Delaware Nature Society Program Guide and Newsletter September - December 2017 | Page 30

Volunteer Highlight Dan Barbato By Elinor Knodel An early love of nature led Dan Barbato on a journey in environmental stewardship that he might not have predicted. Dan grew up in the Red Clay Valley near the creek, playing in streams, and fishing. Fast forward to Dan, a licensed professional (civil) engineer, looking for an opportunity to volunteer in the community. He knew he wanted to do something with streams, so when he discovered the Steam Watch program on Delaware Nature Society’s websit e, it was a natural fit. Dan monitored two sites faithfully for five years, eventually accompanied by his two young sons. Over time, they noticed that the water quality gradually improved, due to environmental cleanup efforts and better land management practices upstream. Dan heard that Delaware Nature Society was looking for volunteers to help with monitoring conservation easements in New Castle County. These legal agreements preserve a property’s natural value by limiting development and complying with conservation practices, like not cutting trees and protecting streams from runoff and erosion. Dan participated in yearly inspections of easement properties that proved beneficial both for the program and his own personal enjoyment. Says Dan, “I got to play in streams in the woods as a kid, and now as a volunteer, I still got to play in the water and to walk through all kinds of great properties with really old, high-value forest – properties that are almost untouched and ones that you would never get access to.” When Delaware Nature Society started a program to assess riparian habitats, Dan was trained to evaluate how well a habitat was protecting the stream. He noted, “that was extra cool, because that tied together the conditions of the land and S 30 D L O the water.” Overall, he learned that some habitats are better than others for stream health. The really good ones tended to be on conserved properties, where there was a clear effort, for instance, not to mow up to the edge of the stream, keeping the habitat natural, diverse, and well-buffered. Dan’s foray into his latest volunteer opportunity was precipitated by the work of his two sons, then teenagers and enthusiastic videographers, who filmed one of the Clean Water rallies at the Delaware Legislature in Dover for Delaware Nature Society. Through their work, Dan was exposed to more people in the organization, who enabled him to see a bigger picture that included advocacy and regulatory issues. “It never dawned on me that they were the ones driving these larger efforts, and nobody else was really doing as much,” Dan said. Once he realized that Delaware Nature Society is a major driving force in environmental advocacy in Delaware, it became far more attractive for him to get more involved. About two years ago, Dan accepted an invitation to join the Board of Directors. He finds it very rewarding to work with the staff to influence State environmental policy, such as for continued funding for clean water, repairing water ways, and conserving more green space. “I want people’s kids to have the same experience as mine. And I’d like to see a lot of land conserved and [improved] water quality.” Summing up his years of volunteering, Dan points to the great job that the staff does in finding and maintaining the interest of many, diverse volunteers to do what’s most needed. “They really keep volunteers as part of the whole, big team and the big picture. They always make me feel appreciated and acknowledged. I do feel like I’m part of the family now. I feel connected and vested. It’s great.” T U O Contact Carrie at [email protected] to be added to the wait list. NATURE EXPLORER Flyway in the Byway Saturday, September 16 Coverdale Farm Preserve, Greenville, DE Sep – Dec 2017 Learn more at DelNature.org/FarmToFork