Mahoning River

The Mahoning River within the catchment area of ​​the Beaver River

Template: Infobox River / Obsolete

The Mahoning River is a 182 km long river in the northeastern U.S. state of Ohio and western Pennsylvania. It forms the confluence with the Shenango River the Beaver River. The outflow is via the Ohio River and the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico. The Mahoning River is part of the river system of the Mississippi River and drains an area of 2932 km. The source is located in the town of Winona in Columbiana County, Ohio. The Mahoning River first flows in a northeasterly direction, bends to about 70 km at Leavittsburg at right angles to the southeast and embraces in New Castle, Pennsylvania, the Shenango River.

The river is divided into two sections: the upper reaches extends from Winona to Leavittsburg and the catchment area is dominated by agriculture. The underflow ranges from Leavittsburg to the mouth at New Castle and the area is, however, densely populated and industrialized. First of all iron and steel plants have settled on both sides of the river. This results in serious pollution of the water, so that the Ohio Department of Health warns in the river and the consumption of fish caught there before bathing. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers estimates the clean-up costs to around 100 million U.S. dollars and the duration to 15 years. The project is expected to begin in late 2010.