Your support truly makes a difference for the Clark Fork River and is essential to its recovery. If you’d like to make a year-end gift to do even more, or would like to give the gift of clean water click here.
CLEAN. CONNECTED. PROTECTED.
Three simple words. But three words that have enormous impact on the Clark Fork watershed.
And while the words might be simple, turning them into realities is far from it. Nor is it remotely possible without the help of members, volunteers, partners, and supporters of every kind. That’s you. How did you help this year?
- you kept fish out of hot water, giving them access to cool headwaters streams when yet another scorcher of a summer turned up the heat on our waterways
- you kept our staff in cold water, providing funds for training, gear, travel, and data-crunching for our new snorkel-monitoring program, allowing us to see how fish and streams are responding to restoration and cleanup
- you kept new contamination out of our streams by helping to prevent ill-conceived mining proposals from becoming a reality
- you kept kids engaged and informed about their watershed by providing hands-on watershed science programs for students from Darby to Deer Lodge
- you protected groundwater and senior water rights by helping to defeat legislation that would re-open the exempt well loophole and allow unregulated and unfair groundwater pumping by subdivision developers
- you opened up migration pathways for native fish by removing instream barriers like under-sized culverts and antiquated irrigation diversions, which also helped ranchers secure more reliable water for their crops and cattle
- you made our rivers cleaner by hauling everything from tires to mini fridges to flip-flops out of the Clark Fork and removing garbage from along its banks (all with a smile!)
- you hauled water, planted shrubs, pulled weeds, and ensured vitally-important riparian corridors survived and thrived in spite of heat and drought
- you stood up for bedrock clean water protection laws, standing up to attacks on the Clean Water Act and efforts to roll back the Clean Water Rule
We could go on … but you get the point.
Getting to “Clean, Connected, and Protected” takes all of the above and more. Year in and year out. Over and over again. As one of our founders says, Riverkeeping is like housekeeping – you’re never done.
So, whether you’re our newest member or one of our esteemed multi-decade pillars of support, know that YOU make “clean, connected, and protected” a reality for all the rivers and streams of the Clark Fork watershed. Here’s to you!
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