Staff

Captain Bill Sheehan

Captain Bill Sheehan, the Hackensack Riverkeeper, is a lifelong resident of the Hackensack River area, having lived most of his life in Union City and Secaucus, New Jersey. He is a dedicated, active conservationist who founded Hackensack Riverkeeper in 1997 and serves as the organization’s Executive Director. Captain Bill, as he is known to most people, holds a Master of Inland Waterways license from the US Coast Guard.

Captain Bill serves on the NY-NJ Harbor Estuary Program Citizens Advisory Committee, a bi-state agency that oversees federal management efforts in the region. He is a founding (and current) member of the Bergen County Trust Fund Public Advisory Committee and is the current Chair of the Meadowlands Conservation Trust; the latter being the agency charged with acquiring, holding and managing conservation properties in the New Jersey Meadowlands and throughout the Hackensack River watershed.

Captain Bill has been recognized for his work on numerous occasions by the media, the government and the environmental and business communities. Among these awards are the:

+ 2009 Meadowlands Regional Chamber of Commerce Award for his work in the Meadowlands

+ 2008 EPA Environmental Quality Award

+ 2004 River Network’s River Hero Award

+ 2003 NJ DEP Environmental Excellence Award

+ 2003 Bergen County’s Person of the Year

+ 2002 US Fish and Wildlife Service Award for Meadowlands conservation

+ 2002 Garden Club of America Award for Significant Contribution to Conservation

+ 1999 Waterfront Center in Washington DC’s National Clearwater Award

+ 1996 NJ Audubon Society’s Conservationist of the Year Award

When he is not conducting Eco-Cruises aboard the vessel Edward Abbey, chairing meetings, or otherwise advocating for the Hackensack River watershed, Captain Bill enjoys rock n’ roll music, movies and fishing for Striped bass in his favorite river.