Western Rivers Conservancy:
 The John Day River in Oregon is one of the West’s great rivers. It is not only the longest free-flowing river west of the Continental Divide, but also boasts the healthiest run of Threatened summer steelhead in the area. In 2008, Western Rivers Conservancy (WRC) seized the opportunity to purchase Murtha Ranch. At more than 8,000 acres, plus an additional 8,000 in BLM grazing lands, the ranch is one of the largest remaining blocks of native fish and wildlife habitat along the John Day.
WRC is currently transferring the land to the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD). The process is slated to be complete in October. In the meantime, WRC is actively restoring the property to treat and remove invasive species, replant native vegetation and protect sensitive steelhead habitat. OPRD will open the property as Oregon’s largest state park, Cottonwood Canyon State Park, by 2013.
 The Klamath River in California was once the second biggest producer of salmon on the West Coast. Today, the river’s great salmon runs have been reduced by hydropower dams and irrigation projects. Western Rivers Conservancy (WRC), partnering with the Yurok Tribe, is working to conserve the Blue Creek watershed, a vital tributary to the lower Klamath River. Blue Creek provides migrating salmon with high-quality spawning habitat and a refuge from the Klamath’s low flows and high temperatures. WRC and the Tribe successfully completed phase one this spring: protecting 22,000 acres along the lower Klamath. This marks WRC’s largest conservation effort to date. WRC is now moving on to the phase two purchase of 25,000 acres in the Blue Creek watershed.
 One of the great tributaries to the Colorado River, the Gunnison is the second largest river in Colorado, and one of the few places where four species of Colorado basin warm-water fish still survive. It is here that Western Rivers Conservancy is building a long-term conservation strategy within the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area (NCA). WRC has purchased two properties that fill in gaps in a nearly unbroken stretch of protected lands from the NCA to the Colorado National Monument. The first acquisitions total 214 acres in a reach of river that offers an exceptional gentle-water river float through stunning deep canyons. Our next purchase is 403 acres of spectacular canyon country, inside the NCA, along the Lower Gunnison. Together, these acquisitions will enhance what is already recognized as a critically important landscape worthy of protection for endangered species, historical preservation and public enjoyment.
The Southeast Watershed Forum:
 The Southeast Watershed Forum is promoting sustainable development and river protection in the East Tennessee River Valley through the development of an online Geotourism MapGuide. Working in partnership with National Geographic Society and community leaders from the Smoky Mountains to north Georgia, the MapGuide will showcase the scenic, cultural and historic places along this major river system that unites communities throughout the Valley. Geotourism stresses a "do no harm" philosophy which encourages communities to protect their product - their destination. The East Tennessee watershed includes a multitude of beautiful rivers, from the Obed Wild and Scenic River, to the white-water rapids of the Ocoee, and the scenic, free flowing waters of the Clinch and Powell Rivers. Clean water means healthy rivers and healthy rivers provide economic value!
What you can do:
- When you travel, patronize hotels with green policies, like recycling programs, water/energy efficient facilities and use of locally grown foods.
- Nominate your favorite place in the East Tennessee River Valley for the Geotourism MapGuide being developed with National Geographic. Go to www.EastTNGeotourism.org.
Delaware Riverkeeper Network:
 Grounded in the power of the River and the people that depend upon it, the Delaware Riverkeeper, backed by the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, staunchly defends the River’s unfettered ability to protect and provide for all the human and nonhuman communities that love, appreciate and use it. DRN's professional staff and volunteers work throughout the entire Delaware River Watershed including portions of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and New York. As a watershed wide advocacy program, DRN takes a strong stance on regional and local issues that threaten water quality and the ecosystems of the Delaware River.
