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Category Archives: Newsroom

About ARA

Alabama Rivers Alliance is a statewide network of groups working to protect and restore all of Alabama’s water resources through building partnerships, empowering citizens, and advocating for sound water policy and its enforcement.

Click here to read a summary of our 2023 – 2027 Strategic Plan.

Latest News

ARA and SELC submit comments for the R.L. Harris Dam relicensing on the Tallapoosa River
ARA on Evolve America’s Set In Stone podcast
ARA’s 2024 Impact Report!
The 2025 Legislative Session Starts Today (February 4)!

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The people of Lowndes County and many other rural,

The people of Lowndes County and many other rural, low-income and communities of color have been discriminated against for decades when it comes to having equal access to proper sanitation. This settlement was righting a decades-long wrong and now the administration is putting that wrong back on to the people of Lowndes County. If you are an American anywhere in this country located in an area where you do not have access to a centralized sewer system, you are responsible for paying the full cost of treating your wastewater properly. Couple that with areas like Lowndes County in the Alabama Black Belt where the soils make traditional septic solutions nearly impossible, and you have a situation where families are living with raw sewage all around their homes, neighborhoods and waterways. With the federal government forgoing its responsibilities, we need the state of Alabama to step up to the plate and continue to invest in wastewater infrastructure, especially in communities that have not gotten the investment that everyone else has gotten over the past several decades.

See the full story from @insideclimatenews at our link in bio or at insideclimatenews.org

#DefendRivers #WaterIsLife #Wastewater #ALPolitics #AlabamaRivers #AlabamaWater #LowndesCounty

We can't wait to see you tomorrow evening, #Montev

We can't wait to see you tomorrow evening, #Montevallo!

Join ARA, @cahabariverkeeper and @montevalloenvironmental for the FREE public screening of the Southern Exposure Films!

Created in six weeks during the summer, the Southern Exposure films celebrate special people and places in Alabama while exploring complex issues and solutions. In this collection, we uncover the hidden and costly dangers of 'forever chemicals' in our rivers and drinking water sources following Riverkeepers as they strive to protect communities—and themselves—from PFAS contamination. We dive underwater to discover a “whole ‘nother living world under there in the seagrass that nobody ever sees”, full of critters and life and we learn what must happen to protect this submerged aquatic vegetation vital to the health of Mobile Bay and the communities and industries that rely on it.. We travel across Alabama rediscovering our native plants, meeting passionate plant people along the way who are making changes big and small in hopes of preserving the last vestiges of once vast ecosystems and Alabama’s unprecedented botanical biodiversity.. Finally, we meet and celebrate three Alabama women who, out of necessity to protect the people and places they love, answered the call to advocate for their water, land and communities.

Tuesday, April 15
Doors open at 6 with Mix & Mingling
Films start at 6:30 pm
Q&A + Discussion After with Alabama Rivers Alliance and Cahaba Riverkeeper

Wowee! It has taken us a minute to catch our breat

Wowee! It has taken us a minute to catch our breath from the past few weeks of defending rivers with scores of partners all across the state!

More than 175 river defenders representing 66 organizations and community water protectors from across the state and region gathered together the last weekend in March for the 27th annual Alabama Water Rally in collaboration and celebration and with an unsurpassed dedicated passion! It was without a doubt our biggest and best yet, full of Alabamians spanning all generations learning from experts and leaders, sharing with other communities facing similar threats to their waterways, building the movement needed to protect our 132,000 miles of rivers and streams, and deepening the connections that keep this movement flowing! We already can't wait for next year - in Montgomery! Stay tuned for a save the date coming soon.

Headed back from Water Rally, ARA stopped in #Mont

Headed back from Water Rally, ARA stopped in #Montgomery to continue the momentum protecting ALL of Alabama's rivers! First, Cindy and ARA's new River Region Community Engagement Fellow, Tiffani Powell, along with Kathleen Kirkpatrick of @friendsofthealabamariver met with the Montgomery County Commission as they declared the second Tuesday in April as Rivers of Alabama Day, joining the City of Montgomery who passed the same resolution in 2024. County Commissioner Isaiah Sankey had also been at Water Rally the weekend before, and he enthusiastically announced the the Commission that we will be bringing Water Rally back to Montgomery in 2026.

Our Policy Director, Charles Miller, was also in Montgomery this week, meeting with our legislators and testifying on HB 473. He underscored the need to balance the priorities of recreation and drinking water protections on reservoirs throughout the state of Alabama, and encouraged legislators to find a compromise that allows common-sense protection of our drinking water sources. We have a new bill dropping soon that Charles has been working on too. Stay tuned for news about that coming soon!

Read more about Rivers of Alabama Day, and the proclamations, from the link in bio.

