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News and Events
Agriculture Secretary Vilsack Announces Initiative to Improve Health of Mississippi River Basin
Thursday, September 24, 2009
$320 Million Available for Conservation Projects in Arkansas, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, and Wisconsin
WASHINGTON, September 24, 2009-Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced a new initiative to improve water quality and the overall health of the Mississippi River Basin in taped remarks to the Gulf Hypoxia Task Force Meeting in Des Moines, Iowa. The Mississippi River Basin Healthy Watersheds Initiative (MRBI) will provide approximately $320 million over the next four years for voluntary projects in priority watersheds located in
12 key states. Participation in this initiative, which will be managed by USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), will be made available through a competitive process for potential partners at the local, State and national levels.
“The Obama Administration is committed to taking bold steps with our State and local partners to clean up the entire Mississippi River Basin, a critical natural resource that provides drinking water for tens of millions of Americans,” said Vilsack.