Nicholas A. "Nick" DiPasquale

Nicholas A. “Nick” DiPasquale left this earth at his home in Chestertown, MD,on November 24, 2022, after a lifetime of environmental advocacy, traveling, and kayaking. Born in Rochester, NY, to Alex and Harriet (Galli) DiPasquale on November 7, 1951, he found his lifetime calling was environmentalism after reading Silent Spring as an early teen and committed his life and career to advocacy and education.He started his environmental advocacy by serving for six years in the U.S. Navy’s nuclear power program. He went on to get his undergraduate degree from SUNY at Brockport and his Master’s degree in Energy and Environmental Policy from Washington University in St. Louis, MO. Nick had a long and impactful career in both the public and private sectors, championing the need for environmental regulation. His achievements included being: a researcher for four environmental committees in Missouri; Director of Waste Management Programs for the Missouri Dept. of Natural Resources; worker for the Air Pollution and Waste division and as a secretary of the Delaware Dept. of Natural Resources; Director of the Environmental Management Center at the Brandywine Conservancy in Chadds Ford, PA; Deputy Secretary for the Pennsylvania Dept. of Air, Waste, and Radiation Protection; six years in the private sector as a senior environmental consultant; and finally, Director of EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Program Office from 2011 to his retirement. His former colleagues remark on what a wonderful mentor he was. He has also been recognized as an “Admiral of the Chesapeake” by the Governor of Maryland. He is particularly proud of his work as Chair of the Quicksilver Caucus, a consortium supported by the Environmental Council of Secretaries that aimed to identify and reduce mercury pollution in the environment. Nick has been recognized for his leadership in orchestrating and laying the groundwork for a first-time collaboration between multiple states and stakeholders which has been critical to the success of the Chesapeake Watershed Agreement. This agreement is one of the most successful cross-state/federal regulatory agreements in environmental protection, a fitting legacy for a great man. After retirement, Nick continued his advocacy for the environment by serving on a variety of Boards and speaking engagements. Nick settled in Chestertown. He loved the Bay and could be found navigating its waterways in his kayak with his wife, Becky, whenever the weather was fine. He also loved to travel and managed to cross the globe. He was happiest with a glass of good red wine in his hand, either on his porch or in a piazza, soaking up the culture in some far-flung destination. He delighted in the four-footed members of his family, including Gunner, Miya, and his two current trouble-making huskies, Mocha and Mac. He joins his parents, Alex and Harriet, and his brother. Al, and leaves his beloved wife, Becky Robson; his daughter Laura DiPasquale, son in law and two grandchildren, Eric, Alex and Addie Zupan; his sister and her husband and daughter, MaryEllen, Craig, and Alexandria Colling and her husband David Linn; his brother, Jim DiPasquale and his two children, Danielle and Benjamin; and his stepdaughter, her husband, and two children, Jess, Simon, Caroline, and Emily Nichols. He would ask that in lieu of flowers, please make a memorial donation to the environmental or conservation organization of your choice.

Nicholas A. "Nick" DiPasquale

November 7, 1951 - November 24, 2022