Staff

Betsy Nicholas

Betsy Nicholas is the Executive Director of WATERKEEPERS® Chesapeake, the regional coalition of 19 Waterkeeper Organizations protecting the rivers and streams of the Chesapeake and Coastal Bays Watersheds. She has been leading this organization since 2012. She is also the founder of the Fair Farms campaign – building a movement of Marylanders of all stripes, working together for a new food system — one that is fair to farmers, invests in homegrown healthy foods and restores our waterways instead of polluting them. 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. Ms. Nicholas has also been 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 20 years of environmental work. Like most clean water advocates, she also loves to get out on the water when she can.

Betsy Nicholas's Articles

Waterkeepers Gathered to Honor Our Water at the People’s Climate March
May 3 2017
The Top 10 Ways Scott Pruitt Can Hurt the Nation’s Largest Estuary
Mar 17 2017
Waterkeepers Chesapeake Has One Clear Demand: Ban Fracking Now
Feb 24 2017