III.

Economic Importance

The Ohio River is navigable throughout its length. A channel 2.7 m (9 ft) deep, maintained along the river's entire course, and a series of 13 dams with locks ensures passage of commercial and other vessels. The largest cities along the Ohio’s banks are Pittsburgh; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Louisville, Kentucky. All three of the cities grew in the 1800s, largely through use of the river as a transportation route. Today the Ohio remains an important commercial artery, and is also used for recreational activities such as motorboating and riverboat-based gambling.

The Ohio contains numerous fish, including catfish, carp, and buffalofish. The habitat of the river has been modified substantially by navigation works, flood-control walls and levees, and pollution. Industrial and municipal pollution sources along the Ohio and its tributaries contribute a wide range of contaminants. In 1948 the Ohio River Sanitation Compact (ORSANCO) was formed to foster cooperation among the states and communities of the valley. The efforts of ORSANCO, together with federal controls on water pollution, have significantly reduced industrial and municipal pollution.