Ohio River

"Researchers have discovered the same man-made chemicals that coat non-stick pans and waterproof clothing are also ubiquitous in the Ohio River — a drinking water source for more than five million people . . . PFAS chemicals are sometimes called “forever chemicals” because their carbon-fluorine chains are among the strongest chemical bonds in nature."

"A fish long believed to be extinct in Ohio for 82 years has been rediscovered in the state, government wildlife officials proudly declared. The small longhead darter was thought to have been last captured in the Buckeye State in 1939. For decades the species was considered extirpated in Ohio, meaning the fish was extinct locally but could be found in other locations. But the Ohio Division of Wildlife (ODW) declared the plucky little fish was no longer extinct in the state after two were captured in the Ohio River in the fall."

"Rust-colored sludge fills the streams of Southeast Ohio as acid mine drainage from abandoned coal mines continues to pollute tributaries of the Hocking River, destroying local aquatic habitats [. . .] “Excessive pollution means that water quality will be decreased, sensitive aquatic species will no longer exist in these areas or, with more pollution, no aquatic species may exist . . .""

"When I go out and look for mussels where they should be, they are disappearing . . . time and time again . . . Can you imagine? . . . It’s like walking into a forest that you know and there are no trees."

"Drought-like conditions across the Ohio Valley are producing toxic blue-green algal blooms in patches along the Ohio River stretching from Louisville to West Virginia . . . The algal blooms are growing sporadically throughout a 300-mile-long stretch of the river, often appearing as green, paint-like scum on the water’s surface . . . Climate scientists say the frequency of extreme weather events will become more common as the temperature rises. In order to avoid the worst impacts of man-made climate change, the planet needs to drastically reduce its use of fossil fuels in the coming decades."

"The Ohio River is in trouble . . . it is the most polluted river in the United States, a distinction the Ohio earned from reports of industrial discharge data that show it taking in, pound for pound, more commercial waste than the Mississippi River. The waste includes nutrients and toxic heavy metals from coal plants and steel and chemical industries. Nutrients from agricultural runoff and sewer overflows are increasingly fueling harmful algal blooms."

"Climate change will push the Ohio River and its tributaries into uncharted waters, setting off economic and environmental crises like never before across a 13-state region. That's the conclusion of a new U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report that hits close to home. It found that flooding, drought and power failures could become more frequent in Kentucky and Indiana — and the rest of the Ohio River basin . . . The study makes the case that a healthy Ohio River is essential to the United States for industrial manufacturing, power generation, drinking water supplies, transportation of goods through a network of locks and dams, recreation and maintenance of the natural world."

“At the turn of the century, the Ohio River basin was home to 127 of the 297 freshwater mussel species native to North America. Since that time, however, human changes in the environment have taken their toll; 11 mussel species are extinct, and 46 others are classified as endangered or species of concern. Now there is a new threat to these already distressed mollusks—the zebra mussel. The spread of this non-native species, the worst pest to invade the waterways of North America, puts native mussels in the entire Ohio River at great risk. The lower Ohio River downstream of Louisville, Kentucky, already is heavily infested. Zebra mussels severely encrust most native mussels in this area.”

“Ohioans are used to hearing about toxic algae forming on Erie, Buckeye and other lakes across the state each summer. But not the Ohio River, which currently has a bloom nearly 650 miles long. It started in August, when tests at drinking-water plants in eastern Ohio and West Virginia showed levels of microcystin, the toxin produced by a particular type of algae. It’s a neurotoxin that can damage livers and kill pets. Now, the bloom is causing problems for drinking water and recreation along more than two-thirds of the Ohio River’s length. ‘It’s unprecedented,’ said Greg Youngstrom, an environmental specialist at the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission, which oversees the health of the river. ‘What we think is going on is that the conditions have just set up perfectly for this.’ After a rainy June and July, August was mostly dry. The river, laden with runoff from the land that surrounds its watershed in New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio, slowed almost to standstill.”

“A pilot project underway in the Ohio River basin presents a promising solution. American Farmland Trust and the Electric Power Research Institute recently established the nation’s first interstate water quality trading market, which allows industries to purchase water quality ‘credits’ from farmers in the watershed. In turn, watershed farmers use the funds for farm improvements that reduce the amount of fertilizer running off their fields and barnyards. We estimate that in the first year of the project over 12,000 pounds of nitrogen and 3,800 pounds of phosphorous have been kept out of the river from 29 farm projects. At full scale, this program could have a significant positive impact on the water quality and health of the watershed.”

"In 2015, the Seneca Nation of Indians were awarded Federal funding for a project titled “Conservation Management” through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Tribal Wildlife Grant (TWG) program. The goal of the project is to increase stream and shoreline restoration within the Cattaraugus Creek, to benefit sacred fish species including the brook trout and steelhead fish. According to Seneca oral histories, the Great Spirit had caught and admired the beauty of the brook trout. The Great Spirit’s touch turned the black ebony color of the trout into silvery spots and halos. Since the brook trout had been handled by the Great Spirit and spared for its beauty to live on, the Seneca Nation of Indians do not eat brook trout, but hold it as sacred in the highest regard of fish."

“[Ohio] Restoration of the state scenic Stillwater River in Ohio has begun with work to remove the 13 foot high 200 foot long West Milton dam, north of Dayton, Ohio. Its removal and associated river restoration work will improve water quality and fish passage, and reconnect 200 miles of the Stillwater's upstream section to the lower river. The Stillwater will have the longest free-flowing section of any river in Ohio.”

“Six states bordering the Ohio River are joining the Environmental Protection Agency in the largest study of its kind to identify and reduce dangerous levels of bacteria that plague the waterway . . . ‘It kind of sets a pollutant diet for the river,’ said Dean Maraldo, an E.P.A. official who attended a public hearing about the study last Thursday near Cincinnati. ‘The study itself doesn’t bring financial resources but highlights problems so that states and stakeholders can target what resources they have.’. . . According to the E.P.A., carrying out the recommendations of a similar study led to the restoration of healthy oxygen levels in the Middle Cuyahoga River in northeastern Ohio through the removal of one dam and modification of another. “

“Back in the 1960’s paddlefish, or spoonbills as they are called, were frequently hooked and landed below Meldahl Dam, and the bank at one time was littered with their big bony skulls and paddles. Paddlefish numbers have steadily declined as a result of the construction of the locks and dams on the Ohio that took place during the 1950’s and early 1960’s. However, a surge in sightings since 2000 and recent studies offer some evidence that paddlefish are making a slight comeback.”