Rumor has it that 70% of college graduates make their career in a field unrelated to their major.  Although this statistic causes anxiety to many recent graduates, Debbie Heaton is evidence that perhaps a greater impact can be made if the limits of your comfort zone are tested.

Heaton came to Delaware about 15 years ago, although she spent most of her childhood in Berwyn, Pennsylvania.  After obtaining an undergraduate degree in Interior Design and a Master’s of Visual Arts, she “married” into the Delaware Chapter of the Sierra Club.  Recycling was her original cause of choice, but her interests soon broadened.

In 1996, the Sierra Club collaborated with the Mid-Atlantic Environmental Law Center at Widener University and the Delaware RiverKeepers, among others, to file a lawsuit against the EPA and DNREC for shortcomings they found in the implementation of the Clean Water Act.  Heaton recalls that many of her peers were frustrated with seeing developments shoot up.  They began to worry about the future of their drinking water supplies.  She soon became very involved in the Club’s campaign to improve water quality.  Although she had little background in the chemistry and biology that scientists use to determine water standards, she found the scientists more than willing to share their knowledge with her. “DNREC takes the time to teach citizens about issues and the science behind them,” she says, further attributing this result to the public process of hearings and comment periods.   She describes the Sierra Club’s role in Delaware environmental politics as mostly reactive, though in the case of TMDLs, she takes pride in the role they were able to play. “If we keep on top of the issues, one day we’ll be able to proactive.”

Heaton became involved in the Appoquinimink Tributary Action Team when she read about it in the Middletown Transcript, the local newspaper.  She came to her first meeting about 6 months after the Team was conceived.  Thinking it was important for members of the Sierra Club to remain involved in the TMDL issue, she joined in and was welcomed into the Team.  “It was important to show that we were looking at the whole picture and wouldn’t walk away from the problem”, she says.  Heaton feels that the experience of the members is an important contribution to the Teams.

When asked about water quality initiatives she’d like to see implemented, Heaton immediately points out the need for education.  “We understand that there needs to be a culture change and realization of the nonpoint (pollution) impacts citizens have”, she clarified.   The disconnect between people and their environment, such as not getting outside for enough recreation, is one factor to blame for the state of our waterways, according to Heaton.  She says that if people were outside and could see their effect on the waterways, they would be more cognizant of how their daily activities impact the environment.

With a Pollution Control Strategy now submitted for the Appoquinimink, Heaton is enjoying playing the part of advocate for the watershed.  She sees the Trib Team continuing their mission of support and education to municipalities, schools and land owners into the future.  She explains “I wish the Appo was more of a free-flowing river, but it’s just quietly there”, as Heaton likens the river’s subtle beauty to Delaware’s marshy landform.  Although she and the Team have been through the hardest part of a Team’s journey, the research, discussion and recommendation, Debbie Heaton is excited about the future and the difference the Tributary Action Teams have made.

“I’m looking towards the next step.”