2025 Annual update
Dear Tennessee Riverkeeper supporters,
2025 was a challenging year. However, thanks to supporters like you, 2025 was a productive and successful year for Tennessee Riverkeeper. We celebrated 15 years of protecting water and combatting pollution. We have one of the most active environmental litigation programs in the United States. We have also continued to educate hundreds of thousands of citizens about water quality and the threats from pollution with our presence in the news media and our use of social media platforms. Your ongoing support, using this link, is crucial for us to continue this work into 2025.
The work of Tennessee Riverkeeper is crucial to the health and well-being of more than 6.3 million people living in the Tennessee River and Cumberland River watersheds. We fervently advocate for the understanding that everyone lives downstream, and therefore that no one is immune to the disastrous effects of contaminated water, food, and air. We believe that access to clean water is a fundamental human right. We are proud to be a grassroots, citizen-supported organization, empowered by more than 8,200 members in 46 states and Washington DC.
When it comes to pollution it seems that “out of sight, out of mind” is the norm for many local and state governments. Tennessee Riverkeeper serves as your lighthouse, spotlighting problems in the water to safeguard communities. As our membership grows and when you renew your support, our light gets brighter and more powerful and waterways become safer. Here are a few highlights from Tennessee Riverkeeper’s work in 2025:
Addressed over 4,441 Clean Water Act violations in 2025 through 8 new legal actions. We have combatted more than 498,550,000 gallons of polluted discharges and addressed more than 60,840+ pollution violations since 2009.
Defended your water: a legal team of 11 attorneys, led by Mark Martin, represented Riverkeeper in 14 lawsuits.
Continued and expanded our monitoring and litigation involving chemicals known as PFAS.
Combatted egregious illegal dumping and mud discharges by developers in the absence of action by the government.
Maintained Gold Star Charity Status from GuideStar, which uses IRS data to rate nonprofits nationwide.
Initiated 8 environmental enforcement actions at facilities in Tennessee and Alabama.
Responded to 95+ pollution tips. Improved response to citizens, converting tips into cases and callers into supporters.
Filed more than 75 public comments regarding pollution and other issues including PFAS, plastics, TVA coal ash, toxic food coloring, sewage sludge, invasive species, pipeline leaks, fossil fuels, forestry, public lands, toxics, public health, lead pipes, phosphates, wildlife protection, food safety, pesticides, and other chemicals.
Continued our work advocating against weak discharge permits and for common sense environmental policies on issues including: PFAS pollution, plastics, factory farm pollution, environmental impact statements, new pollution permit applications or renewals, and numerous Clean Water Act and public health issues.
Expanded outreach program and events. Expanded partnership with Orion Amphitheater for fourth year in a row.
Removed over 11,384 pounds of trash from waterways at cleanups and educated the public about plastic pollution.
Investigated 600 pollution permits in our patrol jurisdiction; continued to monitor illegal pollution.
Press coverage continued, raising awareness about pollution across multiple media markets to hundreds of thousands.
Participated in educational events in Nashville, Chattanooga, Murfreesboro, Athens, Decatur, Madison, and Huntsville.
Engaged volunteers: Tennessee Riverkeeper had more than 239 volunteers that served over 1,486 total hours in 2025.
Increased blog postings on our website on topics such as PFAS, plastics, pesticides, and public health.
Continued to increase our online community: Facebook now has 23,390+ supporters, Twitter has 13,275 followers, and Instagram has 8,830+ followers, and 3,340+ on other sites. That’s a combined total of over 48,835 supporters!
Your support during this critical time will go a long way to bring stronger pollution monitoring and environmental enforcement. What sets us apart from other organizations is that we are not afraid to tackle polluters head on.
Please send a tax-deductible donation using the form on the back of this letter. Together we will continue to fight pollution, improve water quality, and strengthen our communities. Thanks again.
For your water,
Your Tennessee Riverkeeper Team