Keeping the river rolling: How the Clean Water Act helped revive the Delaware
The Clean Water Act helped turn the Delaware River and its waterfront into a place many people enjoy today. But can the river be protected from future pollution?
Listen 13:34
People now use the Delaware for recreation, like these visitors to Spruce Street Harbor Park. Prior to the Clean Water Act, the Delaware River was so polluted no one would have considered basking so close to it. But the regulation has not been updated for decades, and scientists say hidden dangers to fish and wildlife still exist. (Brandon Eastwood for WHYY)
Next time you’re on the banks of the Delaware River — taking in one of the new parks, visiting the Seaport Museum, or strolling along Penn’s Landing — consider that none of it would have been possible without the help of the Clean Water Act of 1972. Fifty years ago, the Delaware River was considered a dead river. On this episode of The Why, we talk to WHYY reporters Dana Bate and Susan Phillips about their series on the rebirth of the river, and why it faces new threats today.
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Philly environmental filmmaker takes on the issue of Pennsylvania’s acid mine drainage
Pennsylvania has 5,600 miles of dead waterways, polluted by the coal mining industry. Ben Kalina’s "A River Reborn" shows how one was revived.
3 years ago
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The death of the Delaware River
Industrial growth and raw sewage in the region in the 20th century killed aquatic life in much of the Delaware River and surrounding streams.
5 years ago
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The Delaware River’s invisible threats
Hidden beneath what looks, and smells, like much cleaner water are potential new dangers like plastics, pharmaceuticals and the impacts of climate change.
5 years ago
Listen 7:25