Julia Blatt

Julia Blatt has been protecting rivers since 1987, when, as a congressional aide, she helped gain federal Wild and Scenic River status for the Sudbury, Assabet, and Concord Rivers. During her eight-year tenure leading the Organization for the Assabet River, the group’s efforts resulted in precedent-setting phosphorus limits for the river’s four wastewater treatment facilities; their work with Intel Massachusetts, a major corporate water user, resulted in a $1.5M recharge fund for the watershed.

From 2009-2025, Julia served as the founding executive director of the Massachusetts Rivers Alliance. Beginning in 2018, they won big increases in the state’s water agency budgets. Other notable accomplishments include a multi-plaintiff lawsuit that forced the EPA to implement stormwater controls in Massachusetts, and passage of a sewage public notification law.

Julia has been recognized for her contributions to river protection in Massachusetts with awards from the National Park Service, Mass Audubon, the Ipswich River Watershed Association, the Charles River Watershed Association, and Trout Unlimited. She served on several state advisory committees and on the board of River Network, a national river protection organization based in Colorado. She holds a history degree from Brown and a master’s in urban and environmental policy from Tufts.