Pages Tagged With: "conservation"
There are 19 species of snakes slithering around Delaware. Which ones should you watch out for and what are the best ways to avoid them?
zzzzz … slap. Sound familiar? The whine of buzzing mosquitoes followed by swats is a tell-tale sign of summer in Delaware. There’s plenty you can do in your backyard to reduce populations of these pests. Our Mosquito Control Section has tips to share, along with the mosquitos to watch out for.
Delmarva fox squirrels are rare in Delaware. Just because you haven’t seen one of these large, silver-gray, fluffy-tailed squirrels doesn’t mean you won’t – especially if you live in Sussex County. Our Division of Fish and Wildlife just moved 15 more into the area, as part of an ongoing translocation program.
They have long striped tails, intense eyes and they’re full of antics. Meet the lemurs – and the other animals – at the Brandywine Zoo’s new Madagascar Exhibit.
Most of us do the best we can to reduce our carbon footprint by recycling more, taking more public transportation, or using less electricity to heat and cool our homes. But what else can we do? Outdoor Delaware asked our experts for a list of the best ways we can help our planet.
You can get advice or technical assistance with drainage issues on your property. The first step is reporting the issue, using the form below. What is your name? How can we contact you?
Now is a great time to grab your binoculars to witness the spectacle of the return of our migrant bird species throughout the state. Outdoor Delaware sat down with our staff birders to talk about spring birding and what makes it so special.
Delaware’s recent plastic bag ban may have you looking for other ways to take your groceries home. Here are four alternatives to single-use carryout plastic bags that are better for you and the environment.
You may not have heard about them, but there are brownfields all over Delaware. They’re neither pretty nor healthy. That is, until we step in to clean them up and make way for redevelopment.
The Snow Goose Conservation Order is a separate season only for snow geese that occurs when Delaware’s regular waterfowl hunting seasons are closed. Liberal harvest methods are allowed during the Conservation Order to help reduce the large snow goose population that is damaging its Arctic nesting grounds, as well as wetlands and agricultural lands on
DNREC is part of a state and federal partnership with the USDA Commodity Credit Corporation, that aims to add up to 10,000 acres of Delaware agricultural land to the USDA Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP). Landowners in the CREP receive funding to support land conservation practices.
Safer water for us, less flooding and shad returning to their spawning grounds in the Brandywine River. Our WATAR team is making it happen.
Our Emergency Response Team is the state’s designated first responder for environmental emergencies. The team is on call 24/7 to respond to emergencies from oil spills to clandestine drug labs, chemical leaks, radiological incidents and many more that may occur.
As of January 1, we no longer use plastic carryout bags from many places like convenience, grocery or other retail stores. Most retailers don’t distribute point-of-sale plastic carryout bags anymore. You’ve got questions? We’ve got answers.
DNREC provides administrative and technical assistance and support to tax ditch organizations and landowners across the State.
Contact Us
Drainage Program 302-855-1930
The DNREC Tax Ditch Program has collected questions often asked by landowners about tax ditches. If you have additional questions, please contact the Tax Ditch Program at 302-855-1930 or by email.
Tax ditch channels range in size from six to 80
Each year thousands of Delawareans express concerns about drainage and stormwater. In many cases, residents don’t know who to contact if they have a problem. Several state and local agencies, including DNREC, DelDOT, conservation districts and municipal public works programs can help resolve drainage and flooding related problems.
The Drainage Programs work with landowners, tax ditch organizations and federal, state and local agencies to improve drainage, stormwater management and water quality in Delaware.
Drainage Program 302-855-1930 Report Drainage Concerns 302-855-1955
The Drainage Program is responsible for over 45 wetland and stream restoration projects, resulting in approximately 180 acres of total restoration and habitat creation. Restoration activities are put into practice in a variety of locations, including local schools (creating an outdoor classroom), backyards of private landowners (Smith and Battista), marginal agricultural fields,
Pike Creek is in northern New Castle County and is a tributary of White Clay Creek within the White Clay Creek subbasin. The lower portions of the White Clay Creek are tidally influenced. In 2000, the President signed a law adding 190 miles of the White Clay Creek and its tributaries to the National Wild
The DNREC Nonpoint Source Program (NPS), in partnership with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 3, hosted the 2019 Mid-Atlantic Nonpoint Source Program Training and Meeting in October of 2019. The states in the EPA Region 3 (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia) take turns hosting this biennial event. The next meeting,
Southern Delaware’s Trap Pond is a tributary of Broad Creek, which drains to the Nanticoke River and flows to the Chesapeake Bay. This area has a unique ecology, as it is home to the northernmost natural stand of bald cypress in the United States. The area also contains a 2,000-acre wetland, one of the largest
Southern Delaware’s Gravelly Branch watershed drains into the Nanticoke River, which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. Gravelly Branch begins in the town of Ellendale and flows toward the city of Seaford. The major land use in the 24,423-acre Gravelly Branch watershed is agriculture.
Stockley Branch flows into Cow Bridge Branch watershed, which spans 28,676 acres and is located in the Indian River watershed in southeastern Sussex County. The Indian River Bay watershed makes up one of three of Delaware’s interconnected Inland Bays (Rehoboth Bay, Indian River Bay, and Little Assawoman Bay).
