DUBOIS – Nature Abounds was recently honored by the Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Professionals (PAEP) for its statewide Pennsylvania Senior Environment Corps (SEC).
Accepting the Walter Lyon Award from PAEP for Nature Abounds was President Melinda Hughes and Centre County SEC member Joyce McKay.
The PAEP gives out the Walter Lyon Award to an organization, project or program that made a unique, creative or significant contribution toward maintenance or restoration of Pennsylvania’s environmental quality or to the field of environmental management.
The SEC program has been in existence in Pennsylvania since 1997 and engages senior-aged volunteers in activities like water quality monitoring, identifying and marking abandoned oil and gas wells, maintaining trails and environmental education.
The SEC has water quality data on more than two-third of the states waterways, and since 2011, Nature Abounds has put $185,000 of water quality monitoring equipment into the field. The contribution of the program to the Commonwealth is more than $3 million per year.
Nature Abounds also recently marked its ninth anniversary. Since being established in 2008, Nature Abounds has engaged more than 9,000 volunteers in all 50 states and beyond.
In addition to the SEC program, volunteers of all age can help collect data on wildlife, weather and seasonal changes for scientists or they can outreach to the public about how they can help turtles or with climate change.
Volunteers may also help plant trees, remove invasive plants, knit sweaters for penguins affected by oil spills or convert plastic bags to sleeping mats for the homeless.
Nature Abounds is a national 501(c)3 non-profit organization encouraging citizens to unplug from the societal “norms”, wake up to the natural world around you and to take action for a healthier environment. More information can be found at www.natureabounds.org.