The Allegheny River has officially won the 2024 Pennsylvania River of the Year Vote.

The Allegheny River was nominated by a Pittsburgh based group this year, called Three Rivers Waterkeeper.

Selection and voting were overseen by the Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds and Rivers (POWR) in collaboration with the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR).

A $10,000.00 leadership grant will be given to Three Rivers Waterkeeper to assist in funding a variety of River of the Year activities.

The group has been in close collaboration with representatives from the Allegheny National Forest, who look forward to collaborating with them again this year to celebrate the win.

“The Allegheny National Forest was actually founded in 1923 for two purposes, to provide quality water to the Allegheny River and to restore timber for future generations, so both of those tie directly into the River of the Year," stated Nathan Welker, Allegheny National Forest Aquatics and Fishery Manager. "The Allegheny National Forest and Allegheny River are also home to a multitude of threatened and endangered species, which is a testament to the health of our river and the long-term stability we’ve as a region of Pennsylvania, have been able to maintain in the river. We have lots of reasons to celebrate and are looking forward to doing so with Three Rivers Waterkeeper.”

Celebrations will be occurring this summer along with future Allegheny River Clean-Up and Allegheny Reservoir Clean-Up initiatives, with a focus of maintaining the health and beauty of the river.