Art Credit: Sue Sutherland
Columbia Riverkeeper 2024 Annual Report
Columbia Riverkeeper’s successful formula: combine strategic legal advocacy with community organizing and creative communications. We work in solidarity with Tribes, partner with people who live and work along the Columbia, and celebrate the impact of people coming to together to fight for what they love. Here are a few of the year’s highlights by the numbers.
Climate & Energy
3 rejected long-term greenhouse gas emission reduction plans for Oregon’s largest gas utilities, in favor of more aggressive plans to move away from fossil fuels
4,900+ people spoke up for climate action using Columbia Riverkeeper’s petitions
3 lawsuits brought by Columbia Riverkeeper to stop the expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure in the Pacific Northwest
Clean Water
5 Clean Water Act lawsuits brought or settled in 2024
2,100+ people called on the federal government to kickstart cleanup at Bradford Island and surrounding waters
$2.5 million awarded to Tribes and nonprofit organizations as a result of our lawsuits
Science & Education
230 water quality samples collected at Columbia River beaches
1,000+ students who experienced bilingual (English and Spanish) environmental education
1,400+ pounds of garbage collected at community cleanup events
Clean Up Hanford
100+ people joined us at the Hanford Journey, an event planned and led by Yakama Nation’s Hanford cleanup agency and Columbia Riverkeeper to draw attention to the critical importance of Hanford Nuclear Site cleanup
450+ members and supporters advocated for improvements to the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s proposed Hanford Nuclear Site cleanup plans
4 student representatives of the Yakama Nation participated in the State & Tribal Government Working Group meeting in New Mexico, thanks to scholarships from Columbia Riverkeeper
Salmon Recovery
Decades of action culminated in the signing of the Columbia River Basin Restoration Agreement4 rejected Water Quality Attainment Plans for Lower Snake River dams , a critical step ensuring the federal government takes action to reduce heat pollution caused by the dams
2 Tribes and 6 fish advocacy groups partnering with Columbia Riverkeeper to sue the state of Oregon for weakening protections for migratory fish like salmon, steelhead, and lamprey
