way of diversifying the economy http://ow.ly/GS4P9
Rural Minnesota state lawmakers intend to press housing, jobs, water issues as state legislative session begins http://ow.ly/GS7qD
Minnesota DNR aquatic education program wins nationwide award http://ow.ly/GT1PF

Gulf Coastal Region-

Louisiana's United Houma Nation lands are disappearing beneath the Gulf of Mexico as the tribe struggles for federal recognition http://ow.ly/GVgjD
NOAA scientists' article: From the extreme to the mean: Acceleration and tipping points of coastal inundation from sea level rise http://ow.ly/GS1Ez

Resource Development -

Tumbling oil prices are bringing unwelcome tidings to bio-ethanol: one of the U.S. Farm Belt’s hottest industries http://ow.ly/GNOsM
Keystone XL Pipeline is not the only major oil pipeline being planned that would cut through the Midwest http://ow.ly/GRreW
White House press secretary: President will not sign a bill approving the Keystone XL pipeline if it passes http://ow.ly/GV9dN
Obama administration issues formal veto threats for bill that would approve the Keystone XL pipeline http://ow.ly/GZwHJ
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee clears Keystone XL pipeline project approval legislation on a 13-9 vote http://ow.ly/H0LSX
Keystone XL pipeline future is tenuous, as Senators scramble to keep the project alive http://ow.ly/GZvku

Federal Budget -

President Obama plans to release the Administration's fiscal year 2016 budget plan on February 2 http://ow.ly/GZIeV
The next Federal debt ceiling fight; Senate Majority Leader McConnell vows end to brinksmanship, but troubles loom http://ow.ly/GRt72

Events - Information on all past and future events listed here each week can be viewed in the on-line calendar, located above and to the right (and here as a stand-alone calendar)

Save the Date: How Will Climate Change Affect Our Global Food Supply?, January 28, 12:45 - 2 PM, Resources for the Future, Washington, DC http://ow.ly/H2K6S
16th annual Protecting the St. Croix Summit: "Changing Climate, Changing Times," April 29, Water Street Inn, Stillwater, MN http://ow.ly/GRsoP
2015 National Mitigation and Ecosystem Banking Conference, Orlando, Florida, May 4-8 http://ow.ly/GZEN7
Water Environment Federation, the Water Environment Research Foundation, and the California Water Environment Association hosting Nutrient Symposium 2015, July 26–28, San Jose, CA http://ow.ly/H0PBL

e-Newsletters, Publications, Journals, Multimedia -

Ohio Wetlands Association - January News http://ow.ly/GNRl8
NW PAssages e-magazine for January 2015; about Northwest Pennsylvania's greenways, heritage and nature recreation http://ow.ly/GRqCx
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's Waterfront Bulletin for January 2015 http://ow.ly/GZY1P
Lower Mississippi River Dispatch No. 271, January 7 http://ow.ly/GZYYs
Water Environment Federation January Stormwater Report http://ow.ly/H0gfW
Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law and Policy January 7 TUWaterWays e-newsletter http://ow.ly/H0CKU
Montana Watershed Coordination Council January 8 Watershed News http://ow.ly/H1j3Y
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Feedlot Update - Jan. 8 http://ow.ly/H1jrh

Other news-

Lake Fork Watershed Working Group elects to expand focus to entire Arkansas River headwaters upstream of Granite, Colorado http://ow.ly/GSedT
Nominations sought for Western Pennsylvania Environmental Awards http://ow.ly/H0DpU
U.S. transportation and shipping network faces big test as harsh, cold wind chills buffet the Plains to East Coast http://ow.ly/H2P9j

Politics and People-

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service appoints 35-year career employee Jim Kurth as new deputy director for operations http://ow.ly/GZCaV
EPA selects Ron Carleton, former Colorado state agriculture official, as agricultural counselor to the Administrator http://ow.ly/GZypL
Tennessee Valley Authority names Washington, D.C., attorney Sherry Quirk as executive vice president, general counsel http://ow.ly/H0MGE
Senate Republicans plan a full-on assault against a wide range of Obama administration environmental rules http://ow.ly/GZxof
A few within the GOP House majority accept the science of climate change, including Louisiana's Rep.-elect Garret Graves http://ow.ly/GRZH5
Incoming Senate Majority Leader McConnell (KY): Jobs, Keystone pipeline and rolling back "strict" environmental and healthcare regulations top GOP agenda http://ow.ly/GNNgC
New Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. on the need to compromise: it's not me it's you http://ow.ly/H01Nr
Analysis: new Congress may be the most boldly anti-science body since the time of the Scopes Monkey trial http://ow.ly/GNSoK
The 114th Congress, despite being the most diverse to date, is still overwhelmingly white, male and Christian http://ow.ly/GRs45
Nipping rumors in the bud, Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan., says he does not plan to run for Senate in 2016 http://ow.ly/GZus6
PBS: In U.S. history, president’s party has been in minority in both houses during only 24 of the 114 sessions of Congress, but it's the "new normal" http://ow.ly/H00fS