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NARROWSBURG – Magisterial District 22-3-04 Judge Ronald J. Edwards officiated at the swearing-in ceremony for the Upper Delaware Council’s (UDC) 2015 officers held during the Feb. 5 monthly meeting of the bi-state, non-profit organization.

Judge Edwards administered the oaths of office to 2015 UDC Chairperson Alan F. Henry (Berlin Township, PA), Vice-Chairperson Susan Sullivan (Town of Tusten, NY), and Secretary-Treasurer Jeffrey R. Dexter (Damascus Township, PA).

The UDC has operated since 1988 under a Cooperative Agreement partnership with the National Park Service to oversee the coordinated implementation of the River Management Plan for the Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River, which the U.S. Congress designated in 1978 as part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System.

The river corridor extends 73.4 miles from the confluence of the East and West Branches of the Delaware River below Hancock to Railroad Bridge No. 2 at Sparrowbush. It encompasses 55,575.5 acres that remain in majority private ownership within portions of Delaware, Sullivan, and Orange Counties in NY; and Wayne and Pike Counties in PA.

Council members are the eight New York towns and five of the Pennsylvania townships that border on the Upper Delaware River, as well as the State of New York and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Buckingham and Manchester Townships remain eligible to join. The Delaware River Basin Commission has opted for non-voting membership. The National Park Service is a non-voting partner.

Members appoint representatives and alternates to serve on the UDC board. Following municipal reorganizational meetings, the 2015 roster is:

Town of Hancock – Fred Peckham, representative; Samuel N. Rowe, Jr, alternate;

Town of Fremont – James A. Greier, representative; George Conklin, alternate;

Town of Delaware – Harold G. Roeder, Jr., representative; David Peters, alternate;

Town of Cochecton – Larry H. Richardson, representative; Sean Nearing, alternate;

Town of Tusten – Susan Sullivan, representative; Tony Ritter, alternate;

Town of Highland – Andrew Boyar, representative; Debra Conway, alternate;

Town of Lumberland – Nadia Rajsz, representative; Jenny Mellan, alternate;

Town of Deerpark – David M. Dean, representative; Virginia Dudko, alternate;

Damascus Township – Jeffrey R. Dexter, representative; Steven Adams, alternate;

Berlin Township – Alan F. Henry, representative; Paul Henry, alternate;

Lackawaxen Township – John S. McKay, representative; Brian Stuart, 1st alternate; Camille James, 2nd alternate;

Shohola Township – Patricia Jeffer, representative; Aaron Robinson, 1st alternate; George J. Fluhr, 2nd alternate;

Westfall Township – Chuck Pranski, representative; Michael Barth, alternate;

State of New York – NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Region 3 Natural Resources Supervisor William J. Rudge, representative; NYS DEC Region 3 Inland Fisheries Manager Michael J. Flaherty, alternate;

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania – PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Delaware State Forest District Forester Timothy Dugan, representative; PA Department of Environmental Protection Interstate Water Office River Basin Program Coordinator Rhonda Manning, alternate;

Delaware River Basin Commission – DRBC Executive Director Steven J. Tambini, representative; no designated alternate; and

National Park Service – NPS Northeast Regional Director Michael Caldwell, representative; NPS Upper Delaware Scenic and Recreational River Superintendent Kristina Heister, alternate.

The UDC’s three full-time staff members are: Executive Director Laurie Ramie; Resource Specialist Travis O’Dell; and Secretary Cindy Odell.

The full body of the Upper Delaware Council regularly meets every first Thursday of the month at 7 p.m.

Three standing committees meet as follows: Water Use/Resource Management Committee, third Tuesdays at 7 p.m.; Project Review Committee, fourth Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m.; and Operations Committee, fourth Tuesdays at approximately 7:30 p.m.

All meetings take place at the UDC’s office located at 211 Bridge St. in Narrowsburg, NY, and are open to the public.

For more information, please visit www.upperdelawarecouncil.org or call (845) 252-3022.