News Release

2014 RBC Blue Water Project Donates $2.7 Million to Protect Water in Cities and Towns Worldwide

Forty U.S. nonprofits receive grants to protect freshwater resources

MINNEAPOLIS, June 12, 2014 — Today, RBC announced RBC Blue Water Project Leadership and Community Action Grants, totaling more than $2.7 million in funding for fresh water protection and preservation programs. Awarded on the company’s annual RBC Blue Water Day, these grants support 134 organizations spanning seven countries, including Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, the Bahamas, China, Chile and Australia.

“As stewards of the environment, we have a responsibility to leave the world a better place than we found it,” said John Taft, CEO, RBC Wealth Management-U.S. “RBC’s support of these organizations is a part of our legacy and commitment to preserving fresh water resources for future generations.”

Since launching the RBC Blue Water Project in 2007, more than $42 million in grants have been committed to 500 organizations around the world. Organizations are required to apply for the leadership grants that fund programs focused on watershed protection and access to clean drinking water.

In the United States, more than $400,000 was granted to 40 organizations. More than $200,000 in leadership grants was awarded to three organizations.

Lancaster Farmland Trust, $65,000: The Chesapeake Bay, the world’s largest and most biologically diverse estuary is dying. Agricultural practices and unmanaged urban stormwater are dumping pollutants into the Bay each year. Lancaster Farmland Trust will develop and implement a program to provide low-cost green infrastructure solutions that will help clean up the Bay by linking together urban and rural landscapes to improve water quality and meet regulatory requirements.
Stony Brook-Millstone Watershed Association, $60,000: This project will achieve measurable improvements in water quality and freshwater habitats in three locations: Peddie Lake in Hightstown, where pollution has degraded the lake for swimming and fishing,; Harry’s Brook and the Millstone River in Princeton, where stormwater runoff is causing flooding and water pollution; and the Lower Millstone River, where dams have affected fisheries in Manville and other towns.
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), $93,640: The Bronx River flows along the eastern side of the Bronx Zoo, operated by the WCS. Proximity to the river significantly enhances the visitors’ experience, but poses its own issues of flooding and contaminated stormwater. WCS will implement green construction in strategic locations by building permeable pathways that will help reduce flooding and maintain a healthier flowing river.

In addition, $200,000 in Community Action Grants will be shared by these 37 organizations in the United States:

Great River Greening
Battenkill Conservancy- New York
Citizens Campaign Fund for the Environment
Rocky Mountain College
Water- Culture Institute
Heal the Bay
Sierra Nevada Journeys
Alliance for the Great Lakes
Platte River Trails Trust
Friends of the Centennial Trail
Camp Fire USA Minnesota Council
Living Lands & Waters
Grand Traverse Bay Watershed Initiative Inc.
Friends of the Merrimack River Greenway Trail
Rocking the Boat Inc.
Maine Island Trail Association
Riverkeeper Inc.
Bronx River Alliance Inc.
Otsego Land Trust Inc.
Save the River Inc.
Friends of Casco Bay
Great Swamp Watershed Association
Stroud Water Research Center
Reeves-Reed Arboretum
Door County Community Foundation Inc.
Thousand Islands Land Trust Inc.
Northwest Environmental Defence Center
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
National Audubon Society, Inc.
Saratoga PLAN (preserving land and nature)
Hudson Highlands Land Trust Inc.
Delaware Futures Inc.
Gundalow Company
Conservation Lands Foundation
Scenic Hudson Inc.
Friends of the Mississippi River

About RBC Blue Water Project
The RBC Blue Water Project is a historic, wide-ranging, 10-year global commitment to help protect the world’s most precious natural resource: fresh water. Since 2007, RBC has pledged nearly $41 million to more than 700 charitable organizations worldwide that protect water, including the grants announced today, with an additional $8.8 million pledged to universities for water programs. In 2013-2014, the RBC Blue Water Project will focus on supporting initiatives that help protect water in towns, cities and urbanized areas. For further information, visit www.rbc.com/bluewater.

About RBC Community and Sustainability

Royal Bank of Canada (RY on TSX and NYSE) is Canada's largest bank and one of the largest banks in the world, based on market capitalization. We employ approximately 79,000 full- and part-time employees who serve more than 16 million personal, business, public sector and institutional clients through offices in Canada, the U.S. and 42 other countries. For more information, please visit rbc.com. RBC is recognized among the world’s financial, social and environmental leaders and is listed on the 2014 Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, the DJSI North American Index, the Jantzi Social Index and the FTSE4Good Index. RBC is one of Canada’s Greenest Employers, and one of Canada’s 50 Most Socially Responsible Corporations.

RBC supports a broad range of community initiatives through donations, sponsorships and employee volunteer activities. In 2013, we contributed more than $104 million to causes worldwide, including donations and community investments of more than $69 million and $35 million in sponsorships. Learn more at www.rbc.com/community-sustainability.

RBC Wealth Management, a division of RBC Capital Markets, LLC, Member NYSE/FINRA/SIPC.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Ann Wasik, RBC Wealth Management, 612-313-1275, ann.wasik@rbc.com

Important disclosure information about Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and RBC Capital Markets, LLC