Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control

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Join our Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy as an environmental program administrator, environmental specialist, planner, or training and education specialist! Environmental Program Administrator - Coastal Section: Provides the overall administration, strategic planning and leadership for the programs assigned to the Coastal Section of the Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy. https://lnkd.in/d8nkJj6s Environmental Specialist III - Climate Change Policy Specialist: Provide technical analyses of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions strategies and modeling of future conditions in Delaware. https://lnkd.in/dUT729GP Planner II - Energy Efficiency Investment Fund: Lead the program management, research, policy analysis, education, and outreach for the Energy Efficiency Investment Fund (EEIF). https://lnkd.in/dzBdGqFn Planner III - Community & Climate Planning Lead: Provides leadership for the public engagement and stakeholder coordination efforts of the Delaware Climate Action Plan. https://lnkd.in/dVNUCQ7n Training and Education Specialist III - Climate & Clean Energy: Lead Delaware's EPA Climate Pollution Reduction Grant's clean energy and climate job workforce development. https://lnkd.in/dQtUxsut

We continue to diversify marine habitat for angling and diving experiences on Delaware’s renowned artificial reef system by sinking two vintage vessels – a retired City of Baltimore fireboat and a World War II-era tugboat – onto Reef Site 11, known as the Redbird Reef because it also hosts – and boasts – more than 700 retired and repurposed New York City “Redbird” subway cars. The two boats sunk yesterday by our Division of Fish and Wildlife – a World War II-era tug known as MARAD (US Maritime Administration) TD-21 and the ex-City of Baltimore fireboat Mayor J. Harold Grady – went down at approximately 10:22 a.m. EDT at longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates of 38.40.457/74.42.961 at a depth of 75 feet and the tug TD-21 was sunk at about 11:25 a.m. EDT at coordinates of 38.40.427/74.43.073 in 80 feet of water. The Mayor J. Harold Grady – named for Baltimore’s sitting mayor when commissioned in 1960 – was one of three Baltimore fireboats built that year by Jakobson Shipyard in Oyster Bay, L.I. and was among the most modern and well-equipped fireboats of its time, with a pumping capacity of 6,000 gallons of water per minute. Spanning 86 feet, Grady – width 20 feet, depth 14’, and top speed of 15 mph – would later distinguish itself during Baltimore’s inner harbor fire of 1968 – and stay in service until 2007. The tug MARAD TD-21 was one of 100 steel-hulled 86-foot-long boats built for the Defense Plant Corporation in 1943 for domestic use on a wartime footing – the 21st of 37 tugs of the same specs built at George Lawley & Son Shipyard in Neponset, Mass. All of them carried a crew of nine and were relied on to maneuver domestic shipping safely and securely in and out of American ports during the last years of World War II. The sinkings were carried out by Norfolk, Va.-based marine contractor Coleen Marine, which has handled numerous reef deployments over our reef program’s existence at many of Delaware’s 14 permitted artificial reef sites. As with all the ships and other vessels and military vehicles DNREC has deployed onto the artificial reef system, the Mayor J. Harold Grady and tug MARAD TD-21 were sunk only after having been certified for environmental cleanliness and safety under auspices of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Coast Guard, which also cordoned off the area and observed the twin sinking today. Our Division of Fish and Wildlife, which oversees the reef program, invested $180,000 in federal Sport Fish Restoration funds to buy the two boats sunk today from Coleen Marine after both ships settled onto the Redbird Reef. Read more: https://lnkd.in/esTFpayc

Pat Emory, director of our Division of Fish and Wildlife was recently interviewed for Outdoor Delaware magazine about the DNREC building and exhibits at the Delaware State Fair, which opens today. “I see people come in and they’re seeing a whole different aspect of DNREC free of charge, the kids get to see and touch many different things and you can see the excitement on their faces when they reach into the touch tank or see the fish in the large tanks. Who knows, it might set off that spark in some of them and have them say, well, I want a career doing this, or I see now why it’s so important to protect these environments.” Read more about his experience at our exhibits and all that we have to offer in Matt Bittle's piece: https://lnkd.in/dDqsQJ_3

Steve Smailer, the director of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control’s Division of Water, was recently interviewed for Outdoor Delaware's newest piece, "Navigating Delaware’s Drought History: Insights into Water Management Challenges and Solutions". “There’s drought, which is lack of rain, and then there are the ramifications of that, and that’s really dependent on the land uses and the need for the water supplies in those areas”. In other words, what sort of usage pressures are placed on water systems as a result of low precipitation levels? Wilmington receiving substantially less rain than is typical is different than Marydel seeing a decrease in rainfall. Up north, most of the water supplies utilized by Delawareans go to homes and businesses, while a substantial portion below the canal is used instead for farming. Read more of his insights on drought along with other subject matter experts on Outdoor Delaware: https://lnkd.in/eZBbzNpd

