Over the last year and a half, I’ve had the pleasure of being on the board of the Lower Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association (LSRA) with a group of like-minded, water-loving volunteers. The experience is everything I want in a volunteer organization: mission and project-driven, hands-on, and hyper-focused on preserving and protecting the Susquehanna River. Both the board and staff give freely of their time and talent, advocating for a river that has no voice of its own, monitoring for pollutants and existential threats, teaching the next generation of environmental stewards, hosting events that engage the community and elevate its understanding of what’s at stake and why it’s essential to have Water Watchdogs like LSRA keeping an eye out, and, when all else fails, diving into litigation, even if it takes years to come to fruition.

Recently, LSRA, along with our partners at Waterkeeper Chesapeake secured a historic 50-year agreement to address many environmental issues associated with the Conowingo Dam in Maryland. Water quality and resiliency projects, trash and debris removal, wildlife passage, freshwater mussel restoration, and dredging are all part of the agreement, concessions that would not have been given without LSRA’s determined presence at the table. As a result of this agreement, LSRA will have the laboring oar on monitoring many of these projects for the length of the permit. That takes staff and Money.

Yet our own Legacy is far from certain. Money is tight, the Economy difficult. Grant donations are drying up and non-profits are scaling back just when those affected by the current economy are suffering most. Sometimes it seems like everyone’s hand is out — probably because it is.

So what do we do to keep our organization alive and vibrant and advocating for the river?

Well, this, I suppose: appeal to the people we serve, our community.

To that end, I respectfully ask you, will you donate to our River Rocks campaign today?

The photos above tell a tiny bit of our story. If you would like to learn more about the incredible work LSRA is doing, visit our website, and if you are so moved, please donate today.

River rocks are the building blocks of a healthy river.

Be our rock.

Originally Published on https://greenlifebluewater.earth/feed/

Pam Lazos

Pam Lazos is an environmental lawyer and the author of the enviro thriller, "Oil and Water," about oil spills and green technology; of a collection of novellas, "Six Sisters," about family, dysfunction, and the ties that bind us; creator of the literary and eco blog www.greenlifebluewater.earth; a blogger for the Global Water Alliance (GWA) in Philadelphia; on the Editorial Board for the wH2O Journal, recently rebranded as the International Journal of Water Equity and Justice (University of Pennsylvania); an editor and ghostwriter for the newly published book, "Finally Home" by Deacon Mike Oles; author of a children's book, "Into the Land of the Loud"; and former Senior Assistant Regional Counsel for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, where she protected water and wetlands for over 33 years. Pam continues this work through her writing. She practices laughter daily.