Is Your Local River one of the Most Endangered in America?

Last month, the non-profit American Rivers announced its annual list of the country’s ten most endangered rivers, complete with ten Change.org petitions working to save each one. Less than three weeks later, that campaign is already making a difference.

American Rivers and other activists declared victory this week for the Chicago River, which had been number four on the list. The problem here was that Cook County was dumping 1.2 billion gallons of wastewater into the river every day. While reclaimed water is a good thing, refusing to sanitize it is not, and Chicago was the only city in the country to dump its wastewater without disinfecting it first.

But local officials were listening, and thanks in part to American Rivers, the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Chicago voted earlier this week to begin disinfecting the wastewater.

This is a huge step forward – but it’s not enough. From Alaska to Virginia, nine other rivers across still need our help. That’s nine sources of drinking water, recreation, and wildlife habitat.

Topping the list is the Susquehanna River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay and provides drinking water to over 6 million Americans. The Susquehanna is threatened by thousands of fracking wells, all with the potential to spill or explode, as has already happened on one of its tributaries.

This river is a real gem – the longest in the country without commercial boat traffic, and the longest in the northeast. It’s worth protecting, but the Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC) claims they don’t have the authority to manage the river’s water quality. American Rivers disagrees, and points out that the SRBC Compact gives the SRBC the authority over “planning, decision, and operation of all projects and facilities in the basin to the extent they affect water resources.”

Surely no one is arguing that natural gas spills don’t affect water resources? Quick show of hands – who’s eating as much Gulf Coast shrimp as they used to? Help prevent another major spill by signing American Rivers’ Change.org petition asking the SRBC to stop gas companies from fracking with the Susquehanna River.

And once you’ve done that, check out these other pressing petitions from American Rivers, as well:

#2: Bristol Bay. Alaska’s gorgeous Bristol Bay is crisscrossed with numerous rivers and boasts pristine tundra, gorgeous lakes, the world’s largest sockeye salmon run, and important Native history. But now those rivers are threatened by a 1,700-foot-deep, two-mile-long gold and copper mine project. Ask the EPA to enforce the Clean Water Act and stop this mine from proceeding.

#3: The Roanoke River. This river flows from Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, two of the east coast’s greatest treasures. For over one million mid-Atlantic residents, it’s an important source of drinking water – and yet mining companies want to build a radioactive uranium deposit on the shores of an important tributary. Sign the petition asking state leaders to leave the ban on uranium mining in place.

Special Mention: The Mississippi River. We’ve all watched the news in recent months with a certain amount of heartbreak as towns from Missouri to Louisiana were flooded first by the swelling Mississippi River, then by exploding dams and levees. It didn’t have to be this way – with better infrastructure and wetlands management, the worst of these floods, like the most horrific of Hurricane Katrina’s damage, might have been preventable. Ask the Obama administration to step up its commitment to protecting America’s streams and wetlands.

Read about the other six rivers and how you can help here.

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Photo credit: The State Street Bridge being raised above the Chicago River, courtesy Wikipedia.