Waterkeeper Alliance 2019 Annual Report
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waterkeeper alliance 2019 annual report 1 Waterkeeper groups patrol and protect 2.77 MILLION square miles of watersheds which provide water for drinking, fishing, and swimming to more than 710 million people. 2 There are 346 Waterkeeper groups in 46 countries Movement-wide, we have 1,043 staff, 1,147,665 volunteers and supporters, and a collective budget of more than US$78 million. Through our website, email, social media, and news media outreach, we reach more than 550 million people each month. Waterkeeper Alliance is a top-ranked 501(c)3 charity, with top-rated status from CharityWatch, a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, and Platinum status from Guidestar. *As of June 30, 2019 3 from the executive director e are thrilled to present this Annual Report for fiscal year 2019, as the year marks our 20th anniversary W of connecting the world through water! Hitting an important milestone like a 20th anniversary presents an excellent opportunity to look back at how far we have come and to look forward to our future. In 1999, when Waterkeeper Alliance was born and I was working for Hudson Riverkeeper, there were 35 Waterkeepers in two countries on one continent. At the close of this fiscal year, there were 346 Waterkeeper groups in 46 countries on six continents! In 1999, those Waterkeeper advocates were patrolling and protecting 176,000 square miles of watersheds. Today, the Waterkeeper movement patrols and protects more than 2.77 million square miles! Collectively, in 1999, Waterkeepers employed 50 people; today, we are proud to have a team of more than 1,000 clean water warriors. The movement can’t grow without the help of volunteers and supporters. In 1999, there were 5,000 volunteers and supporters; today, movement-wide, we count on more than 1.1 million volunteers and supporters. And all of this support is what gives us the ability to safeguard water for nearly one billion people. 4 from the executive director We are amazed by how this movement has grown in 20 years; disposal rules, a victory that was dubbed one of the six most it reflects the importance of our shared water resources significant environmental law rulings in the first half of 2019. and the magnitude of the global water crisis. In the face of And we are proud to continue to maintain top rankings on all unprecedented challenges to water quality, water quantity, and charity rating sites. our climate, we are proud of all of our Waterkeepers’ successes. I continue to be inspired by our talented team and by our I hope you all will read the anniversary issues of Waterkeeper Waterkeepers around the world who fight daily to stand up for Magazine this year, where we highlight the inspiring stories their beloved bay, river, lake, or stretch of coastline. of our 20 Waterkeeper Warriors. A photo gallery and stories They understand that apathy is the ultimate enemy of also are available at waterkeeper.org/warriors. positive change and meaningful progress. If you care about From the beginnings of the Waterkeeper movement, a the future, being a bystander is not an option. A Waterkeeper fundamental principle of Waterkeepers’ philosophy has been is out there day after day fighting for your right to clean water. that change starts at the local level. Based on the success of We are very grateful for your support as we transform the our Waterkeepers and our belief in local leadership, over the local fight for clean water into a powerful, coordinated global next 20 years, we commit to significantly strengthening and movement to solve the biggest challenge of our time. growing our network. We will expand and deepen the support we provide for Waterkeepers. And we will ensure that there is a To clean water, trained, effective local Waterkeeper in every habitable watershed on the planet—protecting more than 20 million square miles. This annual report documents stories, challenges, and successes of our growing movement all over the world, from expanding our network into new African countries and the Middle East, to successful training summits, to the decisive Marc Yaggi victory in our legal challenge of the 2015 federal coal ash Executive Director 5 At the end of fiscal year 2019, Waterkeeper Alliance had 346 Waterkeeper groups protecting 2.77 million square miles in 46 countries and the State of Palestine. Coachella Valley Waterkeeper Edisto Riverkeeper (California, United States) (South Carolina, United States) Copper River Delta Sound Dan Riverkeeper Waterkeeper Lumber Riverkeeper (Alaska, United States) (North Carolina, United States) CRUIT Waterkeepers Hawaiian Islands Hilo Bay Waterkeeper Waterkeepers Florida (Hawaii, United States) (Florida, United States) 6 RE waterkeeper alliance annual report 2019 This year, we added 18 new Waterkeeper groups and