The Freshwater Institute began 20 years ago as an economic and environmental resource for rural Appalachian communities. Partnering with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Institute pioneered a new form of sustainable aquaculture, improving techniques for growing cold-water fish—such as trout and salmon—with less water, fewer environmental impacts, and increased efficiency. By helping to modernize the fish-farming industry, the Institute energized these rural economies.
Today the Freshwater Institute benefits communities across the country, working to protect their green infrastructure to recharge aquifers and safeguard public water supplies; clean up pollution caused by acid drainage from old mines; safely handle community wastewater; prevent water pollution from natural gas development and restore habitat for threatened native brook trout.
In the face of climate change and growing populations, freshwater issues take on new urgency. In 2007, a third of the Southeast found itself in the surprising, stubborn grip of a drought that ravaged both the economy and environment. Whether stark or subtle, community challenges increasingly call for the Institute’s practical solutions to efficiently use limited freshwater resources.
Help us rise to the challenge of sustaining the clean, available freshwater resources on which we all depend. With your support today, The Freshwater Institute will continue to pursue engineering innovations that provide practical solutions to meet our society's water needs.
The Freshwater Institute is a program of The Conservation Fund. The Conservation Fund, with its 1 percent fund-raising costs and 97 percent program allocation, was recognized as the nation’s top environmental nonprofit by two prominent charity watchdog organizations.
Charity Navigator, in its Guide to Intelligent Giving, awarded The Conservation Fund its exceptional “four star” rating for exceeding industry standards. For the fifth year in a row, the American Institute of Philanthropy gave the Fund its highest “A+” grade for unsurpassed effectiveness and efficiency.
Rockymarsh Run watershed in West Virginia is a tributary to the Potomac River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. It is a watershed on the cusp: restorative efforts are needed to meet current water quality goals.
Click here to go to the Rockymarsh Run website and learn more about the efforts to restore the watershed.
Take our quiz and learn more about fish farming and the research being done at our facility.
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1098 Turner Road
Shepherdstown, WV 25443-4228
Phone: 304-876-2815
Fax: 304-870-2208
Email: info@freshwaterinstitute.org
