DNREC’s Tony Pratt recognized for decades of service

Longtime DNREC administrator Tony Pratt retired April 1 and was honored at a ceremony April 13 at Irish Eyes in Lewes. 

U.S. Sen. Tom Carper presented Pratt with a Congressional Record Statement, honoring his service as Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s shoreline and waterway management administrator. “Tony has devoted his life’s work to preserving our coastal communities and documenting their beauty through his talented photography,” Carper said.

Pratt still serves as president of the American Beach & Shore Preservation Association. In this role, Pratt will continue to monitor the nation’s coastal resources in addition to Delaware’s. In 2017, Pratt testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Pubic Works on the value of beaches, dunes, wetlands and other natural coastal infrastructure.

Carper said that thanks to Pratt’s work, Delaware’s coastal and back bay communities have fared better than most during recent storms as a result of beach renourishment projects and mitigation work in the back bays. 

“Tony has led efforts not only to try and prepare for the next superstorm, but learn from past storms in order to keep our roads, bridges, homes, businesses, and animal habitats safe from rising waters,” Carper said.