BLACK WARRIOR RIVERKEEPER INC

Black Warrior Riverkeeper's mission is to protect and restore the Black Warrior River and its tributaries. Our goal is improve water quality, wildlife habitat, public health, and recreation through our our service area, the Black Warrior River watershed. Flowing for roughly 300 miles, the Black Warrior drains portions of seventeen counties in Alabama. The watershed has over one million residents, contains 16,145.89 miles of mapped water, and covers 6,276 square miles. It supplies roughly half of Birmingham's drinking water and all of the water for cities such as Bessemer, Cullman, Jasper, Oneonta, and Tuscaloosa. Thousands of residents and tourists enjoy the watershed for recreation. People fish, swim, boat, paddle, ski, and hike along the Black Warrior and its tributaries. In additional to our focus on protecting human uses, we also protect the watershed for the sake of Alabama's unrivaled freshwater biodiversity. The watershed is home to 127 freshwater species of fish, 36 species of mussels, 15 turtle species, and numerous other aquatic animals. There are 10 federally listed endangered species of aquatic animals in the watershed, and many more listed as threatened.

The organization uses a watershed approach to ensure clean water, a healthy aquatic environment, and the recreational and aesthetic values of the river. We have several methods to reach our goals of a cleaner watershed, such as educational outreach, online advocacy, public events and presentations, environmental litigation, and more. However, the centerpiece of our organization's services is the Riverkeeper Patrol Program.

The Riverkeeper Patrol Program is a continuous and primary focus for the organization. We follow the proven Waterkeeper Model of patrolling through Riverkeeper Nelson Brooke's frequent patrols by canoe, boat, foot, and plane (provided free by SouthWings). When Nelson finds significant problems during a patrol, he decides whether to take water samples for analysis at a certified laboratory and then contacts facility representatives if needed. Nelson is frequently assisted on patrols and analysis by John Kinney, Staff Scientist. John regularly reviews facilities' monthly discharge monitoring reports to help prioritize patrol destinations and to provide more data about facilities of concern. John also writes pollution permit comments to government agencies so that permit modifications may result at problematic facilities, potentially preventing future pollution and the need for litigation.

This program primarily offers Nelson's patrols, and John's discharge report reviews and permit letters. We increasingly succeed in these areas because we have trusted relationships with organizations, schools, media, and pollution informants. We have 4 experienced staff and hundreds of volunteers. Our tools include a patrol boat, canoe, truck, patrol budget, and a nearby lab.

Nelson Brooke graduated from the University of Colorado with an anthropology degree. Nelson is an Eagle Scout and outdoor enthusiast who has enjoyed fishing and hunting along the banks of the Black Warrior River since he was seven years old. Nelson has been staff Riverkeeper since January of 2004. Nelson was named "2010 Alabama River Hero" by the Alabama Rivers Alliance. Nelson patrols and photographs the river and its tributaries from the land, water, and air, looks for pollution problems, responds to citizen complaints, researches and analyzes polluters' permits, collects pollution samples for laboratory analysis, educates the public about the beauty of the river and threats to it, works to empower stakeholders throughout the watershed, advocates compliance with environmental laws, works on finding solutions to pollution problems, and is a spokesman for the watershed. Nelson also gives educational presentations to schools and other groups.

John Kinney graduated from the University of Vermont with a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Studies in 2002. He is attending classes at UAB pursuing a Master's degree in Environmental Engineering. John has worked at Black Warrior Riverkeeper since 2006. As Staff Scientist, John investigates facilities' compliance with environmental laws, provides permit suggestions to government agencies, and assists Nelson with patrolling. He and Nelson are experienced in collecting pollution samples for laboratory analysis.

Patrol partners include concerned citizens that call or email us with pollution tips and/or assist on patrol. We also have a "report pollution" form on our website. Valued partners include several smaller environmental groups that work on sub-watersheds of the Black Warrior, such as the Friends of the Locust Fork River, the Smith Lake Environmental Preservation Committee, UA Environmental Council, Green Initiative at UAB, and Hurricane Creekkeeper, as well as state and regional organizations such as the Alabama Rivers Alliance and the Southern Environmental Law Center. They often notify us of pollution, provide evidence, and/or join Nelson on patrol.

2022 Riverkeeper Patrol Program Statistics and Related Accomplishments

~Required Drummond to fix its abandoned Maxine Mine site through a lawsuit with SELC and Public Justice.

~Directed a $1,000,000 SEP payment from Drummond to Freshwater Land Trust for Locust Fork restoration.

~Sued Warrior Met Coal for discharging polluted wastewater from Mine No. 7 at unpermitted locations.

~Collaborated with Waterkeepers Alabama to translate and publish critical pollution information in Spanish.

~Engaged a new AmeriCorps member, Rosey White, to expand our rapidly-growing volunteer litter cleanups.

~Ran 37 cleanups in which volunteers and partners removed over 29,592 pounds of trash from the watershed.

~Promoted the installation and maintenance of 12 Litter Gitter trash traps in Birmingham-area streams.

~Made 111 educational speeches to business, government, nonprofit, religious, and scholastic groups.

~Wrote comment letters to government agencies, requesting improvements to 25 permits and/or water rules.

~Monitored 101 facilities across our 17-county basin on patrols by foot, truck, canoe, boat, and drone.

~Reviewed 292 facilities’ Discharge Monitoring Reports to record the number and nature of their violations.

~Collected and analyzed 765 water samples, regularly publishing ambient water quality data on our website.

~Engaged hundreds of volunteers of all ages and backgrounds who donated thousands of service hours.

~Retained our Platinum rating on GuideStar, the leading source of information on nonprofits.

~Fielded pollution reports, documented problems, and notified government agencies, media, and the public.