two new countries to the Waterkeeper movement. Twin Harbors Waterkeeper Jordan River Waterkeeper (Washington, United States) (Israel) Jordan River Waterkeeper Jordan River Waterkeeper Kratie Mekong River Waterkeeper (Jordan) (State of Palestine) Lower Sesan River Waterkeeper Tonle Sap River Waterkeeper (Cambodia) Lac Kivu DRC Waterkeeper Uganda Lake Victoria Upper Yamuna Waterkeeper (Democratic Republic of Congo) Waterkeeper (Uganda) (India) 7 Waterkeeper North Atlantic Alliance launched Regional Summit a new training initiative—Regional The North Atlantic Regional Summit, from Summits—to foster April 23-26, 2019 in Groton, Connecticut, collaboration, United States, had 15 participants information representing Waterkeeper groups from sharing, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, networking, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, and strategic and Rhode Island. Participants compiled planning among resources on stormwater sewer overflow Waterkeeper and began to develop a regional strategy groups. This for climate resilience. approach to training streamlines collaboration MIKE JARBEAU, NARRAGANSETT BAYKEEPER between Waterkeepers that have geographic and cultural similarities and face similar threats in their watersheds. TRAIN East Asia Regional Summit The East Asia Regional Summit, from December 13-17, 2018 in Siem Reap City, Cambodia, had 28 participants representing Waterkeeper groups from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Mongolia, Thailand, and Vietnam. They created an International Education group and a Cross-boundary Communication group. The International Education group will focus on engaging students and communities in environmental education and will introduce children to environmentalism while providing a steady source of income for local groups. The Cross-boundary Communication group will share information between China and countries in Southeast Asia about how potential developments under China’s One Belt, One Road initiative may impact other countries’ water quality. 8 waterkeeper alliance annual report 2019 Chesapeake Pacific Regional Summit Regional Summit The Chesapeake Regional Summit, from June 9-11, 2019 in Tilghman Island, The Pacific Regional Summit, from March Maryland, United States, had 17 participants representing Waterkeeper groups 26-29, 2019 in Sausalito, California, United from Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington D.C. As a result of the States, had 37 participants representing diversity, equity, and inclusion training held at the summit, Waterkeepers in the Waterkeeper groups from California, region are working to make their organizations more inclusive and reflective Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, New Mexico, of the communities they serve. The group also launched the “Clear Choices, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. Pacific Clean Water” campaign to increase awareness on how individual decisions—like Waterkeepers agreed to create a united disposing of pet waste or choosing lawn fertilizer—affect rivers and streams. strategy on issues that impact the American West including river cleanups and forest fire preparation, mitigation, and watershed recovery. Latin America Regional Summit The Latin American Regional Summit, from April 24-28, 2019 in Cartagena, Colombia, had 37 participants representing Waterkeeper groups from Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Panama, and Peru. Waterkeepers ratified their commitment to defend the right to clean water for the benefit of present and future generations, and agreed to: • Promote protecting water bodies and their basins in the region, with emphasis on the Amazon • Establish joint legal strategies to defend waterways from polluters • Promote new technologies for continuous monitoring of water quality • Use open geographic information systems to create public water- quality data for all watersheds in which Waterkeeper Alliance is present • Design a strategic plan for Waterkeeper groups in Latin America 9 This year, Waterkeeper Alliance celebrated 20 years of connecting locally-based Waterkeeper groups worldwide to preserve and protect clean water. We have used legal action, community advocacy, and education to fight major water threats— from challenging the coal industry’s toxic mercury emissions and coal ash waste, to taking on big agriculture’s use of spray fields and cesspools for Kemp Burdette managing animal Cape Fear Riverkeeper waste. PHOTOGRAPHED BY ©COLBY KATZ, COURTESY OF CULTURE TRIP The Waterkeeper Kemp Burdette, the Cape Fear Riverkeeper in Wilmington, North Carolina, since 2010, is Warriors 20th leading the fight for clean water in the Cape Fear Basin, which has the highest density Anniversary of industrial livestock feeding operations of any place on earth, with over 5 million hogs campaign, presented and