DRBC Announces the Membership of the Advisory Committee on Climate Change

WEST TRENTON, N.J. (May 7) – Today, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) announced the membership to its Advisory Committee on Climate Change (ACCC), which was established by the commission in December 2019.

“DRBC has recognized potentially significant impacts to the water resources of the Delaware River Basin posed by climate change,” said Alternate Commissioner for New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and current Commission Chair Kenneth Kosinski.  “We formed the ACCC to provide the commission and the basin community with scientifically based information for identifying and prioritizing these threats, which include salinity impacts from sea level rise and changes in the seasonality and volume of streamflows, as well as recommendations for mitigation, adaptation and improved resiliency.”

The ACCC will be comprised of up to 18 individuals with relevant climate expertise, representing various government, watershed, academic, business and water user perspectives.

“We are fortunate to have diverse and exceptional experience in our partner agencies and throughout the basin community, and we received a strong response to our call for nominations for membership to the ACCC,” said DRBC Executive Director Steve Tambini.  “This inaugural committee will advise the Commission on climate science and water resource climate impacts, enhancing our planning and policy development efforts.”

The committee members (listed alphabetically) are the following:

• Amanda Babson, Ph.D.; Coordinator, Coastal Landscape Adaptation, National Park Service Region 1
• William Brady III, P.E.; Vice President of Corporate Environmental Strategy, Exelon
• Elizabeth Koniers Brown; Director of Delaware River Watershed Program, Audubon Pennsylvania
• John Callahan; Associate Scientist, Delaware Geological Survey, University of Delaware
• James Chelius, P.E.; Senior Director of Engineering Asset Planning, American Water
• Alan Cohn; Managing Director, Integrated Water Management, New York City Dept. of Environmental Protection
• Art DeGaetano, Ph.D.; Director, NOAA Northeast Regional Climate Center, Cornell University
• Marjorie Kaplan, Dr.P.H.; Associate Director, Rutgers Climate Institute
• Danielle Kreeger, Ph.D.; Senior Science Director, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary
• Upmanu Lall, Ph.D.; Professor, Columbia University; Director, Columbia University Water Center
• Christopher Linn, AICP; Manager of Office of Environmental Planning, Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission
• Mark Lowery; Assistant Director, Office of Climate Change, New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation
• Howard Neukrug, P.E.; Professor, University of Pennsylvania; Founding Director, The Water Center at Penn
• Scott Perry; Deputy Secretary, Office of Oil and Gas Management, Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection
• Nicholas Procopio, Ph.D., GISP; Bureau Chief, Division of Science and Research, New Jersey Dept. of Environmental Protection
• Julia Rockwell; Manager, Climate Change Adaptation Program, Philadelphia Water Department
• Robert Scarborough, Ph.D.; Environmental Program Manager; Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy, Delaware Dept. of Natural Resources and Environmental Control
• David Velinsky, Ph.D.; Vice President, Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University; Head, Department of Biodiversity, Earth and Environmental Science

Commission advisory committees are important forums for information-sharing, dialogue, and coordination among stakeholders and member state agencies; they also help inform the commission’s policy decisions.  The ACCC is authorized for 10 years and can be renewed or extended prior to its expiration in 2029.  Information on the ACCC can be found at https://www.nj.gov/drbc/about/advisory/ACCC_index.html.  All advisory committee and sub-committee meetings are open to the public.

The DRBC is a federal/interstate government agency created in 1961 by concurrent compact legislation, marking the first time that the federal government and a group of states joined together as equal partners in a river basin planning, development, and regulatory agency.  The five commission members are the governors of the basin states (Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ North Atlantic Division, who represents the federal government.

To learn more about the commission, please visit www.drbc.gov or follow DRBC on Twitter at @DRBC1961.