About Us

Successful Legal Actions

Yadkin Riverkeeper has been instrumental in several high-profile legal cases aimed at holding polluters accountable. Our efforts have led to substantial cleanup mandates for companies violating environmental regulations, including:

• Working with the Southern Environmental Law Center to successfully sue Duke Energy requiring the cleanup and recycling of 6.5 million tons of coal ash near the River at the Buck Steam Power Station.
• Opposing the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s relicensing of Alcoa’s Yadkin Project hydroelectric dams. Although FERC granted the license and YRK lost its legal challenges, its efforts produced significant water quality improvements related to the operation of the dams.
• Challenging the NC Division of Water Resources draft National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for Colonial Pipeline’s wasterwater remediation plant near Huntersville, NC required to clean up more than 2 million gallons of gasoline from a pipeline leak contaminating groundwater. YRK’s comments and organizing resulted in the state reducing the effluent limits for the known carcinogen beneze by 50 times and requiring the use of best available treatment technologies and instream monitoring.
• Working with the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic and the Southern Environmental Law Center to holding state agencies accountable for strengthening permit requirements for Alcoa Badin Business Park’s NPDES stormwater permit and hazardous waste corrective action permit to reduce contaminated water for the former alumunum smelter operation from entering the River, Badin Lake and Little Montain Creek.

Policy Influence

We have actively influenced state and local policies to enhance water quality standards, resulting in stricter regulations and better enforcement mechanisms. Examples include

• Worked with local grassroots organizations and elected officials to stop a proposed rock quarry near Hamptonville, which threatened Yadkin County’s future drinking water supply and tributaries to the Yadkin. 
• Successfully advocated for the NC Environmental Management Commission to adopt a new water quality standard for cyanide, which is a contaminant of concern in the Alcoa case, to sample for the more harmful form of cyanide. 
• Lead proponent for the NCEMC to adopt a site-specific chlorophyll-a standard for High Rock Lake as an indicator of excessive nutrient pollution and potential harmful algal blooms (HABs)
• Lead advocate and organizer for adoption of the High Rock Lake (HRL) nutrient management rules to reduce nutrient and sediment pollution and HABs in HRL.

Enhanced Monitoring Programs

Yadkin Riverkeeper staff and volunteers collect important water quality data, which assists YRK in identifying pollution sources and supports YRK’s advocacy efforts.​ Our efforts have led to substantial cleanup mandates for companies violating environmental regulations, including:

• Sampling 26 river access sites and public swimming areas for e. coli bacteria once a week from Memorial Day to Labor Day as part of the international Swim Guide Program. Results are published weekly on YRK’s social media channels and website.
• Monthly sampling of High Rock Lake for nutrient pollution, bacteria and chlorophyll a to track compliance with state water quality standards during the algae growing season from April to October, after High Rock Lake.
• Monthly sampling of the South Yadkin River at two locations for turbidity, nutrients and bacteria as part of YRK’s development of a watershed restoration plan for the South Yadkin River watershed.

Collaborative Research

Partnering with universities and research institutions, we have contributed to numerous scientific studies that provide valuable insights into the health of the Yadkin Pee Dee River basin. During the past five years YRK has worked:

• In conjunction with the Piedmont Triad Regional Council, published the “Roadmap to a Cleaner Yadkin River” to put forward a strategy to reduce nonpoint source pollution going into the Yadkin River and its Lakes.
• In coordination with the Wake Forest School of Engineering, conducted sampling and field test on High Rock Lake to measure chlorophyll-a using innovative sampling methods and satellite imagery.
• With grassroots organizations, state agencies and private restoration firms to research and proposed options for addressing Harmful Algal Blooms on the Yadkin Lakes.

River Paddles and Cleanups

YRK has organized countless river paddles and cleanups, engaging hundreds of community members in volunteer, hands-on river stewardship activities.

Educational Outreach

Through educational workshops, public lectures, and informational campaigns, we have raised awareness about the importance of the river and how individuals can contribute to its protection.

• YRK sponsors and supports Creek Week programs in Forsyth, Rowan and Davidson Counties and Mooresville and Elkin.
• YRK sponsors stream, river and lake cleanups that remove tons of debris form the watershed annually.
• YRK sponsors paddles, tours and events to educate the public on the history of the River.

Community Involvement and Environmental Justice

YRK assist communities seeking equitable distribution of environmental benefits to protect the quality of life in their communities.

• YRK supports the Concerned Citizens of West Badin in their efforts to rid their historically African American community of hazardous waste disposed of at Alcoa Badin Business Park that is contaminating groundwater and Badin Lake and Little Mountain Creek.
• YKR has been an adovocate for the Barkwood and Northwood Estates communities in east Winston-Salem in their fight to reduce stream erosion and pollution caused by land clearing at the Smith Reynolds Airport. As a result, nearly one million dollars of state and local funding have been appropriated to begin the stream restoration project in this underserved community.

Habitat Restoration

Yadkin Riverkeeper advocates for habitat restoration projects, including reforestation efforts, wetland restoration, and the creation of riparian buffers to protect water quality.

We are currently developing a watershed restoration plan for the South Yadkin watershed that will include an identification of conservation priorities and habitat and stream restoration opportunities.

Public Access Improvements

Yadkin Riverkeeper is a member of the Great Trails State Coalition and has received more than $450,000 in state funding for capacity building and improvements to the Yadkin River State Trail. We have successfully advocated for the expansion of public access points along the river, promoting recreational use and fostering a deeper connection between the community and the river. In 2024 YRK secured grant funding to acquire the Burch Station access area at the Yadkin’s confluence with the Mitchell River. YRK transferred the nine-acre property to Surry County, who will manage the site in perpetuity for river access and riverside camping.

Promoting Sustainable Practices

We work closely with farmers to promote sustainable, “river friendly” agricultural practices that protect water quality, such as buffer zones, cover cropping, and responsible nutrient management.

Regulating Industrial Agriculture

YRK has advocated for stricter permitting requirements for large-scale animal production facilities or CAFOs, reducing their impact on the river and surrounding ecosystems, but unfortunately those requirements have been held up in court