Corporate Partnerships
The Coca-Cola Company Partnership
Southeastern U.S. Rivers and Streams
Facts
Tree-lined Tennessee River. USA
© Kevin Schafer/WWF
- The region encompasses nearly 265,000 square kilometers.
- During the last ice age, glaciers stopped just north of the southeastern United States, allowing life in the rivers to evolve and diversify without interruption.
- Alabama's Cahaba River is home to 190 fish species, more species per mile than any other river on the North American continent.
Conservation Issues
- The Tennessee/Cumberland and Mobile River Basins are experiencing the highest freshwater extinction rates in North America.
- Poorly planned development and sprawl puts increasing pressure on watersheds and pollutes them with sedimentation.
- Run-off from agricultural, mining and forestry operations degrade water quality.
- Dams that have often outlived their usefulness fragment and alter stream habitats.
- Demand for water is increasing to support explosive population growth.
What the Partnership Will Do
- Pursue stream restoration, small dam removal and species reintroduction in the Tennessee, Cumberland and Mobile river basins.
- Promote river-friendly development projects in these three basins.
- Promote community engagement and volunteer opportunities with The Coca-Cola Company and local Coca-Cola bottlers.