#DefendRivers #AlabamaRivers #WaterIsLife #MontgomeryAL #RiversOfAlabamaDay #RAD #montgomerycounty #getoutsidealabama #ALPolitics

We need YOU with us and our partners in Montgomery

We need YOU with us and our partners in Montgomery on April 8 to talk with our legislators about protecting our rivers and streams, and drinking water sources!

We are just past the halfway point of the 2025 Alabama Legislative session and we must have our many voices in Montgomery to let legislators know that water is a priority to you and your community and it should be a priority for them too. We’ll provide helpful tips and a special training on how to talk to your legislators about issues important to you, and also about our latest important bill dropping this week. More info about that coming later this week - be on the lookout!

We will make it easy — and interesting — for you to talk with your representatives. We'll also have lunch for you, and stick around with us afterwards for a Rivers of Alabama Day Celebration on the Alabama River with @alabama_scenic_river_trail, @friendsofthealabamariver, and Montgomery City Councilor Andrew Szymanski!

Connect with your legislators directly to ask for meaningful change. If you need help with carpooling, just let us know when you register. See you in Montgomery April 8! Learn more at the link in bio!

#RiversOfAlabamaDay #AlabamaRivers #DefendRivers #WaterIsLife #ALPolitics #alabamalegislature #LobbyDay #AlabamaLobby #Alabama

It's a wild few weeks coming up for Alabama Rivers

It's a wild few weeks coming up for Alabama Rivers Alliance! We hope you'll join us along the way as we #DefendRivers across the state!

First up is #AlabamaWaterRally, the largest gathering of clean water advocates in the state! Deadline to register is in three days - you don't want to miss this awesome gathering of the best folks around!

Next is #RiversOfAlabamaDay, the day designated by the state legislature and the @cityofmontgomery. Once again we need your voice in #Montgomery as we talk to our elected officials about issues that matter - #CleanWater for all Alabamians!

After that, we'll celebrate our 132,000 miles of rivers and streams with our friends at @friendsofthealabamariver, @alabama_scenic_river_trail, @andrewsformgm7 and Alabama River Foundation at @redbluffmgm!

We'll finish out #EarthMonth with two more #SouthernExposure Film screenings in #Montvallo with our friends at @cahabariverkeeper and in #Huntsville with @hsv_environment!

Grab your calendars now - we'll wait - and save these dates! More info about all these and more at our link in bio.

#DefendRivers #WaterIsLife #AlabamaRivers #AlabamaOutdoors #ALPolitics

Auburn / Opelika! We can't wait to bring the new S

Auburn / Opelika! We can't wait to bring the new Southern Exposure Films to you tomorrow evening with our friends at @ausustain, @alabama_water_watch, @auburnwater, Auburn Outdoors and Tallapoosa Watershed Coalition!

Due to the winds and colder temps, we're headed inside at Pebble Hill. We'll still have partner mix and mingle, delicious hot chocolate, popcorn, S'mores and more! Bring your own mug and reusable cup and get ready for an awesome night of film and conversation. Learn more at the link in bio.

#Auburn #AuburnOutdoors #auburnuniversity #PebbleHill #AuburnTigers #Opelika #OpelikaAL #AlabamaRivers #DefendRivers #WaterIsLife #SouthernExposureFilms #FilmAlabama #AlabamaFilm #sustainability

It's been another whirlwind of a couple of weeks a

It's been another whirlwind of a couple of weeks at ARA! Cindy was a keynote speaker at the Lake Watch of Lake Martin annual meeting on Sunday, where she talked about - you guessed it! - how Alabama needs a water plan! She also moderated The League of Women Voters Gulf Coast Convening panel on climate, resilience and affordability in Mobile, and led a discussion at the Alabama Association of Nonprofits in Montgomery.

Charles attended the student-led New Directions in Environmental Law conference at Yale School of Law, where leading experts from across the country discussed the changing federal landscape, state responses, and novel approaches to protect aquatic resources in our changing climate.

Led by Jack, ARA recently filed comments on the draft environmental impact statement for the Harris Dam relicensing on the Tallapoosa River advocating for improved flows, water quality enhancements, adaptive management, and improved recreation access. Our awesome partners at SELC joined our comments. Martha also worked directly with landowners and community leaders to help make their voices heard by FERC by filing their own comments. We expect a Final EIS later this year, which will form the basis for the final FERC license. You can read our comments on our website!

V has been busy hitting the books and keeping a close eye on the federal mess surrounding water infrastructure funding, and Kelly has been busy busy planning more ways for communities and decision-makers to see the award winning Southern Exposure Films!

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About ARA
Events & Meetings
Take Action!
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Latest News
Issue Advocacy
Collaboration
Civic Engagement
Alabama’s Rivers
- About Alabama’s Rivers
- Recreation on Alabama’s Rivers
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