Mayors, Scientists and Communities along the Mississippi River come together to tackle plastic pollution
Initiative was launched today at the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative’s ninth annual Capitol Meeting, where mayors representing over 100 communities along the river corridor are convening to address critical issues that impact the nation’s most important waterway, including plastic pollution.
Marine debris that continuously enters the Mississippi River poses a large threat to environmental quality and ecosystem health. As the drainage system for 40% of the continental United States, plastic waste and other litter travels through storm drains and smaller waterways into the river and its tributaries, ultimately making way to the Gulf of Mexico and into the ocean.