What Rogue Riverkeeper does

Rogue Riverkeeper is a private nonprofit environmental advocacy organization founded in 2009 and headquartered at 562 A St, Ashland, Oregon, operating as a program of the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (KS Wild), a 501(c)(3) entity (EIN 93-1246139). Its mission is to protect, defend, and restore clean water, native fish, and healthy communities across the 3.3-million-acre Rogue River Basin in southern Oregon. The organization is staffed by approximately three women (with one part-time) under Program Manager Frances Oyung, and is sustained primarily by individual donations, memberships, and community contributions; it has no commercial revenue stream and does not charge for its services.

The organization's core offerings center on (1) a seasonal water quality monitoring program that tests more than a dozen popular swimming, boating, and fishing sites weekly from June through September for E. coli bacteria, collecting approximately 140 samples per summer and publishing results to the Swim Guide app and swimguide.org; (2) a public pollution-reporting and follow-up service; (3) Clean Water Act and Wild & Scenic Rivers Act advocacy, including litigation and regulatory intervention against projects such as the Jordan Cove LNG pipeline; and (4) community engagement programs, including the Bear Creek Initiative, Adopt-a-Greenway, Bear Creek festivals and Salmon Strolls, and an annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival fundraiser. Strategic partners include KS Wild (parent), the Swim Guide platform, ROW Adventures, the Oregon Stream Protection Coalition, multiple watershed councils, Jackson County Parks, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and Oregon DEQ; revenue-side partners include Be Cherished and Gervais Day Spa (Aveda salons) which have cumulatively raised over $34,000 over five years through Earth Month promotions.

The organization operates as a regional watchdog and community-mobilization platform with no proprietary technology product; its technical stack consists of Swim Guide (data publishing), EveryAction (email/donation processing), Google Analytics, and a Squarespace-hosted website. Its commercial model is pure philanthropic: tax-deductible donations, memberships, event proceeds, and partnership contributions. Recent notable outcomes include the 2021 defeat of the Jordan Cove LNG pipeline, the February 2025 effective date of first-ever OSMB jet boat rules on the Upper Rogue, the June 2025 unanimous Oregon Board of Forestry upgrade of stream buffer standards covering ~320 miles of salmon and steelhead habitat, and the 2026 American Rivers "Most Endangered Rivers" designation for the Rogue.

Name

Rogue Riverkeeper

Legal name

Rogue Riverkeeper

Website

https://rogueriverkeeper.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Rogue Riverkeeper is a small Ashland, Oregon-based nonprofit advocacy organization that conducts weekly E. coli water quality monitoring across the 3.3-million-acre Rogue Basin, publishes results via Swim Guide, and mobilizes community and legal advocacy to protect Clean Water Act and Wild & Scenic Rivers protections for the Rogue watershed.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental Advocacy Services

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Microbiology & Pathogen Monitoring (Legionella, Coliform, HABs) (EUAHACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Water Quality Monitoring, Compliance & Reporting (Sampling, Lab, Regulatory) (EUANAAAG), Watershed/Source Water & Raw Water Quality Monitoring (intakes, reservoirs, groundwater) (EUANAJAH), Wastewater & Environmental Pathogen Surveillance (HLAJABAI)

Keywords

• Water quality monitoring
• Environmental advocacy
• Watershed protection
• Community conservation
• Clean Water Act defense

Headquarters

HQ city

Ashland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Memberships: The organization is funded through individual donations, memberships, and contributions. Rogue Riverkeeper is a program of the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center, and all donations are tax deductible (EIN 93-1246139).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Rogue Riverkeeper conducts seasonal E. coli water quality testing at popular swimming, boating, and fishing sites across the Rogue River Basin from June through September and publishes results through the Swim Guide platform. The organization also pursues Clean Water Act enforcement, runs pollution reporting and advocacy campaigns, and coordinates volunteer-based watershed stewardship programs including the Bear Creek Initiative and Bear Creek Greenway cleanups.

