Betsy Nicholas

Potomac Riverkeeper Network
Vice President of Programs

Betsy Nicholas, Vice President of Programs, joined Potomac Riverkeeper Network in January 2023. Previously she was Executive Director of Waterkeepers Chesapeake, the regional coalition of 17 Waterkeepers protecting the rivers and streams of the Chesapeake and Coastal Bays Watersheds. She lead and grew that organization since 2012. She is also the founder of the Waterkeepers Chesapeake's Fair Farms campaign. Previously, she worked as a trial attorney in the Environmental and Natural Resources Division of U.S. Department of Justice for several years. Prior to that, she was the General Counsel for Chattahoochee Riverkeeper in Atlanta, Georgia for more than five years. Betsy was also an environmental associate for law firms in New York and Washington, DC. Her experience includes, all types of stormwater pollution, industrial agriculture, regenerative agriculture, clean water act litigation, legislative advocacy, endangered species act conservation, hydropower licensing and a host of other issues that come with over 25 years of environmental work. Like most clean water advocates, she also loves to get out on the water when she can. In her spare time, she also fosters tiny dogs.

Waterkeepers Chesapeake's Articles

EPA Is Eroding States’ Authority to Protect Waters from Unchecked Development

August 6, 2019
By: Waterkeepers Chesapeake
News

By Aaron Zoellick, WKC legal intern. Reposted with permission from Waterkeepers Chesapeake. You should not dive into a pool before checking if it...

Carrots for Fair Farms Initiative|Owl's Nest 2018

Ten Lessons from the Fair Farms Initiative

July 25, 2019
By: Waterkeepers Chesapeake
News

By Betsy Nicholas, Executive Director of Waterkeepers Chesapeake As an environmental lawyer, I was trained to see regulators and courts as the sole path...

Waterkeepers Respond to Governor Hogan’s Veto of Oyster Restoration Bill

June 3, 2019
By: Waterkeepers Chesapeake
News

By Choptank Riverkeeper Matt Pluta and Waterkeepers Chesapeake Staff Attorney Katlyn Schmitt. Reposted with permission from Waterkeepers Chesapeake. ...

Staff

Isaiah Back-Gaal
Climate and Safe Energy Campaign Manager
Larry Baldwin
Campaign Coordinator
Pure Farms, Pure Waters
North Carolina
Christian Breen
Movement Building Manager
Patience Burke
Campaign Manager
Pure Farms, Pure Waters
Colin Campbell
Database and Marketing Analysis Manager
Rachel Cook
Chief Finance and Operations Officer
María Victoria Díaz-González
Waterkeeper Membership Services Coordinator
Jacki Esposito
Advocacy Director
Daniel E. Estrin
General Counsel and Legal Director
Kelly Hunter Foster
Senior Attorney
Lori Harrison
Communications and Marketing Director
Katie Horner
Legal Fellow
Kate Hudson
Advocacy Coordinator
Climate and Energy
Thomas Hynes
Communications and Marketing Manager
Brian Klausner
Accountant
Chelsea McDonald
Clean Water Defense Campaign Manager
Bart Mihailovich
Waterkeeper Membership Services Director
Kerri Murdy
Human Resources Manager
Mary Beth Postman
Deputy Director
Marcelle Prescott
Office Administrator
Nadia Rivera
Special Assistant to the CEO
Marc Yaggi
Chief Executive Officer
Michael Yerdon
Development Director
Min Zheng
Waterkeeper Membership Services Manager