Bob Sallinger Takes Top Spot at Willamette Riverkeeper

He’s stepping into the role vacated by Travis Williams.

Bob Sallinger. (Willamette Riverkeeper)
By Sophie Peel

Willamette Riverkeeper, the powerhouse environmental nonprofit known for throwing stones at local governments for not sufficiently protecting the river’s watersheds, has a new executive director.

Bob Sallinger, who previously served as the nonprofit’s conservation director and prior to that as the conservation director for the Bird Alliance of Oregon (formerly Portland Audubon), is stepping into the top spot vacated by Travis Williams.

“The organization represents an amazing community of people dedicated to protecting and restoring the Willamette,” Sallinger tells WW. “This amazing river that runs from wilderness to an urban superfund site, with 70% of Oregon’s population living within its watershed, should be one of the premier rivers not just in Oregon but in the United States.”

The nonprofit is currently working on stricter regulations around pollutant levels, floodplain protections, habitat restoration projects, and the transfer of Ross Island to a public entity after algae bloom wreaked havoc on the river.

Correction: A previous version of this story said Sallinger previously served as the executive director of the Audobon Society. That’s incorrect; Sallinger was the Audobon’s conservation director.

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