History

Living Rivers began in 2000 with a mission to mobilize people in support of large-scale restoration for the Colorado River.

The principle focus then, as now, remains the reestablishing a free-flowing Colorado River through Glen and Grand Canyons. To that end, Living Rivers has:

• Mobilized more than 200 organizations to aid in promoting new federal Environmental Impact Statement on Glen Canyon Dam's operations.
• Generated hundreds of articles in the United States and around the world concerning the viability of, and growing movement for, the decommissioning of Glen Canyon Dam.
• Exposed the Bureau of Reclamation's failure to comply with the Grand Canyon Protection Act and recovery endangered native fish in Grand Canyon, and the need.
• Launched efforts toward the decommission of two other major dams on
  the Colorado Plateau, Navajo Dam on the San Juan River and Flaming
  Gorge Dam on the Green River.
• Established a program with Native American activists and traditional practitioners to propose the healing of rivers of the Southwest, by uncovering of sacred sites effected by these major dams and reservoirs.
• Developed a coalition of 135 organizations representing 12 million people from the United States and Mexico, calling for all Colorado River water user agencies to conserve at least 1% of their allocated water and leave it in the river, to flow down to the ocean in Mexico and replenish the river's dying, dried-up delta.

Founded as the Glen Canyon Action Network in 2000, the name was changed to Living Rivers in 2001. In 2002, Living Rivers was selected as a member of the New York-based Waterkeeper Alliance, and added Colorado Riverkeeper to its name.

The Moab, Utah location was chosen as it sits directly on the Colorado River and at the heart of the Colorado Plateau. Living Rivers/Colorado Riverkeeper also operates out of Camp Verde, Arizona assuring representation in both states bordering Glen Canyon Dam and Lake Powell reservoir.

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Last Update: August 4, 2004