The Funding Problem

Traditional philanthropy and government agency dollars have done a lot to restore our rivers and streams over the last 40 years. But in that time, The Freshwater Trust has come to understand that the existing funding mechanisms are just not enough. We are applying “millions of dollars” to a “billions of dollars” problem.

To truly improve freshwater health on a meaningful timeline, we must figure out new ways to pay for more river and restoration – ways that better apply existing conservation funding and also encourages new conservation investment through private capital. As an organization dedicated to restoring every river and stream, The Freshwater Trust sees environmental markets as a means to that end.