Our history

Great Rivers Environmental Law Center is Missouri’s first and only public interest law firm focused on the environment and public health. Our mission is to provide free and reduced-fee legal services to individuals, citizen groups, and environmental organizations working to preserve and protect the environment and public health. Founded in 2002 by Lewis C. Green, the firm was created to ensure the environment had a strong legal voice in the region. For over 30 years, Mr. Green had been fighting for environmental protections through his law firm, Green, Hennings & Henry, and he established Great Rivers to carry on this work as a nonprofit.

In 2002, Great Rivers took over the environmental work of the firm and hit the ground running, challenging the EPA over St. Louis air quality and the Clean Water Commission’s issuance of a permit to a CAFO operator—both of which we won.

Emeritus Board Member Yusha Sager and Rolla activists at a 2007 Buehler Park event.

Staff and volunteers gather after a meeting with the Young Professionals Board.

In the years that followed, we fought against a city’s plan to sell a beloved park in Rolla and protected the Missouri River from a proposed 1,000-year “super-levee” in the Jefferson City area. Our Land Use, Clean Water, and Wetlands and Floodplains Protection Programs remain highly active, continuously addressing threats to parks, rivers, floodplains, and wetlands.

Our Climate Change and Clean Energy Program has expanded significantly, making Great Rivers a regular force in hearings before the Public Service Commission regarding Missouri’s regulated electric utility companies. We authored Missouri’s Net Metering and Renewable Energy Laws, helping to advance the state’s solar and wind industries.

Environmental justice remains a challenge, and our program has grown to advocate for communities statewide, from Kansas City to St. Louis.

We remain committed to helping people in Missouri and Southern Illinois fight for cleaner air, cleaner water, and better public health.