“EASY CHAIRS ON A HOT, SUMMER DAY”: This photograph by Carl LaVO was named the public winner of the 2019 Summer Delaware River Basin Photo Contest. The image will be featured on the commission’s website, social media sites, and annual report.

At the Delaware River Basin Commission’s (DRBC) third-quarter Business Meeting last week, Assemblywoman Carol Murphy (NJ-7) presented Joint Legislative Resolutions from the State of New Jersey for the winners of the commission’s 2019 Summer Delaware River Basin Photo Contest. Murphy, a hobbyist photographer, was the guest judge for this season, which included a public contest and one run concurrently for DRBC staff.

The photo contest judging team, in addition to the assemblywoman, included DRBC staff. They chose Carl LaVO’s photograph, titled Easy Chairs on a Hot, Summer Day, as the winner of the public contest, and chose DRBC Water Quality intern Scott Jedrusiak’s The Light Within as the winner of the staff contest.

“I am pleased to be able to present these Joint Legislative Resolutions from the State of New Jersey recognizing Carl and Scott as the summer photo contest winners,” said Murphy. “This photo contest is a great way to connect with those that live, work, and play in the river basin and share what they love about it. The winning photos represent the beauty of our water resources that the DRBC works to protect for current and future generations.”

“My buddy and I came across this scene during a bike ride on N.J.’s Delaware and Raritan Canal towpath one hot July day,” said LaVO, an author, columnist, journalist, and former Bucks County Courier Times editor from Levittown, Pa. “We so wanted to cool off in those chairs, but access prevented us, so we continued on.”

“Carl’s photograph stood out for its contrasts: the rushing water versus the peaceful image of the easy chairs, as well as the juxtaposition of dark and light,” said Murphy. “It evokes a story just waiting to be told, perhaps while relaxing in those chairs being cooled by the water’s flow.”

The winning images will be featured on the commission’s website at https://www.nj.gov/drbc/basin/photo/2019summer-photo-contest.html and on DRBC’s Twitter, Instagram, and Flickr social media sites. The photos will also be published in the commission’s 2019 annual report, and the winners will receive certificates of recognition.

The contest’s purpose is to highlight photography representing the beauty, diversity, function, and significance of the water resources of the Delaware River Basin, a 13,539-square-mile watershed.

The DRBC is a federal/interstate government agency responsible for managing the water resources within the Delaware River Basin without regard to political boundaries. The five commission members are the governors of the basin states (Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania) and the commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ North Atlantic Division, who represents the federal government. To learn more about the commission, www.drbc.gov.