Sharon Osowski Morgan has worked 25 years with the Environmental Protection Agency to protect human health and the environment! She has spent the last 7 years working within EPA’s CWPPRA team.
Q: Describe the part of your job/role that you enjoy the most.
A: The coastal marshes of Louisiana are beautiful. I love being out in them, seeing the animals and the landscapes. Spending time outside is a big part of why I became an ecologist and I enjoy it immensely.
Q: Describe the part of your job/role that you believe is the most impactful.
A: Technical coordination with parish representatives, community/environmental groups, local business/industry, citizen landowners— local stakeholders — is the most impactful part of my job. Listening to folks who experience wetland loss as a part of their daily lives and developing restoration concepts to meet the challenges they experience is a personal and EPA CWPPRA Team goal.
Q: What do you think is the best/easiest way community members can help restore or preserve wetlands?
A: I think community members already know, much better than I, what their local needs/priorities are regarding wetland preservation/restoration. If I could make anything easier, it would be helping people outside of Louisiana understand how vital the Louisiana coast is, its many benefits, and how they can support efforts to preserve and restore the Louisiana coast.
Q: What is your favorite recreational activity to do in the wetlands?
A: Bird watching is my favorite activity. There are lots of birds that I would love to add to my life list. I’m pretty good identifying wetland/marsh species, but I’m not as proficient in identifying shorebirds as I would like.
Q: Is there anything else that you’d like to tell us about yourself or your work in coastal protection and restoration?
A: I believe in the EPA mission to protect human health and the environment. Coastal wetland restoration/protection definitely falls within that mission. I’ve been with EPA now 25 years and CWPPRA is unique—it is very rewarding to see projects constructed; places that were once open water, now restored as marsh. The EPA Bayou Dupont projects are a great example of this.
CWPPRA 