Where does all that snow go? It’s been a common question this week, including in Northeast Missouri.

In Canton, Culver-Stockton students mused that college snow-movers could always dump the school’s considerable amounts of white stuff down the steep hill on which the school is perched.

One student snorted at that idea. “Right. Dump the snow on the town.”

Well, dumping the snow downhill is one way to do it. But what about communities where the hills are populated — alive, if you will?

Some Hannibal residents hanging out at Java Jive Thursday were similarly curious about what the city might do with the snow. A few people wondered if the city might dump it in the river.

That’s probably not such a great idea.

The Boston Herald reports that three city workers in Lawrence, Mass. (on the New Hampshire border about 35 miles north of Boston) were suspended Tuesday for dumping snow into the Merrimack River running through that city. Lawrence’s mayor says he will move to fire the employees, who he says know better. A day earlier, he had busted a private contractor dumping snow into the river.

Turns out dumping snow in rivers is a violation of federal environmental laws. Snow is often full of salt, street chemicals and other delightful contaminants; sand, cinders and kitty litter all come to mind as some of the more benign ways cities try to keep streets “clean.” The river doesn’t need all of those chemicals.

Let’s hope no one in Northeast Missouri thought to dump snow in the river or any other body of water, or the long arm of the law could be reaching for them soon.

I spent much of Thursday cruising around Hannibal with ace photographer Phil Carlson, talking with residents about their efforts to get back to normalcy after Tuesday’s paralyzing snowstorm. We heard some interesting stories, which are never in short supply in Hannibal.

But the craziest thing we saw all day unfolded on the side of Mo. 79/Mark Twain Avenue as we headed toward the Hannibal Country Club’s sledding hill.

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So tell me, folks: How big was your dig this week?

Institutions of higher education are making history all over Missouri in the wake of Tuesday’s paralyzing snowstorm. Mizzou made history by canceling classes for three consecutive days for what’s believed to be the first time in the university’s collective memory. In Canton, Culver-Stockton College made history by … canceling classes.

It’s been either a century or a century and a half since C-SC last canceled classes, depending on whom you ask. Either way, it’s a point of pride at Harvard on the Hill. College Communications Director Kyle Trudell told me Tuesday that school had last been called off in 1918 for that year’s Spanish flu pandemic. When I ventured up to Canton Wednesday (in a four-wheel-drive pickup truck piloted by an expert winter driver, just FYI), several students told me it was their understanding C-SC hadn’t closed down since the Civil War, when it was used as a hospital.

What’s the missing common denominator in those historic events? A foot and a half of snow. Here’s how the campus dealt with it Wednesday:

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Enjoy it while you can, C-SC students. You’re experiencing a once-in-a-lifetime event.

As I sit in the third floor office of The Quincy Herald-Whig Friday afternoon, watching the rain slashing horizontally through the air and the thunder growl, I recalled an e-mail I received earlier in the week about climate change.

The e-mail came from the group American Rivers. It cited a recent study released by the White House called “Global Climate Change Impacts in the United States.”

The report said the Midwest region will experience heavier downpours and increased flooding due to climate change. It cited increased precipitation in winter and spring, and more intense weather thought the year.

American Rivers is calling for investment in green infrastructure — restoring floodplains and wetlands, planting trees and promoting water efficiency — to combat the damage to the systems that keep our water clean that can be caused by flooding.

It’s something to think about, especially when Mother Nature starts to howl outside the window.