Economies and Communities

Why It Is Important

The great Mississippi River system runs through America’s heartland, culture and economy. From forest and mountain headwaters, across prairies, farm fields and savannas, through hundreds of small towns, and some of America’s greatest cities, the River connects lives and livelihoods. About 12 million people live in the 125 counties and parishes that border the Mississippi River. Over 70 million people live in its basin.¹

Its extensive habitat and open space, including  thousands of acres protected in refuge systems, are important for wildlife, but also for the region’s economy. As American Rivers states: "The Mississippi is a cultural and recreational treasure for the nation. Tourism, fishing and recreation generate about $21.4 billion each year, and contribute 351,000 jobs along the river."²

More than half of America’s farms are part of the Mississippi River basin.³  The Mississippi River basin produces almost all (92%) of the nation's agricultural exports, over three quarters (78%) of the world's exports in feed grains and soybeans, and most of the livestock and hogs produced nationally. In addition, the Gulf's fish and shellfish industry is worth $26 billion annually (including Texas' oyster harvest).⁴ Almost all of these fish and shellfish rely on estuarine habitat provided by the Mississippi River during some stage of their life.⁵ 

The Mississippi River serves as an important commercial transportation corridor to ship hundreds of millions of tons of commodities each year, supporting a $12.6 billion shipping industry with 35,300 related jobs.⁶   Well over half (60%) of all grain exported from the United States is shipped via the Mississippi River through the Port of New Orleans and the Port of South Louisiana.⁷

What You Can Do

The River’s vivid character is woven into the history of its communities, the resilience of its peoples, and in our nation’s stories and songs. Riverboats, jazz, corn-dogs at state fairs, catfish, Mark Twain, bayous, and dozens of other images evoke the essence of the Mississippi. This River is deeply imprinted in the American imagination.  The one and only Mississippi is America's River; it is ours to respect, to care for and protect.  Do your part to defend our mighty River by becoming a River Citizen today.

¹ Mississippi River Water Quality and the Clean Water Act: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities (2008) Water Science and Technology Board (WSTB), National Academies Press http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?.
² http://act.americanrivers.org/site/DocServer/mississippi.pdf?docID=692
³ Compiled from data from the USDA Economic Research Service, "Major Land Uses in the United States, 2002"
⁴ Mississippi River Basin & Gulf of Mexico Hypoxia: Fact Sheet. EPA Web Site and Mississippi River Basin and Gulf of Mexico Factoids (April 10, 2003) - Fact sheet provided by Ron Nassar, Lower Mississippi River Conservation Committee http://www.epa.gov/msbasin/taskforce/factsheet.htm (Viewed November 8, 2007)
⁵  Mississippi River Conservation Committee and Restore Our Coast, Protect Our Cities. Environmental Defense. http://www.environmentaldefense.org/page.cfm?tagID=500  
⁶ http://act.americanrivers.org/site/DocServer/mississippi.pdf?docID=692
⁷ National Parks Service. Mississippi River Facts. Accessed on 22 June, 2009. http://www.nps.gov/miss/riverfacts.htm