Annual Report

Our Mission

To protect and restore the water quality of the Columbia River and all life connected to it, from the headwaters to the Pacific Ocean. 

Our Vision

A Columbia River that unites people to fight for clean water, abundant fish and wildlife, and our climate.

Our Commitment

Embrace diversity, equity, and inclusion at every level of our work. Communities are the backbone of what we do. As an organization that advocates for the health and safety of river communities, we must fight for social justice and take a stand against racism.

YOU ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Columbia Riverkeeper is powered by more than 9,300 members who invest in clean water and a healthy climate because the fight is urgent and the time is now. You accomplished great things.

Stopping Pollution

• Lawsuits to stop illegal pollution in the last four years: 10
• Pounds of toxic pollution lawsuits prevented from entering the Columbia in 2020: 50,000
• Dollars polluters paid to other nonprofit organizations as a result of lawsuits: $2,430,000

Fighting Fossil Fuels

• New fossil fuel terminals you defeated in last decade: 13
• New fossil fuel terminals built in that time: 0
• Legal victories over fossil fuel projects in the last five years: 15
• Tons of greenhouse gas prevented annually from coal, oil, and fracked gas projects: 200 million

Saving Salmon

• Years that EPA’s plan to save salmon from hot water sat on a shelf before we sued: 18
• Months it took EPA to issue the plan after we won a lawsuit: 1.5
• Number of acres of farmland the Port of Columbia County wants rezoned for heavy industrial development in the Columbia estuary: 837
• Number of times we sued—and won—to stop the Port’s rezone effort: 2

Engaging Communities

• Number of signatures gathered on Columbia Riverkeeper petitions in 2020: 25,667
• E. coli samples collected annually for Columbia River beaches: 220
• People who viewed these data on our Swim Guide app: 60,000
• Conoce Tu Columbia bilingual radio shows and podcasts aired: 51

Cleaning Up Hanford

• Number of people who signed Riverkeeper’s petition demanding that the U.S. Dept. Energy treat more toxic and radioactive chemicals in Hanford’s groundwater: 1,440
• Number of webinar attendees who viewed Riverkeeper’s “Why Scientists Fear a Chernobyl-Like Catastrophe at Hanford”: 366
• Age of Riverkeeper’s Hanford Art Contest First-Place Winner: 14

$1.97 Million raised in last year

Donor Spotlight

Carol Newman has been a member of Columbia Riverkeeper since the beginning in 2000. Her love affair with the group, the mission, and the “incredible human beings doing this work that so heavily impacts our local space” deepened during the LNG fights. She has remained a steadfast supporter for 20 years, dedicated to protecting the river from dirty fossil fuel projects. “I have continued to support the organization because we are all one place, one river,” said Carol. “Columbia Riverkeeper steps up to get the job done!”