Russian river has daily alert (9)
I believe the answer is:
observant
'alert' is the definition.
(alert can mean observant or vigilant)
'russian river has daily' is the wordplay.
'russian river' becomes 'Ob' (river in Russia).
'has' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'daily' becomes 'servant' (old-fashioned term for a servant).
'ob'+'servant'='OBSERVANT'
(Other definitions for observant that I've seen before include "Likely to notice" , "with a keen eye" , "Alert" , "Perceptive" , "Watchful" .)