LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Presented to
Distinguished scientist and mentor whose career advanced the understanding of toxic contaminants, created Delaware's fish advisory program, and shaped regional policy through collaborative excellence.
Richard “Rick” Greene devoted his career both to understanding how toxic chemicals move through the environment and expose people and wildlife, and to developing strategies to reduce that exposure and improve water quality. As a lead scientist and collaborator, he worked with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), basin states, and regional academic institutions to build the scientific foundation for effective policies to address toxic contaminants.
A pioneer in holistic, watershed scale efforts to improve waterways, Rick was also a generous mentor and trusted colleague. He had a rare ability to communicate complex science clearly to both technical audiences and the public, and the principles and management concepts he developed continue to guide water quality initiatives today. He is recognized within the Delaware River Basin and nationally as an expert in his field.
For more than 30 years, Rick served in what is now DNREC’s Division of Watershed Stewardship, focusing on monitoring and assessing toxic contaminants in surface water, sediment, and aquatic life in freshwater, estuarine, and marine systems. He was part of the team that developed Delaware’s water quality regulations and standards that remain in place today. While earning his Ph.D. at the University of Delaware, he specialized in congener specific, multimedia fate and transport of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), including the role of black carbon in reducing bioavailability and bioaccumulation in aquatic food webs. Rick was a founding member of Delaware’s Interagency Fish Contaminants Committee and created the state’s fish contaminant monitoring and advisory program, which he led until his retirement in 2018.
Rick represented Delaware in numerous local, regional, national, and international forums and published extensively on the fate, transport, and effects of PCBs, arsenic, and mercury in Delaware waters, sediments, and biota. He was a principal author of the seminal 1998 study of PCB loadings to the Delaware Estuary that led to the development of the PCB TMDL. As Delaware’s representative on DRBC’s Toxics Advisory Committee, he provided pivotal insight and support for the PCB TMDLs for the Delaware River and Estuary, helping to ensure a scientifically rigorous, defensible, and successful outcome.
A recognized regional expert on contaminated sediment assessment and management, Rick was instrumental in establishing safeguards and monitoring requirements for the USACE’s Delaware River deepening and maintenance dredging projects. He advised Delaware’s Division of Waste and Hazardous Substances on complex contaminated sites to ensure cleanups met regional water quality goals. He also led an award winning, innovative sediment remediation project using activated carbon and engineered bacteria to sequester PCBs in sediment and reduce bioaccumulation in fish.
Rick developed WATAR – Watershed Approach to Toxics Assessment and Restoration – a comprehensive strategy to identify contaminants of concern, prioritize resources, and accelerate water quality improvements. Implementing WATAR required close collaboration among multiple DNREC divisions and external partners he had cultivated over three decades. Rick built and led a team that secured funding for extensive data collection and successfully implemented WATAR in numerous watersheds across Delaware. Because of his vision, strategies, and deep expertise, the WATAR program continues to improve water quality locally and regionally.
