This has been a milestone year for me personally at Baykeeper—celebrating 20 years of work with an organization whose mission I cherish. This year’s annual report highlights big wins that continue to inspire our passion.
The year started off strong with Baykeeper taking on Valero, one of the largest corporate polluters in the history of our organization. We won our 50th lawsuit in our ten-year campaign to stop industrial pollution. Then we compelled the federal government to list longfin smelt as an endangered species. And when a devastating red tide led to the Bay’s largest fish kill in recent memory, our staff jumped into action to identify the source of the problem, alert the public, and advocate for stronger pollution controls.
I also had the pleasure of collaborating with GRAMMY-nominated local hip hop artist RyanNicole Austin to raise awareness about environmental injustices around the Bay. Baykeeper’s unique approach to protecting the Bay inspired her to write a new song called Small but Mighty. Stay tuned for the music video next spring!
And, of course, we've got big plans to keep protecting the Bay in 2023, including:
- Securing new pollution controls to prevent bacteria pollution in South Bay creeks.
- Holding agencies accountable to keep fish populations in good condition in our rivers.
- And ramping up our advocacy to clean up contaminated shoreline sites around the Bay that threaten to spread toxic pollution with rising sea levels.
These efforts and big wins for the Bay would not be possible without your support.
If you haven't already made your year-end gift for the Bay, please do so today. Your gift between now and December 31 will be triple matched thanks to a generous donor.
Thank you for standing by our side as we work to protect communities and wildlife. We truly appreciate your partnership.
Wishing you a joyous holiday season,
Sejal Choksi-Chugh, Executive Director
