Reports
What a Healthy River Is Worth: The Economic Case for Protecting Our Watersheds
A new EPA fact sheet puts hard numbers on what healthy watersheds are worth, from billions in avoided water treatment costs to flood protection, jobs, and home values. Protecting them is the bargain of the century.
Read MoreNew Study Finds Lingering Immune Changes in East Palestine Residents After Train Derailment
More than three years after the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, residents along the Pennsylvania-Ohio border are still asking the same question: what did that disaster do to our bodies? A new peer-reviewed study published this month in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology offers some of the clearest answers…
Read MoreKey Flood Preparedness Lessons from Hurricane Helene
Learn vital lessons from Hurricane Helene to improve flood preparedness and response in the Upper Ohio River Basin. Download the full report today.
Read MorePartner Highlight: How the Conemaugh Valley Conservancy Is Building the First Firefly Inventory in Pennsylvania
A Partner Highlight from the H2O Water Network Introduction by John Detisch, H2O Water Network One of the things I love most about the H2O Water Network is the chance to spotlight the incredible work happening across our partner organizations. Today I’m excited to share a story from John Wenzel and the Conemaugh Valley Conservancy…
Read MoreYour Voice Shaped Our 2026 Roadmap
Assessment Results & What’s Next You took time to share your experiences. Your challenges. Your questions about water in your community. We’ve been listening. The H2O Headwaters to the Ohio Water Network’s Watershed Assessment gave us something invaluable: a clearer picture of what communities across the region are actually facing. Not assumptions. Not guesses. Real…
Read MoreSalt in the Watershed: A Local Wake-Up Call for Winter Maintenance
Winter makes people do strange things. Like dumping industrial amounts of salt onto pavement and then acting surprised when nearby streams start tasting like a pretzel. A recent TribLive / Tribune-Review article by Megan Trotter reports that new sampling by Stroud Water Research Center found elevated chloride levels in parts of Washington County, including areas…
Read MoreTroubled Waters: Three Rivers Waterkeeper Unveils PFAS and NPDES Enforcement Reports
The team at Three Rivers Waterkeeper (3RWK) has just released two critical reports uncovering urgent water quality issues across Southwest Pennsylvania—and the findings are sobering. 1. PFAS Report: PFAS, often called “forever chemicals,” are a growing threat to human and environmental health. 3RWK conducted a baseline sampling across Pittsburgh’s rivers and tributaries, aiming to understand…
Read MoreBringing the Monongahela into the National Water Trail Family
by the H2O Water Network Team Have you heard the exciting news? Parts of the Monongahela River have officially joined the National Water Trails Program! This milestone underscores the incredible work our friends and partners have been doing all along the Upper Ohio Basin—and it’s only the beginning. A Three-Part Story: Upper, Middle & Lower…
Read MoreBuilding Stronger Communities Through Youth Engagement: Insights from Izaak Walton League
At the recent Izaak Walton League/H20 Water Network Zoom meeting, Joseph Paris and Griffith, a political science student at Haverford College, shared invaluable insights on how their chapter fosters youth leadership and community engagement through programs like Green Crew, Cuba Gallery, and Green Summer. Their presentation highlighted the core strategies that have made their chapter successful,…
Read MoreUnderstanding the Impact of Recent Executive Orders on Water and Environmental Justice
Dear Partners, The landscape of nonprofit work, public health, environmental protection, and community services is changing rapidly, thanks to recent actions taken by the current Administration. Through Executive Orders, significant shifts are occurring that could directly affect the operations of organizations like ours, especially those relying on federal grants and funding to support community programs…
Read More