America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2024: A call to action for clean water

America’s rivers and clean water supplies are in crisis. Forty-four percent of waterways in the U.S. are too polluted for swimming or fishing, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Freshwater species are going extinct faster than ocean or land species, and rivers are among the most threatened ecosystems on the planet. Meanwhile, climate change is fueling more severe floods and droughts — and unjust policies put the burden of all these impacts disproportionately on Communities of Color and Tribal Nations. In addition, a 2023 Supreme Court ruling slashed Clean Water Act safeguards, leaving many small streams and wetlands unprotected. Since all water is connected, leaving these areas without protection risks pollution flowing into the rivers that are our sources of drinking water. America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2024 is a call to action for clean water. We must shore up safeguards for streams and wetlands at the state level, and we must strengthen the Clean Water Act to ensure rivers everywhere are protected.