How many people rely on the Mississippi River for water?
How many people rely on the Mississippi River for water?
18 million people
A frequently cited figure of 18 million people using the Mississippi River Watershed for water supply comes from a 1982 study by the Upper Mississippi River Basin Committee. The Environmental Protection Agency simply says that more than 50 cities rely on the Mississippi for daily water supply.
How many people does the Mississippi River support?
12 million people live along the mainstream of the Mississippi River and generate more than $7 billion in agricultural and forest products and $429 billion in manufactured goods. Each year, 505 million tons or $80-$114 Billion dollars of commerce flows down the Mississippi River.
What percentage of the US is drains by the Mississippi River?
41 percent
The Mississippi Drainage Basin. The Mississippi River has the third largest drainage basin in the world, exceeded in size only by the watersheds of the Amazon and Congo Rivers. It drains 41 percent of the 48 contiguous states of the United States.
How has the Mississippi River affected Americans?
As the nation’s second-longest river, behind only the conjoining Missouri, the Mississippi provides drinking water for millions and supports a $12.6 billion shipping industry, with 35,300 related jobs. It’s one of the greatest water highways on earth, carrying commerce and food for the world.
Do people drink from the Mississippi river?
Flowing 2,300 miles from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi River provides drinking water, food and jobs for millions of people.
What’s the largest river in the world?
WORLD
- Nile: 4,132 miles.
- Amazon: 4,000 miles.
- Yangtze: 3,915 miles.
How much of the Mississippi river is navigable?
The Upper Mississippi River covers approximately half of the Mississippi River’s length. About 850 miles of the river is navigable, from Minneapolis-St. Paul to the Ohio River. The river sustains a large variety of aquatic life, including 127 species of fish and 30 species of freshwater mussels.
Can you swim in the Mississippi river?
He said the Mississippi is safe to swim and fish in, as long as people are safe about it. Showering after swimming in the river and wearing a life vest are recommended. In every river you’re going to have a little bit of pollution and the Mississippi is no different,” said Kean.
What is a major impact of the Mississippi River?
The Mississippi River and its delta play a large role in influencing the Gulf of Mexico. The river is the largest source of fresh water, nutrients and sediments into the Gulf, and as such, impacts the Gulf’s circulation, geochemistry and ecology.
Is the Mississippi River toxic?
The Mississippi River doesn’t have the cleanest reputation. Long treated as a drain for Midwest farms, factories and cities, the river has coursed with a nasty mix of bacteria, lead and toxic chemicals.
What is wrong with the Mississippi River?
The Mississippi River and its tributaries have been plagued by nutrient runoff, specifically excess nitrogen and phosphorous. All of that nitrogen and phosphorous runoff ultimately ends up in the Gulf of Mexico, triggering rapid overgrowth of algae.
Why is Mississippi River so toxic?
Bacteria, lead, toxic chemicals have plummeted since 1972 Long treated as a drain for Midwest farms, factories and cities, the river has coursed with a nasty mix of bacteria, lead and toxic chemicals. The precipitous drop in bacteria — much of which stems from human and animal waste — was stunning, Turner said.
How many people live in the Mississippi River basin?
We don’t have good figures on water use for the whole Mississippi River Basin, but we have some clues. A January 2000 study published by the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee states that close to 15 million people rely on the Mississippi River or its tributaries in just the upper half of the basin (from Cairo, IL to Minneapolis, MN).
Where does the majority of public water come from?
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the majority of public water systems (91%) are supplied by ground water; however, more persons (68%) are supplied year-round by community water systems that use surface water (1). This is because large, well-populated metropolitan areas tend to rely on surface water…
How is the drinking water supply in the United States?
The centralized drinking water supply infrastructure in the United States consists of dams and reservoirs, well fields, pumping stations, aqueducts for the transport of large quantities of water over long distances, water treatment plants, reservoirs in the distribution system (including water towers), and 1.8 million miles of distribution lines.
How often does water flow into the Mississippi River?
At Lake Itasca, it would take 10 minutes for one semi-trailer of water to flow out of the lake into the Mississippi. At St. Anthony Falls, the equivalent of 3 semi-trailers full of water go over the falls every second. At New Orleans, the equivalent of 166 semi-trailers of water flow past Algiers Point each second.
We don’t have good figures on water use for the whole Mississippi River Basin, but we have some clues. A January 2000 study published by the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee states that close to 15 million people rely on the Mississippi River or its tributaries in just the upper half of the basin (from Cairo, IL to Minneapolis, MN).
How many miles of rivers are there in the United States?
The United States has over 3,660,000 miles of rivers. The 600,000-750,000 miles of rivers lying behind dams amounts to fully 17-20% of our river mileage. At least 9.6 million households and $390 billion in property lie in flood prone areas in the United States.
At Lake Itasca, it would take 10 minutes for one semi-trailer of water to flow out of the lake into the Mississippi. At St. Anthony Falls, the equivalent of 3 semi-trailers full of water go over the falls every second. At New Orleans, the equivalent of 166 semi-trailers of water flow past Algiers Point each second.
How does the Mississippi public water supply program work?
The Public Water Supply Program ensures safe drinking water to the 2.8 million citizens of Mississippi who utilize the state’s public water supplies by strictly enforcing the requirements of the Federal and State Safe Drinking Water Acts (SDWAs). The Public Water Supply Program is implemented through five major programmatic areas: