Clean Water
Our clean water program is a top priority because clean water is tied to all aspects of a better life in our cities - from food security to economic competitiveness.
MRCTI Programs
Our Programs
MRCTI's work is divided into five program areas that protect and enhance the Mississippi River corridor.
Overview
Our Focus Areas
Through these five program areas, MRCTI addresses the most pressing challenges facing the Mississippi River and the communities that depend on it.
Sustainable Economies
We're working to sustainably build the river economy, add jobs, and improve intermodal movement through cities along the Mississippi River.
Disaster Resilience
Our disaster resilience and adaptation program is the result of hard lessons learned from droughts, floods, extreme heat, and tornadoes totaling over $50 billion since 2011.
Food & Water Security
As representatives of the planet's largest food-producing river, we work to ensure food and water security for the future through international cooperation.
River Culture & Heritage
We celebrate and preserve the rich cultural heritage of the Mississippi River corridor, including initiatives like the French Heritage Corridor.
Clean Water
Clean Water Program
The Mississippi River Cities & Towns Initiative (MRCTI) clean water program is a top priority because we can tie all aspects of a better life in our cities to clean water. Truly, if we have clean water in the River then we have food security because clean water means sustainable agriculture is being practiced on the landscape.
If we have clean water, then we are better protected from droughts and floods because we have a healthy ecological system. If we have clean water, then our economy has a competitive edge in that it too is sustainable. Most importantly, if we have clean water, then the 50 cities (20 million people) drinking the water can be assured of a secure source into the future.
- Increase the capacity of federal programs that assist states to reduce their nutrient loading quotient
- Increase nutrient monitoring capacity throughout the Mississippi River Valley and bolster state efforts to set goals and timelines
- Create market signals within the food production and retail industries that nutrient reduction practices are important
Key Partners: Walmart Stores, Inc. · Upper Mississippi River Basin Association · U.S. Geological Survey · American Water · National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
Sustainable Economies
Sustainable Economies Program
Mayors along the Mississippi River, in a drive to sustainably build the river economy, add jobs, and improve intermodal movement through their cities, have built a coalition of major stakeholders comprised of organizations such as FedEx Trade Networks, Home Depot, the Inland River Port & Terminal Association, Ingram Barge, and the IL Soybean Association.
DOT Secretary Foxx has confirmed that the Mayors' effort to restore container movement to the Mississippi River has been made an official project within the U.S. Department of Transportation under the MARAD Marine Highway Program.
- Returning container shipping to the Mississippi River to alleviate traffic congestion
- Creating a more balanced freight transportation system that utilizes inland waterways
- Building capacity to move an additional 14 billion tons of cargo by 2050 to accommodate population growth
Key Partners: FedEx Trade Networks · Home Depot · Inland River Port & Terminal Association · Ingram Barge · IL Soybean Association
Disaster Resilience
Disaster Resilience and Adaptation Program
The Mississippi River Cities & Towns Initiative (MRCTI) disaster resilience and adaptation program is the result of hard lessons learned over the short history of the Association. The Mississippi River Valley has sustained considerable disaster impacts from droughts, floods, extreme heat, and tornadoes totaling over $50 billion since 2011.
Our cities have experienced a 1,000-year rain event only five years after a 500-year flood. Disasters along the Mississippi River have cost nearly 10 percent of the region's economy in some cases and at least 3 percent annually.
- Fund the national PDM Grant at $100 million or greater annually
- Increase the resilience capacity of Mississippi River infrastructure and economic development projects
- Restore the ecological infrastructure of the Corridor to better protect near-water communities
- Work with the ten States to complete a multi-state disaster vulnerability assessment
- Work with the private sector to increase mitigation and response capabilities
Key Partners: Geos Institute · EcoAdapt · FEMA
Food & Water Security
International Food & Water Security Program
As part of the MRCTI International Food & Water Security Programme, U.S. Mayors work to protect food and water sources of the world. The Mississippi River is #1 in Food Production. Mississippi River Mayors have formed delegations to attend international meetings.
"Most of the world's food and fresh water come from river basins and those basins are being compromised. As representatives of the planet's largest food-producing river, it is up to us to help ensure food and water security for the future." — Lionel Johnson, Mayor of St. Gabriel, LA
- Working with other major food-exporting river basins through international agreements
- Ensuring built and natural infrastructure are drivers for making river basins resilient
- Securing commodity markets with ten of the most populous river basins that will account for a quarter of global GDP by 2050
International Partners: Amazon, Brazil · Ganges, India · Rhine/Danube, Europe · Volga, Russia · Mississippi, USA
Culture & Heritage
River Culture, Heritage, and History
The French Heritage Corridor initiative comprises seven states in the Midwest (Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin). This network, joined by waterways connecting with the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes, transcends borders to recreate in the Midwest what was once la Nouvelle France.
While French history and heritage of eastern Canada and of Louisiana is typically well known and understood by the general public, the region comprising the French Heritage Corridor which lies between them is not as universally appreciated.
- Developing synergy and raising collective awareness about the rich French history and heritage
- Creating a network for the public to better access French heritage sites and communities
- Stimulating community-powered cultural and economic development
Key Supporters: French Heritage Society · French Government
Join Our Mission
Work with MRCTI to protect and enhance the Mississippi River corridor for future generations.
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