‘We need to work together’: Pitt study on water quality of Three Rivers analyzes pollutants

PITTSBURGH — Over the course of one year, researchers from the University of Pittsburgh’s Water Collaboratory and 3 Rivers Water Keeper collected 100 samples from 25 tributaries that feed the Allegheny, Monongahela, and Ohio Rivers.

The study found while the health of the Three Rivers has improved over the last few decades, the region’s industrial legacy of pollution has created long-lasting impacts on stream and drinking water.

“These old decisions…you could say they are haunting us,” said Dr. Daniel Bain, associate professor of geology & environmental science at the University of Pittsburgh. “Century III Mall was built on a huge slag pile. Part of the problem is those big dumps that were of slag, under the mall…those are starting to bleed out.”

Researchers looked for pollutants and metals that are dissolved into water at more than two dozen sites. They found high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus in the Mon River, the possible result of poor sewage systems or other discharge elimination systems.

Other findings include cadmium in the Mon Valley, as well as manganese and iron in the South Hills, the latter group likely indicating that historical mining still has a significant impact on water quality.

“The mining is more extensive in the South Hills, so you have more of those acidic mine drainage issues,” Bain said.

Bain, who is a member of the Pittsburgh Water Collaboratory, said a regional effort is needed moving forward.

“We need to work together. There’s so many boroughs in all of these surrounding areas, and the water crosses borough lines, so we really need to work as units of boroughs to solve this issue,” Bain said. “With some of the infrastructure money that’s coming along, with some of the recent legislation, it seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to address some of these issues.”

Here’s a link to the study: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/0fbfba3b67af40dc8a01e0a95cc08a06

Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

©2023 Cox Media Group