Staff Highlights: 2016

This year has been a big year for Columbia Riverkeeper — tours of salmon spawning, stopping illegal pollution, fighting fossil fuel giants on the Columbia River, and much more. We asked staff to share some of their favorite moments of 2016 and here’s what they had to say.

My highlight for 2016...

• Acasia Berry, Development Director: How do you pick just one! Seeing what we can do when we stand together for a clean and healthy future has buoyed my spirit. Knowing together we will continue to shut the door on fossil fuel expansion locally and have a global impact is definitely a highlight. Most recently, a big congratulations to Portland for passing a new Fossil Fuel Infrastructure Ban through zoning codes!
• Rob Cochran, Canvass Director: My highlight was the Hood River canvass in August, just after the oil train fire in Mosier. We were received so warmly by people happy that we are fighting to keep more oil trains off the Columbia and we signed up a lot of new members in our hometown.
• Lorri Epstein, Water Quality Director: Seeing spawning salmon in Eagle Creek with Kat Brigham and Riverkeeper members. I am in awe of these beautiful fish and watching them splash in the creek helps remind me why I do the work I do!
• Lauren Goldberg, Staff Attorney: My highlight was stopping toxic pollution from entering the Columbia River by enforcing the Clean Water Act. Now, more than ever, the public’s right to enforce environmental laws matters. Our lawsuit against the federal government for illegal oil pollution is just one example of how Riverkeeper is taking on big polluters and keeping our river clean.
• Miles Johnson, Clean Water Attorney: A ruling in one of Riverkeeper’s cases that requires the federal government to consider Snake River dam removal as one way to recover endangered Columbia River salmon and steelhead.
• Dan Serres, Conservation Director: Celebrating an LNG-free Columbia River with the activists who fought for 12 years to protect our Columbia River Estuary from fracked gas exports.
• Liv Smith, Membership Assistant: Seeing all of the generous donations and heartening notes of support coming in from our terrific members. Thank you! 
• Liz Terhaar, Communications Director: Witnessing the dangers of oil-by-rail firsthand during the Mosier oil train derailment and fire in June was one of the scariest things I've ever seen. This accident wasn't a highlight, but the outcome was: our community of activists came together with public outcry against oil-by-rail heard throughout the nation—it was truly inspiring.
• Brett VandenHeuvel, Executive Director: My highlight was being inspired everyday by our amazing community: the symbiotic relationship that combines organizing and legal work with local heroes protecting what they love. Together, we accomplished great feats.
• Jasmine Zimmer-Stucky, Senior Organizer: Waterside victory at the Port of Longview! Way back in the early days of 2016 we celebrated a huge victory for the Columbia: the defeat of a proposed oil refinery and propane export terminal in Longview!

Together we can enforce and defend environmental laws, push for safer limits on toxic pollution, and prevail over the biggest fossil fuel projects in America. Donate here to power this work in 2017.