Sustaining the Sport

Why Water Health Matters to Rowing

Kate Bertko

In As Long as the Grass Grows, Indigenous scholar Dina Gilio-Whitaker observes that “there are few issues more sensitive than water: its availability, quality, accessibility, and even its power to destroy human life and permanently alter the existence of communities.”

For the rowing community, stewardship for the waterways our sport depends upon is more than environmental advocacy—it is a responsibility. Rowing relies on clean, healthy water, yet many clubs train on lakes, rivers, and estuaries increasingly threatened by pollution, erosion, and climate change.

Water exists within complex systems of use and management, often governed by a framework that emphasizes control, consumption, and short-term utility. Yet water is far more than a material resource. It connects people to place, provides social and biological resilience, and plays a critical role in environmental stability. Ensuring healthy waterways means thinking beyond access alone. It involves preserving their capacity to support physical health, mental well-being, and ecological function.

By supporting water quality initiatives, investing in habitat restoration, and promoting long-term ecosystem stewardship, rowing organizations can help secure the sustainability of the sport. In doing so, we contribute to the broader resilience and vitality of the environments we all rely on—within and beyond the rowing community.