Lucille A. Carver Mississippi Riverside Environmental Research Station (LACMRERS)

Visiting Scholar Peifang Wang looks for mussels on the Mississippi River

LACMRERS is a place where people meet to study, collaborate, and learn about the Upper Mississippi River, one of the defining physical features of North America. Only when we know the river and understand its nature and the science behind it, will we be able to save it.

That’s what LACMRERS is all about.

A Mighty River

The largest river system on the continent, the Mississippi is home to hundreds of diverse wildlife species, serves as a vital transportation corridor for much of the United States, and provides drinking water for many of those who live along its banks. Its importance to people and the larger environment is enormous.

But as our understanding of the Mississippi and its environmental problems grows, so does our sense of the increasing complexities of water-related issues and the interconnectedness of watersheds.

That’s why an integrated approach is vital to linking science and policy for the river. LACMRERS provides opportunities for multidisciplinary research collaborations on the complicated problems the river system, and an opportunity to understand large river systems generally.

Lucille A. Carver Mississippi River Environmental Research Station

Learning from the River

At LACMRERS, physical and biological scientists come together to examine the problems that plague the Upper Mississippi River (UMR), stretching from St. Paul, Minn., to Cairo, Ill. Hydraulic engineers and fluid mechanicians study the river’s flow, working toward practical solutions to daunting problems, and collaborating with:

• Biologists
• Chemists
• Ecologists
• Geologists
• Environmental engineers
• Environmentalists
• Government representatives, and
• Students

LACMRERS was designed and equipped to support research and education relating to the Mississippi River and large river systems in general, encouraging the study of diverse and interacting facets of river science and aquatic ecology.

LACMRERS is the first university-owned research and education center on the Upper Mississippi River, operated by the University of Iowa, College of Engineering’s IIHR—Hydroscience & Engineering. Created with financial support from the Carver Charitable Trust, LACMRERS was named for Lucille A. Carver. Ms. Carver was instrumental in the establishment of LACMRERS near Muscatine, Iowa, her hometown, in 2001.