The decision issued by the U.S. Supreme Court in West Virginia v. EPA is a major setback that will severely limit the United States’ ability to appropriately respond to devastating impacts to our climate, waterways, and communities.
Waterkeeper Alliance, San Francisco Baykeeper, Bayou City Waterkeeper, and 47 additional Waterkeeper groups from across the country filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court to defend the Clean Water Act from efforts to substantially narrow the definition of federally protected waters in the case Sackett v. EPA.
Waterkeeper Alliance and Cyclopure have teamed up on an unprecedented nationwide initiative to test over 130 American waterbodies for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a group of emerging contaminants linked to harmful effects to public health and the environment.
At the Waterkeeper Alliance Global Conference in June, Upper Potomac Riverkeeper Brent Walls led a drone training session for interested Waterkeeper groups to learn how drones can be employed for environmental defense. We were joined by Associated Press journalists Michael Phillis and Julio Cortez, who reported on the use of drones by Brent and other advocates.
U.S. Fossil Fuel Leasing
Waterkeeper Alliance joined a coalition of climate and conservation groups in a lawsuit challenging the Biden administration’s resumption of oil and gas leasing on public lands, the first auction since the president paused leasing shortly after taking office.
Hog Waste in North Carolina
We are severely disappointed with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality over their recently adopted and woefully inadequate general permit requirements for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to install biogas digesters.
Industrial Animal Agriculture
The once idyllic coastal plain of North Carolina is home to a close-knit, rural community that for more than a generation has battled the polluting practices of industrial animal agriculture. Corban Addison's new book Wastelands takes us into the heart of a legal battle over the future of America’s farmland.
Plastic Pollution
The Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act represents the federal government’s most serious commitment to combating plastic pollution, but despite 128 co-sponsors in the House and 15 in the Senate, the legislation has stalled. With Congressional elections upcoming, its fate is uncertain.
Bocas de Ceniza Waterkeeper
Colombia is a multi-diverse country, with immense natural heritage, while being one of the most inequitable countries in the world. Stopping and reducing the socio-environmental conflicts and reducing pollution will require structural changes in Colombian environmental policy.
Cabo Pulmo
Coastkeeper
After a long break due to the pandemic, Cabo Pulmo Coastkeeper returned to beach cleanup duty in October 2021. Unfortunately, they found there is still much work to be done to keep the beaches free of waste from plastic to paper.
“My career was really born out of knowing that something was really wrong to the point that I couldn’t touch nature. I couldn’t touch the water. It seemed like an injustice,”
San Diego Coastkeeper Matt O’Malley grew up on the other side of the country in a highly urbanized area of New Jersey, where he wasn’t able to touch the waters of the contaminated Hudson River. His experiences growing up led Matt to pursue a career in environmental law, which he has used to overhaul wastewater treatment and recycling in San Diego.
