This Earth Day, please support our work on the Great Lakes and the Mississippi

Caring for our water resources is part of what has made Wisconsin a leader in the environmental movement for decades, including being the birthplace of Earth Day in 1970.

In the nearly two years we’ve been studying the environment for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, we’ve gotten up close and personal with Wisconsin’s major bodies of water.

An early morning run along the icy shore of Lake Superior, a boat ride through the back channels of the Mississippi River and a paddle to Lake Michigan – these experiences have done more than just our reporting for specific stories. They have shown how deep water influences and connects us.

Wisconsin is a water-rich state, from its borders to the countless lakes, rivers and streams it contains. We bet you have a favorite, and we hope our coverage of the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins has helped you learn how that water connects you to others.

Yes! I support this reporting at the Journal Sentinel with a tax-deductible donation

Both of our positions at the Journal Sentinel are funded in part by Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in newsrooms across the country to write about under-covered issues and communities. The newsroom needs to raise money for some of our salaries to ensure these stories don’t disappear. In short, your donations keep our work going, and for that we thank you.

Wisconsin was the birthplace of Earth Day in 1970

Caring for these water resources is part of what has made Wisconsin a leader in the environmental movement for decades, including being the birthplace of Earth Day in 1970.

But the country also faces major threats.

Pollutants from farms and urban areas, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, PFAS and road salt, wash into Wisconsin waterways, harming aquatic life and seeping into drinking water, which can endanger human health.

Mining projects are beginning or continuing in some of the state’s most fragile ecosystems, and there is ongoing controversy over pipelines that transport crude oil through bodies of water.

And climate change is exacerbating existing problems, making both floods and droughts more frequent and severe.

Over the past year we’ve written more than 120 stories, many of which focus on these issues. And that number doesn’t include the work of our colleagues Laura Schulte, Paul Smith and Frank Vaisvilas, who write about the state Department of Natural Resources, wildlife and environmental issues affecting indigenous communities. In doing so, Journal Sentinel maintains a long-standing commitment to comprehensive environmental journalism.

We’ve reported on how changes in federal regulation of wetlands could impact the Great Lakes and the Mississippi, on Wisconsin’s decades-long battle against nitrate pollution from private wells and on the work tribes are doing to revive degraded waterways .

We’ve also worked hard to provide basic education about these two major watersheds, answering questions like, “Does Milwaukee get snow from a lake?” and “Where does the Mississippi River begin?”

Getting feedback and support from readers is critical to our success

We believe that all these stories, big and small, can make a difference in the way our readers think about water and the environment. And we’re ready to say more: We hold environmental organizations accountable for progress, listen to people in communities facing disproportionate impacts from floods, heat waves, pollution and other problems, and look for solutions that can give us all a little hope to give. faced with extreme challenges.

But we can’t do that without you. First and foremost, let us know what environmental issues you would like to see addressed. Do you have a question about the lakes or the river? Are you concerned about the water quality in your community? Contact us – our contact details can be found at the bottom of this story.

Your donations also make a difference. There are three members of the Report for America corps at the Journal Sentinel, including Cleo Krejci, who covers workforce development and career paths. At our sister newspapers, Madison Lammert writes about Wisconsin’s child care industry and early childhood education for the Appleton Post Crescent, and Danielle DuClos is a K-12 education reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Three reporters at the Journal Sentinel, Jessica Rodriguez, Sarah Volpenhein and Frank Vaisvilas, served as corps members in Wisconsin and have been promoted to permanent editorial positions.

Keep these stories coming: Make a tax-deductible donation

Even if your involvement with us ends here, we encourage you to take a moment to reflect. Which water bodies do you care for? Who keeps them clean and safe? How does that water flowing past you in a river, lake or stream connect you to others, and what might they have to say about its condition?

We will continue to think about this on our travels through Wisconsin, and we will take you with us. There is something for all of us to learn.

We welcome suggestions on what environmental stories you would like to see. Take this survey to suggest stories about the Great Lakes. And take this survey for stories about the Mississippi River.

Please consider supporting the journalism that informs our democracy with a tax-deductible donation for this reporting jsonline.com/RFA or by check made out to The GroundTruth Project with subject line Report for America Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Campaign. Address: The GroundTruth Project, Lockbox Services, 9450 SW Gemini Dr, PMB 46837, Beaverton, Oregon 97008-7105. Reach Heim at (920) 996-7266 or [email protected]; Looby at [email protected] or follow her on X @caitlooby.

Caring for our water resources is part of what has made Wisconsin a leader in the environmental movement for decades, including being the birthplace of Earth Day in 1970.

Wisconsin was the birthplace of Earth Day in 1970

Getting feedback and support from readers is critical to our success

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