July 16, 2024
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (PA, NJ, DE, NY) – The Water Resources Association of the Delaware River Basin (WRA) today announced the winners of the 2024 Water Resources Awards, recognizing leadership, innovation and excellence in the science and management of water resources within the Delaware Basin.
“These awardees are leading with science, collaboration and vision to advance resilience and sustainability in the Delaware River Basin and beyond,” said Jennifer Garigliano, WRA Board President. “WRA’s Awards Gala, which some refer to as ‘Water Prom’, is a unique opportunity for our community across the four states – New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware – to come together and honor these programs and individuals making an indelible mark on the health of our basin.”
Awards will be presented at WRA’s 41st Annual Awards Gala on September 12th at the beautiful Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia. All are invited; registration will open soon.
2024 Awardees are:
Samuel S. Baxter Memorial Award: Steve Tambini
Lifetime Achievement Award: Jan Bowers
Dr. Ruth Patrick Excellence in Education Award: Pocono Environmental Education Center
Young Leaders Awards: Alex Cupo, Sustainable Business Network of Philadelphia
WRA Achievement Award: City of Wilmington, for their 15th and Walnut Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Separation & Green Infrastructure Project
Innovation and Collaboration Award – Business and Industry: Hope Works for their work, in partnership with New Jersey American Water,, to connect watershed residents in Camden and Philadelphia with the job skills, technical skills, and added support needed to be successful in the water sector and beyond
Innovation and Collaboration Award – Government Agency: The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission for their Priority Climate Action Plan
Innovation and Collaboration Award – Research: Villanova University’s Department of Geography and the Environment for their work, led by Stephen T. Goldsmith, PhD, in partnership with Aqua to research local water quality issues and real world solutions
We will be sharing the stories behind these awards over the next few weeks on our website and LinkedIn page!
Contact: Skelly Holmbeck, Executive Director, 561.707.3186, ed@wradrb.org
About the Water Resources Association of the Delaware River Basin
WRADRB is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that promotes the science-based management of water resources within the Delaware River Basin to protect water dependent uses and enhance the long-term sustainability and resiliency of the river system. WRADRB unites and represents water users and anyone dependent on, or interested in, the Basin’s water resources.
WRADRB was established in 1959 by representatives from public and private utilities, industry and other organizations that had wide-ranging interests in water resources and sought to ensure public participation in the management of the Delaware River and its tributaries.
In 1961, the WRADRB successfully participated in the development of a federal-interstate compact and the creation of the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC). Since then, WRADRB has remained engaged in the work of the DRBC and other agencies of the four Basin states.