MICRA is an organization of 28 state natural resource departments organized in 1991 as a partnership to improve management of inter-jurisdictional fish and other aquatic resources in the Mississippi River Basin. The Mississippi River Basin is the fourth largest watershed in the world, and the largest watershed in the nation, draining all or part of 31 states and 2 Canadian provinces. The watershed measures approximately 1.2 million square miles, and covers 41% of the continental United States. The Mississippi River and its tributaries comprise one of the largest and most valuable ecosystems in the world.
Mississippi River Basin
The MICRA states have identified more than 90 inter-jurisdictional rivers within the Mississippi River Basin. Inter-jurisdictional fisheries and other aquatic resources of the Mississippi River Basin are cooperatively managed by regional partnerships developed around multiple sub-basins. These partnerships work together through MICRA to achieve cooperative management of aquatic resources throughout the Mississippi River Basin.