The Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin
Covering over 40 percent of the continental United States, the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) plays a crucial role in the environmental, social and economic health of our country.
The MARB encompasses parts of 31 states, and nearly 20 million people live in the counties that border the Mississippi River.
The Mississippi River provides drinking water to more than 50 municipalities.
The river is vital for economic sectors such as transportation, agriculture, manufacturing, recreation and tourism and annually supports more than a million jobs.
Because of its importance for human uses, the Mississippi River has experienced significant pollution and environmental challenges in the last century.
Great Lakes to Gulf focuses on the influence of excess nutrients on the health of the Mississippi River. It is acknowledged that nutrient pollution is a widespread, costly, and challenging environmental issue.
Nitrogen and phosphorus are nutrients that are natural parts of aquatic ecosystems. But when too much of these elements enter our waterways from industrial, urban, and agricultural activities, they can cause algae to grow faster than ecosystems can handle.
This overgrowth, called algal blooms, harms habitats and results in water quality declines. This is because when the algae die, they decay and use up the oxygen in the water that is needed by other aquatic life to survive.
Algal blooms can also be harmful to humans because they can produce elevated toxins and bacterial growth that can make people and animals sick if they touch or drink the polluted water.
The good news is that there are steps we can all take to minimize the nutrients entering our waterways. But it takes time to see results.
It can take decades before the results of conservation efforts become apparent, as nutrients cycle through a myriad of natural systems. That is why long-term nutrient trends analyses are important. They help people visualize the outcomes of environmental management practices and other factors, such as the relationship between precipitation and river flow, that affect water quality over time.
GLTG is an interactive website that provides nutrient-focused water quality information about the Mississippi River and its tributaries.
The goals of the GLTG website are to serve as a hub for observed nutrient data and trends throughout the MARB and to showcase potential relationships between these trends and causal factors such as land usage, conservation practices, and weather events.
This information can help us understand the effectiveness of nutrient reduction efforts at the federal, state, and local levels and inform the direction of future nutrient reduction work.
We provide a user-friendly platform that showcases nutrient reduction efforts within the MARB by making it easy to explore nutrient data and nutrient trends.
We all have a vested interest in healthy waterways.
Improving America’s water quality is not just good for the environment—it is good for families, communities, and the economy.
From farmers to scientists and policymakers to environmental advocates, we welcome everyone to join us in charting a healthy course forward—from the Great Lakes to the Gulf!