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The Delaware portion of the Marshyhope Creek watershed (Upper Marshyhope Creek) lies within Kent and Sussex counties on the western edge of Delaware. The creek flows into Maryland before eventually discharging into the Nanticoke River, which in turn empties into the Chesapeake Bay. The drainage area of the Marshyhope Creek watershed within Delaware is approximately
Little Assawoman Bay — the smallest of Delaware’s Inland Bays — is connected to Indian River Bay on the north by the Assawoman Canal and to Assawoman Bay on the south via a narrow channel. The Little Assawoman Bay watershed is an agriculture-dominated watershed covering three square miles with no influencing point sources. The area
Noxontown Pond covers approximately 158 acres near the headwaters of the Appoquinimink River watershed. This watershed contains three of the fastest developing municipalities in the state – Odessa, Townsend, and Middletown. While much of this watershed was historically agricultural, increased development has led to the conversion of farms into suburban residential communities. Less than 9%
Records Pond, also known as Laurel Lake, was created in 1900 with the completion of the Records Pond Dam on Broad Creek. Although Records Pond is just over 90 acres, it is one of the larger lakes in Delaware. Almost at sea level, and with a maximum depth of 10 feet, the pond is relatively
Coursey Pond, in southeast Kent County, is a 58-acre pond draining to the Murderkill River, a tributary to the Delaware Bay. The headwaters of the Murderkill River begin just west of Felton and flow towards Bowers Beach, with the lower 10.5-mile portion of the river influenced by tides. The Coursey Pond area is home to
Abbott’s Mill Pond was created over 200 years ago by damming Johnson Branch in order to power a grist mill. The pond covers approximately 25 acres on Johnson Branch, a tributary near the headwaters of the Mispillion River watershed. The pond is now maintained as part of the Abbott’s Mill Nature Center used for public
Chesapeake Bay Implementation Grant (CBIG) funds enable states within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed to meet the goals outlined in the 2014 Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, including the improvement of water quality and achieving Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) for pollutants of concern.
The DNREC Nonpoint Source Program is accepting grant application
The DNREC Nonpoint Source Program administers a competitive grant program made possible through Section 319 of the Clean Water Act. The grant provides funding for projects designed to reduce nonpoint source (NPS) pollution in Delaware.
The DNREC Nonpoint Source Program is accepting grant application proposals for the FY25 Clean Water
The DNREC Nonpoint Source Program provides funding for projects designed to reduce nonpoint source (NPS) pollution in Delaware. Nonpoint source pollution is pollution that originates from a diffuse source (such as an open field or a road) and is transported to surface or ground waters through leaching or runoff.
The
The DNREC Nonpoint Source Program is committed to addressing pollution affecting Delaware waterbodies by encouraging and supporting the use of specific best management practices that can reduce the effects of nonpoint source pollution.
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We celebrated America Recycles Day in November. The goal is to increase recycling efforts nationwide and in Delaware. And there are plenty of opportunities for us to make a difference, right now, through proper recycling. Our Secretary, Shawn Garvin, shares tips on how we can all recycle the right way.
What happens to plastic after it fulfills its original purpose? Recycling gives many plastic items a second use but vast amounts are discarded and make their way into the environment. Some of this becomes microplastics. DNREC scientists are working on ways to clean them up.
Delaware’s three conservation districts are involved in numerous programs and activities that help landowners become better stewards of their land, most notably the state cost-share program.
The Conservation Districts
New Castle Conservation District 2430 Old County Road Newark,
You can get advice, guidance and in some cases financial assistance to deal with sinkholes caused by old debris pits on your property. The first step is reporting the issue, using the form below. Your Contact Information Your Name Phone Number
The State of Delaware and New Castle County have dedicated funding to remediate old debris pits. If you believe you have a debris pit, both can assist you in determining the best course of action.
Debris Pit Remediation 302-834-5555
The DNREC Conservation Programs Section serves as a liaison between DNREC and the state’s three Conservation Districts and it administers a number of programs related to water quality protection, drainage, and sedimentation and stormwater. Nonpoint Source Program Drainage Program Debris Pit Remediation
DNREC can help even out the potentially high costs of home heating, and make a home more energy efficient, through the Weatherization Assistance Program.
Many of us are scared of bats. But they’re far more beneficial than harmful – and they’re not out to get us.
For 32 years, volunteers cleared tons of trash from Delaware beaches in single-day events. In 2020, to make the Coastal Cleanup accessible and safe for everyone, the effort transitioned to a month-long campaign.
Delaware’s Materials Recycling Facility is a 64-thousand-square-foot repurposing facility with state-of-the-art sorting equipment.
You can help us create the first-ever Delaware Amphibian and Reptile Atlas by submitting photos and locations of Delaware’s reptiles and amphibians, or as we call them, “herps.”
Toliara is a radiated tortoise who lives at the Brandywine Zoo. Radiated tortoises are reptiles and considered among the most beautiful in the world. His ancestors emerged on land shortly after dinosaurs became extinct some 65 million years ago.
The American kestrel is a pint-sized yet ferocious aerial predator notorious for taking out tree swallows or bluebirds in mid-air. About the size of a mourning dove, this raptor is the smallest and most colorful falcon in North America.
Over 20 years, Delaware has recycled more than two million tons of rock, 100,000 tons of concrete, 86 tanks and armored personnel carriers, 1,329 retired subway cars and 27 retired vessels to create new, artificial reefs.
Our relationship with electric automobiles has run hot and cold over the last 100 years, with gas-powered vehicles always winning in the end. Now people are looking for cleaner alternatives as concerns for the environment increase.
We are mapping sightings of Delmarva fox squirrels and you can help. Use this form to report sightings and share information about this rare species. The Delmarva fox squirrel is no longer classified as an endangered or threatened species at the federal level. But it is still rare