Delawareans of all ages across the state shared their love of the ocean in our Haiku Poetry Contest during Ocean Month in June. Our Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy partnered with libraries in each of the counties and challenged Delawareans to create a haiku highlighting “What I Love About the Ocean.” Scott Walls, from Greenwood, developed a passion for haikus during a high school poetry class when he was assigned to write 10 haikus. Currently serving as the youth services coordinator at the Georgetown Public Library, Walls organizes various programs for children, including summer reading, story times and special events. He recently received a grant from the Space Science Institute to educate about blue whales, highlighting their ecological role in ocean ecosystems. Scott's haiku reflects his research on whales, emphasizing their impact on ocean nutrients. Walls believes strongly in environmental conservation and the connection between what we do on land and ocean health. Whale carcass plunges Boon to the abyssal plain Blooming reef of bones Spencer Rapson won first place in the youth division of a haiku contest. The homeschooled student was motivated by a writing assignment and inspired by the Netflix documentary "My Octopus Teacher". Spencer's family, including his parents Kate and Andrew and his younger brother Theodore, who placed third in the contest, shares a deep love for the ocean. They frequently visit Delaware's beaches and enjoy activities like snorkeling and sea turtle watching. Kate emphasizes the importance of environmental protection to her children. Spencer's favorite aspect of the ocean is the waves and swimming in them. Dark forest of kelp Life is hidden all around A shadow swims by Read more on our Outdoor Delaware article: https://lnkd.in/e42g9Vax

We're hiring! Join our Division of Air Quality as an engineer or an environmental program manager. Engineer I - Transportation Planning: *Sign-on Bonus* Two positions will be filled under this posting. Both positions will be responsible for promoting air quality and environmental considerations in all transportation planning, decision making and initiatives to bridge the technical gap between the transportation sector, land development and community planning. https://lnkd.in/ehtk5sMW Engineer Program Manager I - Permitting and Compliance: We're looking for 2 Engineer Program Managers. One in Kent County and the other in New Castle County. These positions supervise permitting and compliance work for minor and major air emission sources in the State of Delaware. https://lnkd.in/gyjJWEbB Environmental Program Manager II - Air Toxics: This Program Manger position will supervise and manager air quality planning activities. https://lnkd.in/eQw82GNy

We're hiring! Join our Division of Fish and Wildlife as a conservation technician, environmental scientist, or a fish and wildlife manager. Conservation Technician III - Wildlife: This position within the Wildlife/Fisheries Construction Team will perform major construction and maintenance projects on state wildlife areas, state fisheries ponds and public boat ramps located throughout the state. https://lnkd.in/e5mrV6nV Environmental Scientist III - Wildlife Damage Biologist: This position will work to resolve human conflicts with wildlife. Specifically, the position will work with landowners and farmers to better manage deer and reduce crop damage on their properties. https://lnkd.in/eK5mRFWT Fish and Wildlife Regional Manager: These positions oversee wildlife management activities on State Wildlife Areas, maintains boating/fishing areas and supervises two field crews throughout an assigned county (Kent or Sussex County). https://lnkd.in/eJ88qpVB

More than 300 youth anglers cast their lines in our 38th annual Youth Fishing Tournament earlier this month, hosted by our Delaware Natural Resources Police. Tournament weighmasters onsite at each pond weighed catches for participants ages 4 through 15 as they competed for each county’s top catch and age group titles. Last year’s winner, Brody Spencer of Dagsboro, now age 12, repeated as tournament champion by catching 5.71 pounds of fish this year in Ingrams Pond in Sussex County. This year’s overall statewide winner and county winners will be invited to a special trophy ceremony on Governor’s Day, Thursday, July 25, at the 2024 Delaware State Fair in Harrington. The Delaware Youth Fishing Tournament was established to introduce youth to the sport of fishing and to teach the catch-and-release approach to conservation. https://lnkd.in/gyHY6BhJ

We're hiring an Engineer I. This position will assist in the sampling, analysis, evaluation, and presentation of PFAS and other toxic compound data from sediment, surface water and/or fish/biota tissue. For more information or to apply, visit https://lnkd.in/eMCVf_sP