DRN is leading actions to protect the Delaware River Watershed from the dangers of natural gas drilling. These actions include taking petitions, letters and testimony to local, state and federal agencies, urging them to enact and enforce protective water quality standards instead of giving gas drilling companies a free pass. We are also training volunteers in upstate New York and Pennsylvania to monitor streams threatened by gas drilling
Farther downriver, on the Delaware Bay, DRN is rescuing and tracking threatened horseshoe crabs as they arrive on the beaches to spawn. We are helping an international group of ornithologists collect data needed to save migratory shorebirds that depend on the crabs and are vital to the Delaware River ecosystem and ecotourism economy.
Our restoration program works with conservancies, municipalities and private land owners to assess stream habitats and develop comprehensive management plans. 
DRN is continuing its long-running effort to stop wasting scarce taxpayer dollars for the Army Corps of Engineers' ill-advised plan to deepen the Delaware River. This plan threatens endangered Atlantic sturgeon and many other species of wildlife, as well as negatively impacting the communities that rely on the River for drinking water and recreation.
We sponsor a citizen water pollution hotline and respond to oil spills, sediment contamination, and other threats to stream water quality. We are fighting to ensure enforcement of the sections of the Clean Water Act that protect our cleanest streams.
If you’d like to join us and become and actively involved, go to http://www.delawareriverkeeper.org/join/. Follow us on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/Delaware.Riverkeeper.Network, or follow the Riverkeeper’s blog at http://www.delawarerivervoice.blogspot.com/.
The River Project:
 In July of 2011, The River Project (TRP) will be deploying a fish aggregating device (FAD) on a piling at Pier 42 in New York City. The FAD has a programmable, self-contained light source directed at the water’s surface. The light is solar powered during the day, and a timer will turn it on each evening after dusk. The light will attract plankton, a food source for many fish in the Hudson River Estuary, and small fish. Larger fish may subsequently be attracted to the FAD over time. The FAD is a simple means to expand TRP’s survey of fish and invertebrates of New York Harbor and the near-shore of Manhattan, and provide people walking by with a glimpse into the underwater world of our island city.
Our longest running project, a survey of small bottom dwelling fishes of New York Harbor is in its 21st year. Fifteen to twenty killie traps and two to three crab pots are hung from the Historic Lighthouse Tender Lilac, now docked at Pier 25 in New York City. The traps are checked at least twice a week, and any fish or blue crab found in the traps are recorded, measured and entered into our database. This data helped the Hudson River Estuary become designated as a national estuarine sanctuary.
An often overlooked yet important population of the Hudson River Estuary is the plankton population. Two types of plankton found in the estuary are plant (phytoplankton) and animal (zooplankton). Plankton found in the Hudson River make up an important base food source for the estuary ecosystem. The River Project is developing a plankton identification guide for the plankton found in the Hudson River Estuary. This guide will help expand our knowledge of the wide variety of plankton living in the estuary and will help in future research aimed at understanding the full biodiversity of the river.
Ohio River Foundation:
 Despite decades of progress under the Clean Water Act to improve Ohio River water quality, the river and its watershed are increasingly impaired by stormwater runoff, dams, and the filling in of streams and wetlands. To lessen and solve some of these problems, and protect and improve sources of drinking water, Ohio River Foundation (ORF) has two new programs.
The Youth Conservation Team program (modeled after similar programs around the nation) is the first of its kind in the entire 8-state river basin! Teams of high school students are working during the summer to perform habitat protection and restoration projects and learn about watershed ecology. The students plant native trees to stabilize riparian zones and riverbanks. They also remove invasive species, and install rain gardens and stormwater control projects.
The Restoration Program is off to a big start with projects in Ohio and Kentucky. In Ohio, ORF secured $1.3 million to remove a 100 year-old deteriorating obsolete dam. Its removal will reconnect the Stillwater River, making it the longest free flowing river in the state of Ohio.
 In Kentucky, a road will be removed to restore uninterrupted flow in Beaver Creek – one of the thousands of tributaries and sub-tributaries of the Ohio River. With the nearby presence of endangered aquatic species, this project is critical for their recovery and survival.
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