POST SCRIPT: Our elegy about retired Waterways Patrol Officer
Wilbur Williams drew some comment from the Pennsylvania Fish and
Boat Commission — some good (about Wilbur) and some bad (about
us).

Gerald B. Barton, the commission’s assistant regional
supervisor, writes: “It is heartening to know that his legacy as a
strong advocate for environmental stewardship is not forgotten.
However, I would be remiss if I didn’t address a somewhat
misleading statement that was made in the piece. The writer states,
‘People forget that, long before there were so-called
environmentalists, it was the fish (and game) wardens who were the
bona fide “conservationists” keeping an eye out for pollution on
our waterways. (This was before their job entailed spying at
boaters with binoculars, checking for people tipping a few
beers).’”

“The environmental ethic that the writer admired in Officer
Williams is still practiced by today’s WCOs,” Barton says.

“Nowhere is this more apparent than in McKean County. WCO Robert
‘Pete’ Mader is a two-time recipient of the Gerald L. Greiner Award
for Environmental Protection. Officer Mader’s steadfast dedication
to protection of the Commonwealth’s waterways and watersheds is
beyond reproach. Wilbur Williams knew this and so should your
readers.”

“I’m not sure what the writer was trying to imply with the
reference to ‘spying at boaters.’ Either they were trying to say
that drinking and boating is not a serious issue or just not as
serious as water pollution.

“As the supervisor of the 11 waterways conservation officers in
the North Central Region, I have always tried to impress upon them
that we have two equally important responsibilities to the citizens
of the Commonwealth: protection of the resources and protection of
public safety. In the last five years in Pennsylvania, there have
been 57 boat accidents that resulted in fatalities. Alcohol use was
a contributing factor in the deaths of 31 people. This is certainly
not a minor issue or one to be dismissed so lightly. We take this
issue seriously, and I would hope that the public does as well.

“Aside from this, I was impressed that Wilbur is so fondly
remembered over 30 years after he retired. My fellow officers and I
can only hope that decades after we end our careers, we will have
left as good an impression and will be remembered as both
environmental stewards and tireless protectors of public
safety.”