It is with great pleasure that the Board of Black Hills Audubon announces the recipient of our 2022 Volunteer of the Year Award to long-time volunteer Sue Danver.
As a member of the BHAS Conservation Committee, Sue Danver has pro-actively carried the ball for land conservation in Thurston County for at least the past twenty years. During part of that time, she was chair of the Conservation Committee. She has consistently taken the lead in efforts to protect wildlife habitat from the damaging effects of development – from gravel mining operations to residential housing to mammoth warehouses. She signed the Maytown Settlement Agreement which she helped negotiate in 2005 on behalf of BHAS. This agreement secured a sum of $325,000 for monitoring both water levels and several species of concern, especially the Oregon Spotted Frog. Restoration on approximately 1500 acres of rare prairie habitat on glacial outwash lands in south Thurston County was included. For the past nine years she has been a major player in the group which manages these efforts. This includes finding and working with consultants for scientific work on the approximately 800-acre portion owned by WA Dept of Fish and Wildlife. What a victory for our environment!
Sue has led efforts to push for scientific evaluation of storm water effects, aquifer pollution, habitat degradation, and other environmental consequences of warehouse construction throughout our region including the Salmon River basin, the area near the Olympia Airport, and the Beaver Creek locale. It has been her mission to preserve open space and wetlands in residential developments through engaging in the county zoning efforts.
To do all this plus work to protect natural preserves and agricultural lands from mineral lands designation, Sue uses her ability to organize citizen input and to advocate with public officials, both behind the scenes and in public testimony. Sue’s pro-activeness, political savvy, and persistence have been outstanding. Sue is most definitely an excellent choice to be honored by Black Hills Audubon.
Photo by Bob Metzger
