Earth
Day ~ April 22, 2006 |
NOAA
ANNOUNCES RECIPIENTS OF 2006 ENVIRONMENTAL HERO AWARDS
National Award Program Recognizes Individuals, Groups Protecting
Environment
The National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration presented its
Environmental Hero Award to nine individuals and one organization
this year. Given in conjunction with Earth Day celebrations,
the award honors NOAA volunteers for their "tireless
efforts to preserve and protect our environment."
"NOAA and the nation are fortunate to
have such dedicated people volunteer so much of their time,"
said retired Navy Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Ph.D.,
undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and NOAA
administrator. "Environmental heroes like these set an
inspiring example for others to follow in their communities."
Established in 1995, the Environmental Hero
award is presented to individuals and organizations that volunteer
their time and energy to help NOAA carry out its mission.
"On behalf of the 12,500 men and women working for NOAA,
I am pleased to present the 2006 Environmental Hero Awards,"
said Lautenbacher. "The dedicated efforts and outstanding
accomplishments of these award winners greatly benefit the
environment and make our nation a better place for all Americans."
There are a total of 10 winners—nine
individuals (one posthumous) and one organization:
NOAA
Environmental Heroes 2006
George
Briggs, as the first Executive
Director of the North Carolina Arboretum, led the creation
of one of the finest environmental preservation and education
sites in the southeast. His dedication to understanding climate
led to a collaborative effort with NOAA on the U.S.
Climate Reference Network and the successful installation
of the network's first station on the Arboretum.
Don
Morris and his assistants from South
Florida Skywarn volunteered more than 100 hours
of their time to staff an amateur radio station in the Miami
area. The Skywarn volunteers gathered real-time hurricane
damage and weather reports, disseminated NOAA National Weather
Service information and warnings and verified NWS warnings
with on-the-spot information. They operated continuously before
Hurricane Katrina and also in anticipation of Hurricane Wilma.
Robert
Finton (posthumous award) of Chesapeake
Bay Maryland National Estuarine Research Reserve has worked
as a professional and volunteer environmental educator for
more than a decade. He made a tremendous contribution in elevating
the visibility of the reserve system within NOAA and in establishing
the Maryland NERR as a premier research and education venue.
Finton combined his love for children, the outdoors and science
with an incredible ability to entertain and engage people
Rick
Poulan is the Principal of Lafayette Middle School
in Lafayette, La., an inner-city school almost entirely comprised
of students from disadvantaged communities. Poulan, along
with the middle school science program created a wetlands
education initiative. They have committed a tremendous amount
of time and energy to engage the community, construct a wetland
and greenhouse on school property, and develop curriculum
to broaden their class' life experience.
Roy
Sedwick of the Lower Colorado River Authority in
Austin, Texas, has been an invaluable asset to the NOAA
National Weather Service. His partnership with the NWS
forecast offices has greatly enhanced the NOAA National Weather
Service's ability to meet its mission to protect life and
property. NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards has no greater supporter
than Roy Sedwick, and he works constantly to bring it to the
forefront of public attention through meetings, flyers, training
classes and outreach programs.
Gary
Kompkoff has emerged as a leader in the effort to
expand environmental education and resource management capacity
for Alaska natives. The impacts of the Exxon Valdez oil spill
were particularly profound for the Alaska natives of the region.
Through the post-spill period Kompkoff, of the Village of
Tatitlek, Alaska, initiated a distance-learning, accredited
degree program for rural villages, spearheaded tribal natural
resource management planning efforts, and worked to increase
involvement of the tribal members in science conducted through
the region. His patient participation has assisted NOAA in
the tailoring of its education efforts to fit the unique needs
of Alaska Native communities.
Roseann
Bongiovanni, with Chelsea Human Services Collaborative's
Green Space Committee, has tirelessly spent more than 10 years
working to protect and restore natural resources in Chelsea,
Mass. She has worked with various NOAA offices and managed
the Mill Creek Salt Marsh Restoration project, which after
five years of planning, permitting and fundraising was finally
completed in the fall of 2005.
At the
request of the NOAA Fisheries
Service, Heidi Watts of the Texas Marine
Mammal Stranding Network and Jeff Foster,
a marine research consultant from Auburn, Wash., led the rescue
of numerous out-of-habitat bottlenose dolphins that were displaced
by hurricane Katrina. Despite the extremely harsh conditions,
Watts and Foster worked tirelessly to conduct these rescue
efforts. They recruited the help of the general public and
worked with the assistance of other agencies.
The Cape
Cod Commercial Hook Fisherman's Association has been
a leader in responsible stewardship of the fishery resources
of the Northeast. CCCHFA has advocated conservative harvesting
practices, bycatch reduction, science-based management, cooperative
research, and simplified, community-based management approaches.
Laurence
Walter Porter, of the Australia Bureau of Meteorology,
has unselfishly collected flask samples in Tasmania, Australia,
for NOAA's programs since 1984. He has volunteered his service
to NOAA by collecting the samples and repairing the pump and
sampling lines throughout the past 23 years. Without individuals
like Porter volunteering his time and efforts, NOAA's
Earth Systems Research Laboratory flask program to monitor
the trends of trace gases in the atmosphere would not have
its current global reach.
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