Kids Saving the Mississippi

Front (From left to right): Matthew Concho and Cade McNeely Back (From left to right): Cassie Schmidt, Lucy Cook, and Madison Morris

A group of 7th and 8th grade students from Cape Girardeau’s own Central Junior High School have decided to participate in the Lexus Eco Challenge. Cade McNeely, Matthew Concho, Cassie Schmidt, Madison Morris, and Lucy Cook have come together to raise awareness of the issues in our beloved river, the Mississippi, and the endangered species within it. They have conducted plans to clean around the river, and encourage people to stop partaking in activities that harm the native species. This is important to the group since the Mississippi is an important part the community. They will be participating in trash pickups and encouraging people to cut down on littering, for the sake of the great animals of the Mississippi River. These kids are quite the example for moving towards a better future for Earth, and a better society.

The Lexus Eco Challenge is a challenge where teams of students do projects and attempt to fix environmental issues. The issues are related to land, air, water, or climate, and there are great prizes including $500,000 in scholarships. It helps students learn valuable skills like teamwork, project-based learning, and skill building.

“We plan to message organizations and people that may be able to help us with this issue. Also, we plan to inform locals about this in hopes that they will help protect the Mississippi River habitat. Our team can organize a litter pick up, since a lot of the reasons these animals are endangered is due to litter.” - Lucy Cook

Speaking of which, they have already planned the pick-up for the 30th of September.

In the meantime, here are some ways you can help out:

Don’t use chemicals on your lawn. The runoff can go into drains which lead into the Mississippi River and can kill animals that drink or live in it. Also, buy locally grown produce. Not only are you helping your community’s farmers, you are eating organic foods that don’t rely on the phosphorus and nitrogen based chemicals that pollute the river and kill aquatic life. Finally, don’t pour paint, or oil down the sewer. Waste, street litter, and harmful chemicals are carried into community storm sewers by precipitation and drain out in rivers, streams, and wetlands.

You can find more information by emailing the team at protecttheississippi@gmail.com and by visiting the website: https://llcook1s.wixsite.com/endangered-river