Atchafalaya Basinkeeper, Inc.

Atchafalaya Basinkeeper (ABK) is a member organization of Waterkeeper Alliance, with a mission to protect and restore the swamps, lakes, rivers, streams and bayous of the Atchafalaya Basin for future generations. ABK works with diverse partner organizations, communities, agencies, regulated industry, commercial and recreational users of the Basin, outdoor enthusiasts and concerned citizens in collective stewardship to preserve this ecological wonder.

At the onset, ABK set out to save Louisiana's coastal cypress forests from ongoing destruction by the cypress mulch industry. Since its inception, Basinkeeper has worked to patrol and advocate for the Basin through education, outreach, monitoring, and enforcement. Current threats to the Atchafalaya include Army Corps diversion projects and industry malfeasance.



Importance of the Atchaflaya Basin at the national scale:

• The Atchafalaya Basin's floodway and forested wetlands protect millions of people, industrial plants, and the Port of South Louisiana (the largest in the Western Hemisphere) from catastrophic floods and severe weather events.

• There is no other single ecosystem in the world more important for migratory birds.

• Better management of the Atchafalaya Basin would improve coastal land loss in south Louisiana.

• As global warming produces more extreme rain events and the sea level continues to rise, the Atchafalaya Basin will be even more crucial in the future to our nation.

Testimonials

The Atchafalaya Basinkeeper is the one organization that cares deeply for preservation of this land and they have the utmost integrity while doing it. I have supported their mission for more than a decade and will continue to help them preserve our land, the land that can be used by us all. - Stacey L Scarce
I hug trees. I'm from New Orleans. I speak up on behalf of Mother Nature. I sue bad actors. I serve the Basin. I paddle, observe, and enjoy. And I ignore those who either actively work to marginalize those of us working to save the Basin or those who think that they can ignore their responsibilities to the Planet believing that someone else will take care of it.