Waterkeepers the Key to Clean, Healthy Waterways
Linda Taylor-Austin
NOAA Ocean Service
July 21, 2009 — “Treat the Earth well; it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children.”
These words were delivered by NOAA Ocean Service Assistant Administrator John H. Dunnigan at the 11th Annual Waterkeeper Alliance Conference, a gathering of advocates for the nation’s waterways.
From left: NOS Asst. Administrator Jack Dunnigan, Robert Kennedy Jr. (president of Waterkeeper Alliance) and Paul Polizzotto (CEO of Ecomedia, an NOS partner) at the 2009 Waterkeeper Alliance conference held at SUNY Maritime College in New York. Photo credit: Debra Larson, NOAA NOS.
I attended the June 26 conference at the SUNY Maritime College in Throggs Neck, Bronx, N.Y., and was excited to see the beginnings of a strong partnership growing between NOS and Waterkeeper Alliance. The organization, headed by environmental activist and attorney Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., is an international network of 189 waterkeeper programs spanning six continents and 19 countries.
Waterkeepers are essentially full-time public advocates for specific bodies of water. Equipped with tools ranging from boats to hip waders, waterkeepers wear many hats. They serve as investigators, scientists, lawyers, and activists working to protect communities, marine ecosystems, and water quality.
In some cases, waterkeeping is about partnerships, education, and/or restoration of injured resources, such as the identification and removal of debris, pollutants and other sources of damage to waterways. Waterkeepers also work hard to build coalitions and find solutions for the most vexing coastal and water resource problems.
Dunnigan, a featured speaker at the Waterkeeper Alliance conference, discussed the importance of working together to solve ocean problems and the role NOAA scientific research plays in protecting water, coastal, and ocean resources.
NOAA Coastal Services Center Director Margaret Davidson also spoke about the effects of global climate change on coastal areas. Other speakers included Jon Carson, White House Council on Environmental Quality chief of staff, and Dr. James Hansen, head of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies.
One highlight was keynote speaker former President Bill Clinton, who introduced the Clinton Climate Initiative. The initiative takes “a holistic approach, addressing the major sources of greenhouse gas emissions” by focusing on three strategic areas: “increasing energy efficiency, catalyzing the large-scale supply of clean energy, and working to stop deforestation.”
The Waterkeeper Alliance annual conference is, in my mind, an excellent way to connect NOS science to waterkeepers in communities around the country. It helps ensure that a strong foundation exists to continue efforts that are keeping our oceans, coasts, rivers, and streams healthy and clean for all to enjoy.
For more information on the National Ocean Service partnership with Waterkeeper Alliance, contact linda.taylor-austin@noaa.gov and visit the Waterkeeper Alliance Web site.