Baykeeper

Causes: Environment, Water, Water Resources, Wetlands Conservation & Management

Mission: Protect and restore the water quality and habitat of san francisco bay. The mission of san francisco baykeeper (baykeeper) is to protect and restore the water quality and habitat of san francisco bay. For more than 27 years, baykeeper has taken on the greatest threats to san francisco bay's health. Baykeeper's vision is a san francisco bay where the water is clean, the ecosystem is healthy, recreation is safe, and wildlife can thrive.

Programs: Baykeeper is working toward a san francisco bay that is:- free from pollution-so communities and wildlife aren't threatened by toxics, trash, or oil spills. - safe for recreation-where swimmers, surfers, boaters, and beach-goers can enjoy the water without fear of contamination. - with healthy beaches-protected from erosion caused by sand mining and dredging. - ready for the future-with shorelines and wetlands that can withstand sea level rise, and where our communities make the most of scarce water resources. Using water quality monitoring, science, and on-the-water patrols, baykeeper identifies the greatest threats to the health of the bay's ecosystem. Then we strategically use advocacy, public education, and legal action to secure smart solutions that stop pollution and restore water quality. Baykeeper has won critical victories at the national, regional, and local level to protect and restore san francisco bay. Since 1989, we have:- compelled cleanup of hundreds of refineries, chemical companies, landfills, and city streets;- kept hundreds of millions of gallons of untreated sewage out of the bay and local neighborhoods;- won federal court victories to regulate pesticides, invasive species, and vessel pollution;- been recognized as a national leader in oil spill prevention and response;- conducted regular patrols of san francisco bay to monitor and stop pollution; and- responded to hundreds of citizen pollution reports through our pollution hotline. We have a staff of eleven with scientific and legal expertise, a board of directors with a breadth of experience with the bay, an expert advisory board, a team of volunteer boat skippers, and the only pollution patrol boat regularly monitoring and investigating pollution in the bay. And, baykeeper helped found the waterkeeper alliance, an international network of on-the-water activists, led by robert f. Kennedy, jr. There are now more than 300 waterkeeper organizations and affiliates around the world. Baykeeper holds the "baykeeper" trademark and licenses its use by other organizations. To avoid confusion, baykeeper operates primarily under the name san francisco baykeeper. Baykeeper incorporated as a nonprofit, public benefit corporation in california on january 23, 1987, as the san francisco bay-delta preservation association, and became baykeeper in may 1989, the fourth "waterkeeper organization in the country. With the help of our dedicated community of supporters, baykeeper pursues the work that is most critical to protecting san francisco bay. We are making the bay cleaner for recreation, healthier for wildlife, and more sustainable for all. For more information, please visit us online at baykeeper. Org.