Draft:Waterkeeper Groups

Riverkeepers are "a nonprofit organization that has the job of advocating for the communities in a watershed, addressing various environmentally related issues, such as degradation events committed by corporations, and educating the public on the current status of their specific watershed” (Crawford 7) . Riverkeepers are different than other environmental groups as they “will go after people” and "they will prosecute them,” whereas other groups “will not cross that line" (Armingeon & Tofano 28) . Other groups focus inward, but riverkeepers are also able to turn their focus outward and affect change around them. Contributing to this, many environmental groups are purely volunteers and “their degree paths and education [are] not as niched as the riverkeepers” (Armingeon & Tofano 28). This is a key factor of riverkeepers, they "are not volunteer-based and are required to have paid full-time positions as a riverkeeper and an executive director in their organizations” (Armingeon & Tofano 28). Riverkeepers are important and unique in the environmental field, Morgan describes it as “being a riverkeeper is more than a job, it is often a total dedication to learning how your watershed functions” and as “an absolute brotherhood” (Armingeon & Tofano 28).

The keeper network contributes to the strength, uniqueness, and importance of Riverkeepers. The collaboration between them grows the strength and passion for conservation. They “collaborate almost daily about what they need help with, provide each other materials that might have worked for one riverkeeper, and even sometimes might have a friendly competition for fundraising to reach a common goal” (Armingeon & Tofano 28). Armingeon reports that it is the “scrappy organizations trying to fight the government or big industry or powerful people” and without each other “their work might not be as impactful as it currently is” (Armingeon & Tofano 28). As the movement grows, more tangible effects can be seen, and Armingeon says they are “building a movement and movements take decades,” so they are still in their infancy (Armingeon & Tofano 29).

One defining aspect of riverkeeper organizations is their application of social sciences within conservation work and how critical this aspect is in conservation, as noted by Jacob A. Crawford. Bennet et al. emphasizes how important social science is in conservation efforts because of “the complex social dimensions of conservation” and that “socioeconomic status, race, and other factors have tangible influences on if they have issues when it comes to water quality, social sciences can and should inform efforts to improve water quality” (Bennett et al. 2017:57 as cited in Crawford 7). Therefore, it is more difficult to measure the effects of poor water quality without these social science aspects, and to see patterns of where poor water quality tends to emerge. Riverkeepers bridge the gap between natural science and social science and implement social science factors into their conservation work. Riverkeepers are on the front lines for “communities of color [who] lack the resources to defend themselves from corporate greed” (Crawford 7). Riverkeepers have made strides in aiding poor water quality, notably “when their work turned into policy, and a decade later, The Clean Water Act (CWA) was passed” (Crawford 8).

What is a Riverkeeper?
A Riverkeeper is a non-profit organization who dedicate their efforts towards maintaining and bettering a local watershed. Riverkeeper’s have a focus on an individual waterbody, group of waterbodies, or watershed. Keepers have many names such as but not limited to riverkeeper, creekkeeper, baykeeper, bayoukeeper, coastkeeper, and basinkeeper.

Purpose / Mission
Riverkeepers' existence is to protect waterways, the organization becomes the public investigator, scientist, lawyer, lobbyist, and public relations for its waterway. The original Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect and restore the Hudson River from source to sea and safeguard drinking water supplies, through advocacy rooted in community partnerships, science and law. Riverkeeper’s all operate under individual, yet closely aligned missions, that vary depending on priorities in their respective area. The Anacostia Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect and restore the Anacostia River for all who live, work, and play in its watershed, and to advocate for a clean river for all its communities. The Anacostia Riverkeeper has a community tie within its purpose, to offer more for its locals than just clean drinking water. The Chattahoochee Riverkeeper’s mission is to educate, advocate and secure the protection and stewardship of the Chattahoochee River, including its lakes, tributaries and watershed, in order to restore and conserve their ecological health for the people and wildlife that depend on the river system and in recognition of the important ecosystem functions provided throughout the region and planet. The Chattahoochee Riverkeeper takes a more environmental approach to its mission. Another example is the Pearl Riverkeeper, whose mission is dedicated to improving the Pearl River watershed through restoration, advocacy, and education. All individual “keeper” organizations specialize in their purpose; however, they are all linked in the desire to protect their waterway.

