Environmental groups cite successes, continuing challenges
The recently approved state budget funded open-space preservation and other environmental protections, but growing threats, such as rising sea levels, require more attention, conservation program officials say.
Representatives of the Delaware Center for the Inland Bays and The Nature Conservancy spoke about recent successes and continuing challenges during a July 15 meeting of the Sussex Preservation Coalition.
Michelle Koenig, director of conservation and watershed planning for CIB, and Emily Knearl, director of government relations and external affairs forThe Nature Conservancy, said their groups have lobbied for a continuation of open-space preservation funds. The state again allocated $10 million for such projects.
Sussex County gives the funds to the Sussex County Land Trust for open-space projects.
As widespread federal aid cuts have put added pressure on states to pick up the slack, Knearl said she was glad to see the state continue its support for purchasing land or development rights to preserve open space.
“Land has gotten really expensive, so $10 million does not go very far at all,” Koenig said. “It has not kept up with inflation, and that is also why we really want to see an increase in funding.”
The state budget approved June 30 also includes $6.4 million for cover crop, the creation of a low-income power fund, and a requirement for more transparency in power bills for customers, Knearl said.
The Nature Conservancy also had backed the successful adoption of the Blue Dasher as the state dragonfly and the Red Knot as the official migratory bird, she said.
At the request of Gov. Matt Meyer, the organization supported increases in Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control fees to help cover the work of the agency and higher penalties for water and air polluters, Knearl said.
“Most of those fees hadn’t been raised since the Soviet Union collapsed,” she said. “DNREC is underfunded and understaffed.”
“Some of the fines were the equivalent of traffic tickets,” Knearl said of the pollution penalties.
The Nature Conservancy is turning its attention to next year. It supports state legislation to coordinate land-use policies, remove plastics from waterways and address issues like wetlands permitting and nutrient management fine updates.
The state will also have to pick up the slack caused by federal cuts in the areas of community resilience in relation to climate threats and disaster preparedness.
Will Helt, director of oceans and coasts for The Nature Conservancy, also attended the meeting and said seal-level rise is becoming a significant issue for the low-lying coastal State of Delaware.
DNREC is predicting 9 to 23 inches of sea-level rise by 2050, he said, a figure projected in 2017 and expected to be updated soon.
That will affect coastal communities and the environment along the shoreline, Helt said. There are a range of methods to protect against rising sea levels, but action is needed soon to have the most options and choose the best course, he said.
The Nature Conservancy recently completed two documents to draw attention to issues and recommend solutions. One is a holistic look at conservation created with the Delaware Land Protection Coalition, and the other involves land use and protection.
Marshes, wetlands and other natural features need to be protected not only for their environmental value, but also for the sake of humans that they help to protect, Helt said
“We’ve been destroying and altering the resilience of our marshes for centuries,” he said. “We need to repair these marshes and give them a chance to fight and survive sea-level rise.”
Kevin Conlon came to the Cape Gazette with nearly 40 years of newspaper experience since graduating from St. Bonaventure University in New York with a bachelor's degree in mass communication. He reports on Sussex County government and other assignments as needed.
His career spans working as a reporter and editor at daily newspapers in upstate New York, including The Daily Gazette in Schenectady. He comes to the Cape Gazette from the Cortland Standard, where he was an editor for more than 25 years, and in recent years also contributed as a columnist and opinion page writer. He and his staff won regional and state writing awards.
Conlon was relocating to Lewes when he came across an advertisement for a reporter job at the Cape Gazette, and the decision to pursue it paid off. His new position gives him an opportunity to stay in a career that he loves, covering local news for an independently owned newspaper.
Conlon is the father of seven children and grandfather to two young boys. In his spare time, he trains for and competes in triathlons and other races. Now settling into the Cape Region, he is searching out hilly trails and roads with wide shoulders. He is a fan of St. Bonaventure sports, especially rugby and basketball, as well as following the Mets, Steelers and Celtics.
