Water visionaries honored at the 39th WRA Recognition Dinner

Awards recognized people, projects and organizations that promote water resources sustainability and resilience in the Delaware River Basin.

The Water Resources Association of the Delaware River Basin (WRA) held its 39th annual recognition dinner on September 21st at Fairmount Water Works.

The awards celebrate vision, leadership, and innovation in the Delaware River Basin.

One such project was the Wissahickon Creek Headwaters Stream and Riparian Restoration Project, which addressed stormwater runoff. According to Gail Farmer, Wissahickon Trails Executive Director, “as we continue to feel the effects of climate change, with increased frequency of high-intensity storms, we are going to need more collaboration among nonprofits, businesses, and municipalities to implement stormwater solutions. This project is a great example of the kind of collaboration we need more of moving forward.”

Here if the full list of the 2022 honorees.

2022 WRA Awardees :

• The Center for Aquatic Sciences is awarded the Dr. Ruth Patrick Excellence in Education Award for outstanding leadership in aquatic sciences education through innovative programs that connect students with the Delaware River and provide a pathway to the sciences for a diverse population.
• Marc E. Gold, Esq. is awarded the Samuel S. Baxter Memorial Award in recognition of his exemplary legal career focused on comprehensive water resources management, and for significant contributions in advancing clean water initiatives in the Delaware River Basin.
• Wissahickon Trails is awarded the Achievement Award for the Wissahickon Creek Headwaters Stream and Riparian Restoration Project. Made possible through a public private partnership with PECO, Merck, and Upper Gwynedd Township, this project turned a highly eroded stretch of the Creek and riparian zone into a fully functioning floodplain vital to the health of the 24-mile river.
• Pam Bush, Esq. is awarded the Special Recognition Award for her significant contributions to public policy, providing wise and judicious counsel that enabled the Delaware River Basin Commission to better manage, protect and improve the water resources of the Delaware River Basin, and for her commitment to improving connections between people and the environment.

• Dr. Peter J Kolesar is awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for pioneering work to develop, refine and implement the Flexible Flow Management Program (FFMP), a fundamental component to the sustainable allocation of Delaware River water resources.
• The Delaware River Basin Commission is awarded the Innovation and Collaboration Award – Government for innovative science, planning, and policy, working in close coordination with stakeholders and in partnership with federal and state regulators, using complex modeling to develop Stage 1 PCB TMDLs, and overseeing the implementation of the TMDLs that have resulted in significant reductions of PCB loads to the Delaware River Estuary.
• Manko, Gold, Katcher & Fox, LLP is awarded the Innovation and Collaboration Award – Business & Industry for regulated community leadership, as counsel to and on behalf of the Delaware Estuary TMDL Coalition, and collaborative engagement with representatives of the Delaware River Basin Commission, federal and state regulators and other stakeholders to develop the innovative Stage 1 PCB TMDLs that have led to significant reductions of PCB loads to the Delaware River Estuary.

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