History and The First Riverkeeper
Pollution went unchecked in the 20th century and waterways suffered from industrial and residential forms of pollution. In the 20th century, rivers were exceptionally polluted to the extent that river fires were common. Ohio’s Cuyahoga River caught fire 10 times, the 1969 fire being its 10th blaze. In the 1960s, New York’s Hudson River was littered with sewage and industrial waste. Inspired to combat this pollution, citizen-led interventions and advocacy groups were founded. Riverkeeper history begins with the first Riverkeeper dedicated to the protection of the Hudson River and its tributaries. The first Riverkeeper began as the Hudson River Fisherman’s Association (HRFA) in 1966, then in 1986 the association officially changed its name to Riverkeeper. This became the first ever founded “keeper” group. Fellow conservation groups caught onto the “keeper” name and adopted it and its practices for themselves. In 1999, the umbrella organization Waterkeeper Alliance was created to unite and support “keeper” organizations.

Parent Organization
A critical key to understanding Riverkeepers is the hierarchy in which they operate. The name “Riverkeeper” must be acquired from the larger organization Waterkeeper Alliance. The Waterkeeper Alliance is a global network of environmental organizations founded in 1999. As of 2019, there were 350 groups across 46 different countries. The goal of the Waterkeeper Alliance is to strengthen and grow a global network of grassroots leaders protecting everyone’s right to clean water. The larger parent organization can provide support and connections for the smaller keepers, as well as establish more keepers and affiliated organizations. Waterkeeper Alliance supports keeper groups through communications and marketing, training, regional organizing, advocacy, fundraising, events, rapid aid response, resources, trademark, conference and regional meetings. The Riverkeeper system has multiple levels of organizations that operate under the Waterkeeper Alliance. The individual Keeper organization is the smallest in the organizational hierarchy. There are other affiliates of the Waterkeeper Alliance that bring together multiple local groups or keepers, however this organization still functions as an affiliate of the Alliance.

Trademark
Keeper organizations all share the Keeper trademark. This trademark comes from the Waterkeeper Alliance when an organization qualifies as a Waterkeeper member organization. The trademark is limited to organizations under the Waterkeeper Alliance. All organizations with the names of Keeper are held under the Waterkeeper Alliance, who owns the trademarks. So, if an organization holds the “Keeper" name, it is a part of Waterkeeper Alliance. However, affiliates do not have to have the keeper title. Waterkeeper Alliance fights to protect the Waterkeeper name and brand to ensure its continued strength and impact for our fast-growing global movement.

Education
A function of riverkeepers is to educate the community about their water resource. Riverkeepers educate about the history of the water, main threats to their water, and ways to respect and protect it. Riverkeepers educate their communities in many ways, some prioritize educating in a literal sense such as the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper which hosts two “floating classrooms.” The environmental-education venues have extended knowledge to more than 80,000 students, teachers, and adults. Whereas other “Keeper” groups educate through their websites, events, blogs, and other outreach methods.

Field Work
Riverkeepers implement hands-on community projects to clean the waterways. Most riverkeepers have the ability to form volunteer events or larger scale community projects to better the water. Along with community scale events, riverkeepers also facilitate and fund field work such as water quality monitoring or trash removal. Riverkeepers have accomplished massive progress for their waterways through field work, such as the Anacostia Riverkeeper who has removed over 16,000 pounds of trash from the Anacostia River. The Chattahoochee Riverkeeper in Georgia has collected over 10,000 pounds of trash from its waterways since 2019. The Chattahoochee Riverkeeper operates 13 trash traps across its four counties.

Water Quality
Riverkeeper’s have provided substantial increases in water quality testing for waterways in the United States. Water quality monitoring became routine for many waterways after the passing of the Clean Water Act in 1972. For example, the Anacostia Riverkeeper monitors and collects water quality data for the health of the waterway. Water quality monitoring became routine for many waterways after the passing of the Clean Water Act in 1972. The original Riverkeeper for Hudson River has established more than 20 local water quality testing programs, working with and supporting other water protection groups in the area.

