Winyah Rivers Alliance

Mission Statement

To protect, preserve, monitor and revitalize the health of the lands and waters of the greater Winyah Bay watershed.

Our Vision: clean water and healthy communities

Winyah Rivers Foundation, Inc. (dba Winyah Rivers Alliance) is an Alliance of Riverkeepers protecting our rivers for fishing, swimming and drinking.

• Safeguarding clean water
• Defending wetlands and floodplains
• Protecting vulnerable communities
• Partnering for sustainable stewardship

Incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2001, we began as a grassroots organization of people from North and South Carolina to watch over the watersheds of the Lower Pee Dee Basin (Hydrologic Unit Code 030402), representing a drainage area of 11,700 square miles and including the Waccamaw, Lumber, Little Pee Dee, Lower Pee Dee, Lynches, Black, and Sampit Rivers.

Collectively we refer to this large watershed, the 3rd largest on the east coast, as the greater Winyah Bay watershed because all rivers ultimately discharge into the Winyah Bay estuary at Georgetown, South Carolina.

Winyah Rivers Alliance hosts the Waccamaw RIVERKEEPER®, Lumber RIVERKEEPER®, and Black-Sampit RIVERKEEPER® Programs, licensed by WATERKEEPER® ALLIANCE and partnering with WATERKEEPERS® Carolina.

• The Waccamaw Riverkeeper watches over the 1,640 square mile Waccamaw watershed in North and South Carolina.
• The Lumber Riverkeeper watches over the 1,750 square mile Lumber watershed in North and South Carolina.
• The Black-Sampit Riverkeeper watches over 2,245 square miles (2,080 square miles of the Black River watershed and 165 square miles of the Sampit River watershed).

In addition to these RIVERKEEPER® programs, our Pee Dee Rivers/Lynches River Project Coordinator implements our clean water programs in these river watersheds, with future plans for expansion.