Ag & Water Desk launches landmark collaborative wetlands reporting project, ‘Down the Drain’
Contact: Sara Shipley Hiles, Ag & Water Desk executive director, 573-825-1967
Wetlands are places where land and water meet. Throughout the Mississippi River watershed, wetlands store floodwater, improve drinking water quality and serve as homes for millions of birds and other animals. But this special ecosystem is facing growing threats from development, pollution, climate change, and recent court rulings that leave them vulnerable to destruction.
Against this backdrop, the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk, a journalism collaborative based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism in partnership with Report for America, is proud to announce a landmark reporting project exploring the wonder of and threats to these landscapes, “Down the Drain: A watershed moment for America’s greatest wetlands.”
The eight-part series transports audiences from the vanishing coast of Louisiana to productive hunting lakes in Minnesota. It introduces diverse voices and life experiences, including Tennessee cattle farmers, wetland scientists, and homeowners in historically flood-prone areas of Mississippi.
This collaborative project involved Desk reporters and editors in 12 states. Helmed by Desk editorial director Tegan Wendland, Minnesota Star Tribune environment editor James Eli Shiffer and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reporter Madeline Heim, it is distinctive in the scope, depth and breadth with which it explores often-overlooked wetlands.
“America’s wetlands represent diverse ecosystems, but they are often misunderstood and under-appreciated,” said Wendland. “Most of them are already gone, and the few that remain face increasing threats. At the Desk, we’re uniquely positioned to tell this story from headwaters to delta, and our reporters all across the Basin helped make this project a success through their commitment to storytelling.”
This reporting arrives at an important political moment. Last year, the Supreme Court’s decision in Sackett v. EPA significantly limited the agency’s power to regulate wetlands, resulting in more than half the nation’s wetlands potentially losing federal protections. A March 2024 report from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service noted an approximate 50% increase in wetland loss from 2009 to 2019 compared to the previous decade.
“By bringing together newsrooms in multiple states, we can tell this story on the ground with precision and accuracy. At a time when our country is making huge changes to environmental policy, it’s important for people to understand the implications of decisions that affect them where they live,” said Sara Shipley Hiles, executive director of the Desk.
In this project, the Desk explores how these many legal and policy changes affect wetlands in the basin and what the changes mean for the health of the river and the people and wildlife that rely on it. The Mississippi is the nation’s largest watershed, home to 70 million Americans in 31 states.
“Down the Drain” published April 14, 2025, following months of field reporting and research that took reporters into wetlands all across the river basin. Shiffer and Heim flew to Louisiana to join our Mississippi and Louisiana reporters in the field, conducting interviews and taking photos.
“Through this project, I learned so much about these wondrous places, which have been abused and feared, yet they have been so good to us,” Shiffer said. “We’re grateful for this collaboration, which allows local outlets like the Minnesota Star Tribune to share our expertise and reach new audiences through the Desk’s network.”
Stories in the series include:
- A new era dawns for America’s disappearing wetlands as feds retreat from oversight by Madeline Heim, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- For sport or food, love of birds is saving grace for America’s wetlands by Greg Stanley, Minnesota Star Tribune
- Delta duck hunting offers conservation solutions, but the ducks are disappearing by Lucas Dufalla, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, and Phillip Powell, Arkansas Times
- Wetlands protections built an industry for mitigation banking. Rollbacks could erode it. by Cassandra Stephenson, Tennessee Lookout, and Delaney Dryfoos, The Lens NOLA
- “A living laboratory”: How an accidental delta taught Louisiana scientists how to rebuild wetlands by Elise Plunk, Louisiana Illuminator, and Eva Tesfaye, WWNO
- Framing wetlands as a flooding solution won bipartisan support in Wisconsin. Could it work elsewhere? by Madeline Heim and Caitlin Looby, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
- A Mississippi flood relief project could harm 90,000 acres of valuable wetlands. Is it worth the tradeoff? by Illan Ireland, Mississippi Free Press
- One Iowa landowner fights to farm a designated wetland. Others could face consequences downstream by Jared Strong, The Gazette; Jess Savage, WNIJ and Illan Ireland, Mississippi Free Press
Beyond the reporting, the series also features a state-by-state local guide to visiting public wetlands by Dean Klinkenberg, author of “The Wild Mississippi: A State-by-State Guide to the River’s Natural Wonders.” Further, an innovative, interactive data visualization blends historical imagery, cultural context and cartography, inviting readers to explore a brief history of our relationship with wetlands throughout the Mississippi River Basin.
All pieces are free to republish by news outlets. Interested news outlets are welcome to sign up to receive access to these and other stories. Members of the public can receive a weekly newsletter with our latest stories.
Credits for the package include:
Reporting by Madeline Heim (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Greg Stanley (Minnesota Star Tribune), Lucas Dufalla (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette), Phillip Powell (Arkansas Times), Cassandra Stephenson (Tennessee Lookout), Delaney Dryfoos (The Lens NOLA), Elise Plunk (Louisiana Illuminator), Eva Tesfaye (WWNO/WRKF), Caitlin Looby (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel), Illan Ireland (Mississippi Free Press), Jared Strong (The Gazette), Jess Savage (WNIJ Northern Public Radio). Additional content by author Dean Klinkenberg.
Editing by Tegan Wendland (Ag & Water Desk) and James Eli Shiffer (Minnesota Star Tribune). Additional editing by Sara Shipley Hiles, Irina Zhorov and Michael Crowe (Ag & Water Desk)
Data visualization by James Eli Shiffer (Minnesota Star Tribune), Jared Whalen (Ag & Water Desk), C.J. Sinner (Minnesota Star Tribune), Jake Steinberg (Minnesota Star Tribune), Bryan Brussee (Minnesota Star Tribune), and Tegan Wendland. Series graphic: Michael Crowe (Ag & Water Desk) with images by Jeff Wheeler and Anthony Soufflé (Minnesota Star Tribune)
Audience engagement by Michael Crowe and Britny Cordera (Ag & Water Desk)
About the Mississippi Ag & Water Desk
The Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is an independent reporting network based at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, in partnership with Report For America and the Society of Environmental Journalists, with major funding from the Walton Family Foundation. The mission of the Mississippi River Basin Ag & Water Desk is to enhance the quantity, quality and impact of journalism on agriculture, water and related issues throughout the nation’s largest watershed.
Funding disclosure
The Ag & Water Desk receives major funding from the Walton Family Foundation. We operate with full editorial independence, and we note when our sources also receive Walton funding. Following is a list of sources in “Down the Drain” that also receive funding from Walton: Environmental Defense Fund, Tulane Institute on Water Resources Law & Policy, Tulane University, Ducks Unlimited, National Audubon Society, Harvard College, Liberty Justice Center, National Wildlife Federation.
Updated: April 14, 2025