Advocacy and Legislative Work
Along with education, advocacy is at the forefront of many riverkeeper groups. Part of the riverkeeper’s work to educate the community comes with advocating for what is best for the water. Keeper’s function as a voice for the water. While riverkeeper’s advocate on behalf of the water, most riverkeeper’s encourage people to advocate for the water as well. Riverkeepers activate the community to join in advocacy efforts. Lots of riverkeepers also utilize pollution reporting, allowing individuals to voice their concerns. Riverkeeper advocacy work revolves around legislation that affects watersheds. Riverkeeper websites often list and comment on relevant legislation. Riverkeeper’s are 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations. To qualify as 501(c)(3) organizations, riverkeepers must fall under the purposes of charitable, religious, educational, scientific, literary, public safety, amateur sports competitions, or preventing cruelty to children or animals. The term charitable is used by referring to the relief of the poor, distressed, or underprivileged. It can also refer to the advancement of religion, education, or science. It can relate to creating or maintaining public buildings, monuments, or works. It can relate to lessening the burdens of government or neighborhood tensions, or refer to eliminating prejudice and discrimination, defending human and civil rights, and fighting community deterioration and juvenile delinquency. Riverkeepers can not be an action organization, so they cannot attempt to influence legislation as a substantial part of its activities, and it may not participate in any campaign activity for or against political candidates. Non-profit organizations are restricted in how much political and legislative (lobbying) activities they may conduct. However, contrary to popular belief, nonprofit groups can lobby—provided they operate within IRS limits on the volume of and actual spending on lobbying efforts.

Becoming a Waterkeeper
To become a waterkeeper, an individual or organization must go through the Waterkeeper Alliance. The Waterkeeper Alliance recruits potential Keepers by having the interested party reach out to them. There are no requirements to reach out to the organization, those who have an environmental group or simply want to start one are welcome. Becoming a member of the Waterkeeper Alliance offers many benefits. Benefits include larger advocacy support from the Waterkeeper Alliance, working with lawmakers, officials, and/or the courts on collective issues. The Waterkeeper Alliance offers support through communications and marketing. The Alliance uses its resources to amplify a collective voice on water issues. The Alliance supports fundraising and events, connecting keepers to opportunities. The Alliance hosts a global conference that brings together water keeper groups and affiliates from around the globe for networking. Keepers are given access to a resource library, which connects resources from the Alliance and all its affiliated Keepers. Keeper groups also gain access to the Waterkeeper Alliance Listservs for networking, along with training materials. The Alliance supports regional organizing to bring together local organizations. A very important resource the Alliance offers is its rapid response when disaster strikes, possibly being able to deploy support and documentation of the disaster. The new Keeper group would also gain access to the Waterkeeper trademark.

Riverkeeper Significant Legal Wins
Riverkeepers have had a significant presence in the legal realm. They have won court cases with lasting effects on waterways around the United States. Ogeechee Canoochee Riverkeeper vs. TC Logging entailed TC Logging filling wetlands without a permit in violation of the Clean Water Act. The court granted OCRK’s motions and denied TC Logging’s attempt to dismiss the case. The Anacostia Riverkeeper vs. Jackson entailed the Riverkeeper challenging the EPA’s approval of a pollution control plan for the Anacostia River. The Riverkeeper argued that the approval of sediment/TSS Total Max Daily Load ignored its effects on the river. The Keeper was granted their motions, and ultimately resulted in compelling the EPA to drop existing pollution caps and create new pollution standards strong enough to allow recreational activity in the Anacostia River within one-year. The Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper challenged the city of Atlanta in Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper vs. City of Atlanta. In this case, the Riverkeeper sued the city of Atlanta for the city’s continued violations of the Clean Water Act by its operation of a combined sewer overflow system as part of its wastewater collection and treatment system. The court ordered the city of Atlanta to pay $40,000 in stipulated penalties in a settlement.