Mobile Baykeeper

Toxic coal ash is sitting in an unlined pit beside the Mobile River, just upstream of Mobile Bay.

This is not some faraway problem. This is your water. Your river. Your Delta. Your community.

A University of Alabama Study from 2024 shows that contamination is already happening, and Alabama Power still has not made a legally binding commitment to remove and recycle all of the coal ash at Plant Barry.

Clean water should not become just another story we tell about the way things used to be.

The problem is known. The solution is ready. It’s time to move the ash.

You have been relentless for more than 10 years, and powerful interests are counting on the community getting tired.

We are not giving up. Donate today to fuel the fight. https://mobilebaykeeper.org/become-a-baykeeper/

Read the research:https://mobilebaykeeper.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Barry-study-2.pdf

📷: 6/26/2025

Most of Baykeeper’s work starts the same way. Someone speaks up.

A neighbor notices a smell. Water turns cloudy. A spot where folks used to swim doesn’t feel right anymore.

That’s where it begins.

When you say something, we follow up. We track it down. We hold polluters accountable.

If we want clean water, it takes people paying attention and refusing to ignore what they see.

If something feels off, trust it. And speak up. https://mobilebaykeeper.org/report-pollution/

These waters are yours. Defend our way of life.

Depending on where you grew up along the Gulf Coast, you might have another name for these timeless waterfront structures. At the Gulf, perhaps you call it a wharf. On the Bay, most folks say pier. On smaller waterways like rivers, creeks, or canals, you might call it a dock. And in the Delta, it’s the Camp.

But at the Lagoon — at least our version of the Lagoon — it’s the Landing. There’s no sweeping walkway that leads to a two-story pier with slides, boat slips, TVs, or built-in grills; just a small wooden platform hovering over ankle-deep water at the end of our boardwalk.

Read the full article from CURRENTS magazine at mobilebaykeeper.org/meet-me-at-the-landing/

Through our NextGen Baykeepers program, kids from across the county have the chance to connect with nature through hands-on experiences and activities, such as kayaking to the cypress trees on the banks of Dog River, getting up close to local flora and fauna, and learning skills like fire building and creating nests with sheep's wool.
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Spending time in nature and exploring their backyards through outdoor adventures such as kayaking allows youth to build a connection to their local waterways and environment, helping to create the next generation of environmental stewards. This is how we foster a community that takes responsibility for the health of our water.⁠
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To learn more about our NextGen Baykeeper program, visit https://mobilebaykeeper.org/nextgen-baykeepers/

“My wife asked me one day, ‘Why do you keep putting those water elements in your designs?’ And I had no idea what she was talking about.

But you know, being born and raised in Mobile, we are surrounded by water, all these tributaries and bays. We don’t notice it like somebody would who came down here from Denver or Nebraska or wherever. But these images are in our subconscious. And sure enough, when you look at my art, you see the birds, the fish, the water movement. That’s a Mobile style. You don’t have to flip the pot over to see my signature to know that it’s my style, unique to Mobile.”

Read the full article featuring Mobile ceramicist Charles Smith from the latest edition of CURRENTS magazine at https://mobilebaykeeper.org/a-mobile-style/

What’s in your water ends up on your plate.

The Alabama Department of Public Health is asking what issues should be prioritized, and this is your chance to weigh in.

According to the state's 2025 report, in Coastal Alabama alone, 36 out of 45 freshwater systems have advisories recommending limits on how much fish you eat because of toxic chemicals like mercury, PCBs, and PFAS.

These contaminants are linked to serious long-term health risks, including cancer.

If you care about clean water and safe seafood, make sure the state hears it.

Take the survey before June 1 and select environmental issues and cancer as top priorities -> https://survey.sogolytics.com/survey/form?k=RQsRXTPYYsRRVsPsPsP&lang

The fight over Plant Barry coal ash is headed back to court.

A federal appeals court ruled in favor of Mobile Baykeeper, overturning a lower court decision and sending this case back to federal district court.

That means the people of Coastal Alabama will have the chance to be heard.

For years, this community has made it clear that Alabama Power should not leave more than 21 million tons of toxic coal ash in an unlined pit on the banks of the Mobile River, where it remains in contact with groundwater upstream of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta and Mobile Bay.

More than 3,000 of you have already written letters calling on Alabama Power to remove and recycle the coal ash at Plant Barry. Grandmothers, anglers, neighbors, families, scientists, and advocates have kept showing up. The momentum around Sallie’s Ashes has carried Sallie Smith’s fight forward and reminded folks what this fight is really about: protecting the people of Coastal Alabama from toxics in our waters.

“Mobile Baykeeper has satisfied all three standing requirements, and its claims are ripe, too, despite Alabama Power’s spirited efforts to overcomplicate these questions.”

This ruling doesn’t solve the problem. But it is a big step forward.

Alabama Power still has a choice to make. They can keep fighting the people of Coastal Alabama in court, or they can commit, in writing, to excavate and recycle all coal ash at Plant Barry.

These waters are ours.

If you haven’t sent a letter yet, now’s the time. If you have, share this with somebody who cares about our waters and our way of life. https://mobilebaykeeper.org/programs/coal-ash/

What happens in Montgomery doesn’t stay there. It shows up in our water.

Your representatives vote on the future of our coast.

This scorecard shows how your representatives voted on key decisions impacting our waters and our way of life.

Protecting our water shouldn’t be political. But it's up to us to make informed decisions.

They work for you. Does their voting record show it? → https://mobilebaykeeper.org/scorecard/