
California · Oregon
Klamath River dam removal
Four dams came down on the Klamath, reopening hundreds of miles of river to salmon and steelhead. Now we are reconnecting the tributaries.
View project →Loading the river


Conservation
Since 1959, anglers have stood up for cold, clean water. Here is the work, the places and the people carrying it forward.
01
Protect
02
Reconnect
03
Restore
04
Sustain
Take care of the fish, and the
fishing will take care of itself.
TU’s founding principle, 1959
I
t started in 1959 with a group of anglers in George Griffith’s home on the banks of Michigan’s Au Sable River. They believed wild trout deserved clean, cold water and that anglers should be the first to defend it.
Today that idea lives in nearly 400 chapters and a national team of scientists, lawyers and restoration crews working river by river, from Alaska’s salmon country to Appalachian brook trout streams.
Four kinds of work with one goal: cold, clean, fishable water for the next generation of anglers.
We defend intact headwaters and public lands, then roll up our sleeves to heal streams damaged by mining, logging and development.
Explore river protection →
Where we work
Rivers don’t follow state lines. Neither do we.
Priority waters
Every mark on the map is a TU project in the water right now. Choose a watershed to see the people and places behind it.

01
Protect
Keeping the last great headwaters, roadless forests and public lands intact.
Read the chapter

04
Sustain
Keeping enough water in rivers for fish, farms and towns through the dry years.
Read the chapter
National reach, local roots
TU works at both scales at once, and each one makes the other stronger.
National
TU national staff
Local
Nearly 400 volunteer chapters
The people behind the work
Biologists, hydrologists, lawyers and organizers working river by river with nearly 400 chapters to protect, reconnect and restore coldwater habitat.
Meet the full staff →01 / 02

Northern Rockies
Maya Redfield
Director, Montana Water Project

Driftless Area
Daniel Okafor
Stream Restoration Biologist

Pacific Northwest
Sara Lindqvist
Senior Hydrologist

Southern Appalachia
James Whitt
Eastern Brook Trout Coordinator

Alaska
Nora Kaskan
Bristol Bay Program Director

Intermountain West
Luis Delgado
Water Rights Attorney

Great Lakes
Hannah Brooks
Culvert & Connectivity Lead

Northeast
Ben Castellano
Volunteer Engagement Manager
From dam removals to mine cleanups, see what TU staff and volunteers are building on rivers across the country.
01 / 06

California · Oregon
Klamath River dam removal
Four dams came down on the Klamath, reopening hundreds of miles of river to salmon and steelhead. Now we are reconnecting the tributaries.
View project →
Alaska
Protecting Bristol Bay
Home to the largest sockeye salmon run on Earth. TU anglers and partners spent more than a decade fighting the Pebble Mine.
View project →
Pennsylvania
Abandoned mine reclamation
Treating acid mine drainage so orange, lifeless streams run clear again and native brook trout can come home.
View project →
Wisconsin
Driftless Area streams
Restoring spring creeks in the unglaciated hills of the Upper Midwest, one eroded bank at a time.
View project →
Colorado
Upper Colorado River
Working with ranchers and water managers to keep cold water in the river through hot, dry summers.
View project →
Virginia
Eastern brook trout
Volunteers survey headwater streams and replace failing culverts so the region’s native trout can move freely again.
View project →
Keep reading
More from the TROUT Magazine archive.

Conservation
Roadless areas: defending America’s sporting lands
The Roadless Rule comment period is open until October 6. Here’s what is at stake for coldwater habitat.
Read the story
Fish & Fishing
Everything you wanted to know: Bull trout
A closer look at one of the West’s most cold-dependent native fish.
Read the story
The True Cast
Fishing meets AI? I’ll pass.
Kirk Deeter weighs in on artificial intelligence and time on the water.
Read the storyFind your
home water
Nearly 400 chapters meet on rivers across the country. Pull on your waders, meet your neighbors and take care of the water you love.
Find a chapter →Est. 1959

Wooley Bugger | Russell Blessing 1967
The Newsletter
Conservation news
and fishing intel, in
your inbox.
Conservation wins, fishing intel and chapter news, delivered twice a month. Written by the people doing the work.