Recipients Are Honored for Their Work in Protecting and Defending Our Rivers
Washington, DC – August 27 – Potomac Riverkeeper Network revealed the recipients of its annual Service to Clean Water awards, Nancy Stoner, President of Potomac Riverkeeper Network (PRKN), announced today. “These recipients work tirelessly to protect our right to clean water. We are truly honored to recognize their contribution to PRKN and to all six million of us who depend on the Potomac and Shenandoah watersheds,” said Stoner.
The awards will be presented on September 14 at PRKN’s “Party on the Pier” Annual Gala Benefit, which celebrates the work by the organization to enforce clean water laws that protect the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers and their watersheds. The awards, Protector of the Potomac and Shenandoah, Volunteer of the Year, and Partner of the Year, acknowledge the breadth of work PRKN does and the importance of the support it receives.
The awards are granted to recognize exemplary effort in advancing the cause of clean water advocacy through collaboration that strengthens the PRKN mission in the Potomac and Shenandoah watersheds.
Protector of the Potomac and Shenandoah this year is Bob Dreher, PRKN’s former Legal Director. Bob did an amazing job of serving as PRKN’s Legal Director for the past two years. He successfully filed and settled cases against the City of Alexandria to stop coal tar and creosote pollution from continuing to flow into the Potomac and against the Navy to require it to obtain a permit for its unpermitted ordnance testing and also intervened in Maryland’s case against St. Mary’s sewage treatment plant (MetCom), which requires a complete overhaul of their system to prevent sewage overflows from continuing and contaminating downstream oyster beds.
Sen. Sara Love received Partner of the Year and was the sponsor of the Clean Water Justice Act in 2024, PFAS Protection Act 2024, and her Whole Watershed Act (2024) includes freshwater mussel as an approved aquatic restoration technique. PRKN and Betsy Nicholas, VP of Programs and Litigation have worked together successfully on legislation to protect the Potomac Watershed (and state of Maryland) for many years. Some of her other key achievements were the George Walter Taylor Act from 2022, which prohibited certain uses and disposal of the toxic PFAS chemicals; the Enforcement and Accountability Act of 2022, requiring MDE to inspect facilities in significant noncompliance, and to clear the backlog of permits where some were expired for more than 20 years; and the Citizen Intervention Act in 2021 that provided for community groups, like PRKN, to intervene in state clean water enforcement actions.
Our Volunteer of the Year Cecilia “Cee” Farrow, is such a great example of volunteerism at its best. Over the years, she has brought several groups of her students to the Sea Dog to learn about water quality monitoring and has been approached by local schools to be a liaison to our community science program. A versatile volunteer, she has an outstanding commitment to volunteerism. Going beyond water monitoring, she has participated in the National Harbor boat shows, Sea Dog Ports of Call, as well as the 2023 Virginia Citizens for Water Quality Summit. This season, she chose to learn and be trained in the lab protocols and has been participating in not only collecting samples in the field but preparing them in the lab and interpreting the results. Using her business and computer background, she took the initiative to make pre-filled data sheets to help make sampling in the field easier and more volunteer friendly. Cee puts her whole effort into the tasks she handles without compromise.
Stoner concluded, about the recipients: “Bob is a fantastic lawyer and a model of excellence for the whole organization. Sen. Love has been a fabulous advocate for PRKN and clean water in Annapolis – the entire watershed has benefitted from her work. And Cee Farrow is quiet, resourceful and always thinking about how to make improvements; she has made a generous commitment of time and support to our mission, while using her lifelong learning passion and knowledge to inspire others.”
# # #
Potomac Riverkeeper Network is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with three regional Waterkeeper branches: Potomac Riverkeeper, Upper Potomac Riverkeeper, and Shenandoah Riverkeeper. PRKN’s mission is to protect the right to clean water for all communities and all those who live in and rely upon the Potomac and Shenandoah watersheds by stopping pollution, making drinking water safe, protecting healthy river habitats, and enhancing use and enjoyment for all.