Product overview

Rogue Riverkeeper is a non-profit environmental advocacy organization operating as a program of the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center. The organization's primary offerings consist of water quality monitoring services (the Water Quality Monitoring Program and Swim Guide data sharing), community engagement programs (Bear Creek Initiative, Adopt-a-Greenway, volunteer cleanup events), and advocacy campaigns (Clean Water Act defense, Wild & Scenic Rivers Act protection, anti-LNG pipeline work). Additional programs include the annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival fundraiser, bear canister rentals for Rogue River Trail hikers, and a pollution reporting system for community members. The organization does not offer a technology product platform but rather provides environmental stewardship programs and advocacy services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Water Quality Monitoring Program
• Swim Guide Data Sharing

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully stopped the Jordan Cove LNG pipeline project through Clean Water Act Section 401 certification denial by Oregon DEQ
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (KS Wild)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRogue Riverkeeper is a program of the Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (KS Wild), a conservation organization working to protect forests, wildlands, and watersheds in the Klamath-Siskiyou region of southern Oregon and northern California.
• ROW AdventuresminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerROW Adventures collaborates with Rogue Riverkeeper on virtual float trips down the Wild & Scenic Rogue River and organized rafting excursions to raise awareness and funds for river protection.
• Oregon Stream Protection CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRogue Riverkeeper collaborates with the Oregon Stream Protection Coalition and partners including Wild Salmon Center to address threats to water pollution from private forestry practices.
• Swim Guide (The Swim Guide)coreTechnology or IntegrationRogue Riverkeeper participates in the Swim Guide network, publishing water quality monitoring results on the Swim Guide app and website for free public access to recreational water quality information.
• Jackson County ParksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRogue Riverkeeper partners with Jackson County Parks for the Adopt-a-Greenway program along Bear Creek Greenway, coordinating volunteer trail maintenance and community service activities.
• Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife (ODFW)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerRogue Riverkeeper works with ODFW on riparian protection initiatives, salmon spawning monitoring, and reviewing riparian ordinance implementation and enforcement.
• Aveda Salons (Be Cherished and Gervais Day Spa)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal Aveda salons in Ashland and Medford have raised over $34,000 for Rogue Riverkeeper over five years through annual Earth Month fundraising efforts.
• Watershed CouncilsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRogue Riverkeeper partners with various watershed councils including Applegate Partnership and Watershed Council, Rogue River Watershed Council, Illinois Valley Watershed Council, and Lower Rogue Watershed Council for riparian restoration and watershed protection efforts.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Rogue River Watershed Council: Active Rogue Riverkeeper partner with overlapping riparian restoration, habitat, and water quality mandates within the Rogue Basin. Closest operational peer at the sub-watershed council level.
• Surfrider Foundation: National nonprofit with a chapter-based model that runs volunteer beach and recreational water quality monitoring (Blue Water Task Force) and Clean Water Act advocacy. Directly comparable volunteer-driven water quality monitoring program and Swim Guide-adjacent data publishing.
• Columbia Riverkeeper: Pacific Northwest Waterkeeper Alliance affiliate running similar water quality monitoring, pollution reporting, and advocacy campaigns. Same organizational template, scaled to a larger river system.
• Willamette Riverkeeper: Oregon-based Waterkeeper Alliance affiliate with the same operating model: small staff, Swim Guide-style E. coli monitoring at recreation sites, and Clean Water Act advocacy. Closest structural peer in the same state.
• Klamath Riverkeeper: Fellow Waterkeeper Alliance member organization operating in the adjacent Klamath Basin across the Oregon-California border. Directly comparable as a small-staffed watershed advocacy nonprofit running community-based water quality monitoring and Clean Water Act enforcement.
• Klamath-Siskiyou Wildlands Center (KS Wild): Rogue Riverkeeper's parent 501(c)(3) organization with overlapping staff, board, and advocacy portfolio in the same Klamath-Siskiyou region. Operationally and financially intertwined with the subject company.
• Applegate Partnership and Watershed Council: Active Rogue Riverkeeper partner and regional watershed council running riparian restoration and water quality work in a sub-basin of the Rogue. Comparable organizational model and operational footprint within the same service area.

Broad incumbents

• American Rivers: National nonprofit that just named the Rogue River one of America's Most Endangered Rivers in 2026. Comparable as a larger, established watershed advocacy organization with similar Wild & Scenic Rivers and Clean Water Act focus, but operating at national rather than basin scale.

Regional players

• Oregon Environmental Council: Statewide Oregon environmental advocacy nonprofit. Comparable in policy advocacy and donor base, though focused on broader issues beyond a single watershed and lacking the recreational water quality monitoring program.
• Wild Salmon Center: Pacific Northwest nonprofit explicitly named as a Rogue Riverkeeper partner on forestry and stream protection. Directly comparable in mission (native salmonid habitat, cold-water protection) and geographic overlap in the Klamath-Siskiyou region.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/rogueriverkeeper
• Facebookfacebook.com/rogueriverkeeper
• Instagraminstagram.com/rogueriverkeeper

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rogue Riverkeeper