Happy National Rivers and Water Month!

June 1^st marked the start of National Rivers Month, a thirty day tribute and celebration of America’s most treasured rivers. Take a moment this month to think about your favorite waterway and how it connects to habitat, drinking water, recreation, energy, and life. What can you do to ensure that these waterways remain clean and viable for generations to come?

I chose to celebrate National Rivers Month by thinking about my 10 favorite rivers in the U.S. and provided an interesting fact for each. Through many of our programs, we work hard to plant trees in critical watersheds. We know trees are an important solution to clean water and we will continue to support important tree planting projects across the country and the globe that make the connection to water.

1) The Missouri River is the longest river in the U.S. at more than 2,500 miles

2) The Colorado River is utilized to irrigate more than 3 million acres of farmland

3) The Mississippi River’s widest area measures 11 miles, near the town of Bena, MN

4) Only 20% of the Rio Grande River flow reaches the Gulf of Mexico

5) The Arkansas River is home to many cities, including Tulsa, Wichita, Little Rock, and Pueblo

6) The Kern River is the subject of a Merle Haggard song released in 1985

7) 70% of the Niobrara River is fed from deep underground in the Ogallala Aquifer

8) The Sabine River is derived from the Spanish word for cypress, a tree found along the lower river banks

9) The Milk River was named by Meriwether Lewis of the Lewis and Clark expedition due to its color

10) The average flow of the Columbia River is 190,000 cubic feet per second

Visit Replanting our Forests to learn more about the forests we’re replanting in and watersheds we’re protecting.