This nonprofit is golden. They are bringing much needed awareness to the crisis in the local waterway to the local citizens. Thank you!
Keeping waterways clean is essential. It impacts drinking water, farmland and wildlife. I donate yearly to the hackensack river keepers as they do great work keeping this river clean. They educate and advocate for the river. I have also gone on a guided kayak tour with the riverkeepers - spectacular! I appreciate how they keep me informed on the legislative issues that affect the river. The staff are dedicated and friendly.
I used to work for Hackensack Riverkeeper until 2006, but have stayed informed of their exploits through their newsletters and emails. Their tenacity and connection to the local communities they serve was and still is second to none. They provide education and advocacy practically every day of the year at all levels, from elementary schools all the way up to the upper levels of government. They have brought back recreational opportunities that hadn't existed for 50 years, including paddling and guided boat tours. Through their outreach, diverse stakeholders now speak collegially to protect and restore degraded systems. And they have saved or provided the impetus to save endangered tracts and species throughout the New Jersey Meadowlands and entire watershed. The water is now clean enough (most of the time) that certain species have re-entered the estuary, and some are even safe to eat.
Hackensack Riverkeeper has almost single-handedly changed the discussion about the way that the Hackensack and Passaic Rivers are treated in northern New Jersey. This organization does invaluable work in educating this densely populated area about the isses affecting their local waterway, and they back up education with action! You should take a river trip through their eco-cruise program. Get out there in the Meadowlands and see what a rich resource we have just minutes from New York City.