Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper

10/12/2026

What's in a name? For Indigenous People's Day, learn about the Indigenous language history of our Great Lakes.

In the Great Lakes region, you are surrounded by indigenous languages. Many lakes and rivers are called by Algonquian and Iroquoian names.

10/11/2026

Buffalo Sewer, NYSDEC, US Army Corps, and Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper have been working collaboratively this past week to contain and find the sources of a white milky substance and a petroleum sheen that have appeared in the Buffalo River. If you are out exploring our waterways this weekend, please do not remove or detach the containment socks (like the one in the picture) and if you see a foreign substance being dumped into the waterway or down a stormwater grate, report it immediately to NYSDEC at 1-844-332-3267.

10/11/2026

We had a great time with our volunteers planting 500 plants at our Forest Lawn Living shoreline last week. These plantings help improve water quality in the region by filtering out runoff, and it means so much to have our volunteers step up and join us in this work. It makes the day go by so much quicker!

Thanks again to HSBC for its support. This work would not be possible if it were not for partnerships like the one Waterkeeper Alliance has with HSBC. We look forward to other stewardship events together!

10/09/2026

Volunteers joined us at our Beaver Island State Park Living Shoreline to help plant 250 herbaceous plants. These plants will help us continue to enhance the shoreline and protect it from erosion. Creating these Living Shorelines also benefits the water quality as roots help filter runoff before it goes into the water.

Thanks to HSBC for its support. This work would not be possible if it were not for partnerships like the one Waterkeeper Alliance has with HSBC. We look forward to other stewardship events together!

10/08/2026

“Waterkeeper has steadfastly kept its eye on the prize with Scajaquada and all of Western New York will eventually reap the benefits, just as it has with Waterkeeper’s Buffalo River clean-up efforts.”
Read the full editorial from the The Buffalo News at https://buffalonews.com/news/local/article_c5f5600b-acb4-42bc-85e8-269311fc73b5.html

10/07/2026

Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper has dedicated nearly 40 years to the restoration and protection of the Buffalo River. Our organization is responsible for convening the Buffalo River Restoration Partnership, made up of public, private, and nonprofit partners, whom over the span of 20 years, deployed over $100 million to remove 1 million cubic yards of toxic contamination from the river and restored over 2 miles of shoreline. Please see our full statement at https://bnwaterkeeper.org/miami-street-development-statement-oct/

10/06/2026

TOMORROW: Join Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper on Oct. 7 at 6 p.m. at the Niagara County DMV building within the NT Recreation Department Conference Room (500 Wheatfield St.) to learn more about the proposed UPDATED plans, inspired by your feedback, for the Tonawanda Creek shoreline by Sweeney Street.

Currently in the design phase, this project will transform approximately 1,500 feet of shoreline and 2.3 acres of habitat along Tonawanda Creek within the City of North Tonawanda. The plan is to convert a degraded shoreline into a resilient, self-sustaining living shoreline system to improve habitat, water quality, and shoreline stability while maintaining public access and sight lines throughout.

Following feedback from the community, updates have been made to the restoration areas and project design. This community meeting will provide an opportunity to share those updates and highlight how feedback has been incorporated. Join us to hear more.

https://bnwaterkeeper.org/sweeney-st-shoreline/

10/05/2026

YOUR VOICE NEEDED: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers have proposed further narrowing the definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS), potentially eliminating Clean Water Act protections for at least 95% of individual wetlands and 79% of rivers and streams in the continental U.S. This is the most consequential attack on clean water in the US in the last 50 years. Please join us in leaving a comment for the EPA by FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, expressing your opposition to the further weakening of protections for streams, rivers, and wetlands. Utilize this action link from https://waterkeeper.quorum.us/campaign/DID-WOTUS-Sept26/

10/05/2026

“The Scajaquada is eventually going to be clean – that is our hope,” said Buffalo Niagara Waterkeeper Executive Director Jill Jedlicka. “We're not going to wait 20 years for that ⤵️ Find a link to the story in the comments.

10/02/2026

Good New Alert!
This week, the US Senate passed the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Act, reauthorizing $475 million per year, for the next 4 years. First authorized in 2009, this dedicated Great Lakes funding is critical to protecting the quality and quantity of NY's Great Lakes and tributaries, including local restoration projects within Western New York.

Thank you to NYS Senators Gillibrand and Schumer for your continued support of our Great Lakes!!

Next Steps: The Senate bill moves to the House of Representatives to reconcile differences between the Senate and House bill versions. Once a final version of the bill is agreed upon, the Senate and House will each vote one more time on passage. It then moves on to the President for signature, ideally before the end of 2026.