Our Mission
RiverStewards Collaborative (RSC) is an organization working to conserve and protect the most significant resource to our communities, our waterways. We achieve our goals by identifying issues and working collaboratively to initiate solutions. Our mission is to improve and restore the quality of our waterways and ecosystems, to benefit native species and their habitats, as well as the local community and economy. We are uniquely positioned to connect communities by bridging the gap between important issues and resources (expertise, knowledge, technology, etc.) to achieve a solution.
What We Do
RiverStewards achieves its conservation goals by convening the institutional, scientific and economic resources necessary to solve specific problems that affect the health of our waterways and ecosystem. Our operating process is to identify a problem then bring together those who can be a part of the solution.
At the core of the RiverStewards concept is that no one sector can, on its own, solve the myriad challenges facing the ecosystem. It will take concerted, coordinated efforts by all that have a stake in the River to assure its future health.
To help educate individuals and organizations on the River and its contributions to ecological services, the economy, and recreational opportunities, RiverStewards has numerous initiatives, which can be found here.
We recommend a great work by Susan Q. Stranahan, “Susquehanna, River of Dreams.” This book was a catalyst for the founding of RiverStewards.
In doing our work, RiverStewards will follow the following principles:
- Gain an understanding of functional natural systems through professional observations.
- Apply science through empirical data collection and processing.
- Draw conclusions based upon objective, verifiable data.
Founder and President – Mark Gutshall
Mark Gutshall is the Founder and President of RiverStewards Collaborative. He is a professional wetland scientist (PWS), a licensed Pennsylvania charter boat/fishing guide (permit #767) and founder of LandStudies, Inc. a recognized leader in the field of environmental restoration and land planning. He has more than 35 years’ professional experience in designing, permitting, and constructing ecological restoration projects in the mid‐Atlantic region. During that time, he also founded Octoraro Native Plant Nursery, a wholesale source of native woody plants (1990).
His diverse professional background emphasizes land stewardship and community‐based planning, which he has applied to numerous projects in watershed planning, open space planning, stream corridor restoration, flood reduction and stormwater management, habitat improvement, and wetland creation.
Mark researches and advocates pioneering land management techniques that are functional, cost effective, and environmentally beneficial. He has been a leading voice in the acceptance of “legacy sediments” along stream corridors as a major contributor of sediment and nutrient pollution in waterways throughout Pennsylvania.
He also has been a groundbreaker in adopting regional or watershed‐wide natural resource management as an effective way to create partnerships among private, public, regulatory, non‐profit, and educational interests. Both he and LandStudies have earned accolades for his innovative approaches to natural resource management and land planning.
Executive Director – Laurel Etter Longenecker
Laurel Etter Longenecker is the Executive Director of RiverStewards Collaborative, the nonprofit arm of the RiverStewards initiative. Laurel has over 10 years of experience working in the environmental field and is committed to making the world a better place for future generations to thrive. Laurel has a B.A. in Anthropology from Marshall University and a M.S. in Resilient and Sustainable Communities from Green Mountain College.
Board of Directors
Our Board of Directors consists of voting and non-voting members ranging in expertise from streams and wetlands, land use planning, education, biology, chemistry, creative writing, community development, sustainable landscaping, etc. Our Board meets quarterly to help guide the organization in making decisions that align with our mission and values.
- Mark Gutshall (non-voting) – President
- Laurel Etter Longenecker (non-voting) – Executive Director / Treasurer
- Paul Fisher – Board Member
- Katie Bartling – Board Member
- Samantha Wharton – Secretary
- Gar Vacchiano – Board Member
- Linford Good – Board Member