THREATS & ISSUES
IN OUR WATERSHED
There are many threats and issues facing our waterways that Three Rivers Waterkeeper is working to address in Southwestern Pennsylvania. From pollution to climate change, understanding key threats and issues highlights why our scientific studies matter for preserving and safeguarding the health of our rivers and streams.
Lack of Enforcement & Deregulation of our Clean Water Laws
In Pennsylvania, our environment and public health are protected under numerous clean water laws-- but we often face lack of enforcement of these clean water laws as well as attacks on the laws themselves
As your Waterkeeper based in Pittsburgh, we hold polluters accountable and ensure that our local, state, and federal governments enforce the clean water laws which protect the public and environmental health.
Combining scientific rigor with legal expertise, we serve as an enforcer of the nation’s clean water laws where state and federal agencies have failed.
Industrial Pollution
Industrial pollution comes from the manufacturing and processing of material goods and services. Examples of sources include petrochemical plants, steel mills, hazardous waste management
Over the modern history of our region, mass industrialization polluted our waterways, and our rivers became devoid of aquatic life. Fortunately, with the implementation of the 1972 Clean Water Act and subsequent clean water laws at the local, state, and federal levels, community organizations have been able to hold polluters accountable.
Because of the Clean Water Act, industries are required to have discharge limits to protect our waterways. Nevertheless, industrial pollution still occurs today, with over 1/3 of PA waterways considered impaired by the PA DEP.
We identified and mapped major industrial polluters within our Three Rivers Waterkeeper jurisdiction with a goal to hold polluters accountable for exceeding their permit allowances.
In our region, the oil and gas industry can play a major role in impacting our water quality. As your Three Rivers Waterkeeper, we heavily monitor oil and gas waste contamination in our waterways. Read more here.
Transportation of Dangerous Materials
Everyday, hazardous materials are transported across the United States by road, rail, air, or water. These materials have the potential to spill into our waterways, or through an accident, cause other forms of environmental degradation.
Oil trains, crumbling infrastructure, and inadequate federal oversight of rail bridges threaten the safety of millions of Americans. Three Rivers Waterkeeper advocates for increased safety, better practices to prevent environmental contamination from accidents, as well as proper cleanups when a disaster happens.
Our waterways and the environment:
In 2015, we participated in a nationwide effort led by the Hudson Riverkeeper and Waterkeeper Alliance to examine the status of railway infrastructure in the US. Read the report here.
On May 26th, 2022, a Norfolk Southern train with cars containing petroleum distillates and plastic pellets, "nurdles," collided with a truck near Harmar Township. 17 train cars derailed; 9 derailed into the Allegheny tributary, Guys Run. Read our one follow-up year report here.
On February 3, 2023, a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, about a quarter-mile west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line. The train was carrying 150 cars, and 50 cars were impacted by the accident. Twenty of those cars contained hazardous materials that include, but are not limited to, vinyl chloride, ethylene glycol, ethylhexyl acrylate, butyl acrylate, and isobutylene. The cars containing the hazardous materials spilled into the environment, and some of the cars caught fire. The cars, which contained butyl acrylate and isobutylene, caught fire and were subsequently burned in a “controlled release” soon after. Read about our sediment sampling 10 months after the derailment here.
Climate Change Induced Flooding Events
Climate change has caused an increase in intensity of rainfall, flooding, and disasters. These extreme flood events impact our public health, environment, communities, and the economy.
Due to the topography of our region, flooding is common for many communities and is only expected to increase over time as climate change is expected to lead to more frequent and severe rainfall, which can lead to increased sewage overflow events into waterways.
Our goal is to help reduce climate pollution and accelerate the transition to clean energy and a sustainable society in ways that support justice, jobs, improved health, and quality of life for all.
We monitor for the impact of combined sewage overflows into our waterways during the warm weather season to help our communities understand recreational risk in the water for exposure to E. coli bacterial growth. Learn more here.
Habitat Degradation
Habitat degradation occurs when the natural environment is destroyed or damaged and cannot support the native ecology. The can occur from pollution, invasive species, and climate change.
Our rivers' floodplains and habitats have been impacted by industrial and commercial build-out, invasive species, climate change, and even our locks and dams. Due to this degradation, our region suffers from biodiversity loss, reduced protection from flooding events, and more. However, our rivers are resilient and we've seen many indicator species, like the bald eagle, return to our rivers!
Three Rivers Waterkeeper monitors industrial build-out, landscape changes, and invasive species in our region.
We monitor building permits in our region and submit comments and suggestions to permitting agencies to improve the outcome of the proposed activities to protect our waterways and wetland habitat.
We work with partners to reduce pollution through river cleanups.
We work with partners to increase native plants through riparian planting efforts in our region.
Emerging Contaminants
Emerging contaminants are newer chemicals that are not typically monitored or regulated under current environmental laws. These are contaminants that are detected in our waterways, but the full impact of their effects may not be known or fully studied.
Industries evolve and grow, and we must understand that novel pollutants can impact our water quality. In our region, there are two major novel pollutants that we are actively monitoring: plastic pellets and PFAS contamination.
We monitor for plastic pellets (aka nurdles) across our region. We partner with Mountain Watershed Association to conduct monthly nurdle patrols on the Ohio River. Nurdles are small plastic pellets about the size of a lentil that are melted down to make almost all plastic products. The environmental and human health impacts of plastics are not fully known, but recent studies have shown negative impacts of microplastics on human and environmental health.
On September 4, 2025, PennEnvironment and Three Rivers Waterkeeper announced the settlement of our lawsuit against BVPV Styrenics LLC and its parent company, Styropek USA, Inc. The suit alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act at Styropek’s plastic manufacturing facility in Monaca, Pennsylvania, approximately 20 miles northwest of Pittsburgh. The proposed settlement addresses discharges of wastewater and stormwater containing the microplastics — in this case, tiny plastic pellets called “nurdles” — manufactured at the plant. Read more here.
Three Rivers Waterkeeper is sampling for PFAS contamination across Southwestern PA within our geographic focus area to establish an understanding of baseline PFAS contamination in Pittsburgh’s rivers and tributaries and identify sources of PFAS pollution. By taking a broad approach to sampling, we can pinpoint areas of concern and investigate potential sources of PFAS contamination. Read our 2024 Interim PFAS Report here.