Rick Dove
A Life Anchored by Water, Service, and Vision
Few people have shaped the waters of coastal North Carolina and the global Waterkeeper movement as profoundly as Rick Dove. His passing on August 22 leaves us with both a deep sense of loss and an even deeper sense of gratitude for a life dedicated to service, justice, and love of water.
From the Chesapeake Bay to the Neuse and New Rivers
Rick’s relationship with water began in his childhood on the Chesapeake Bay, where the tide inspired his lifelong connection to the natural world. After 25 years of service in the United States Marine Corps, Rick retired in 1987 and moved to North Carolina with hopes of spending his days fishing along the Neuse River. What he found instead was heartbreak: massive fish kills, diseased fish covered in lesions, and a river struggling under the weight of pollution (U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, 2002).
That heartbreak became his calling. In 1993, Rick became the first Neuse Riverkeeper and, in doing so, helped establish the foundation for the Waterkeeper movement. His courage and integrity gave voice to rivers not just in North Carolina, but across the world, as the movement grew into a global network of guardians.
Confronting Industrial Pollution
Rick was fearless in exposing the truth. He brought national attention to the devastating pollution caused by industrial-scale hog and poultry operations, known as concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs). Armed with a camera, water sampling kits, and countless hours in small planes and on the water, Rick documented how CAFO waste was poisoning rivers, damaging communities, and threatening public health. His aerial photographs and field reports made visible what many powerful interests wanted hidden (U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, 2002).
His images and testimony appeared in major outlets including PBS FRONTLINE, The New Yorker, and The Los Angeles Times, sparking public outrage and driving accountability (Los Angeles Times, 2018; The New Yorker, 2019). Rick’s tireless advocacy helped reduce the number of CAFOs in the most sensitive areas of North Carolina’s coastal plain. Today, water quality data in the White Oak watershed and beyond show measurable improvements compared to thirty years ago, a testament to his enduring impact.
A Founder, Mentor, and Friend
Rick’s leadership extended beyond investigation. He was a founder of Waterkeeper Alliance, serving as the Southeastern Representative from 2000 to 2005 before taking on roles as Senior Advisor and special projects consultant (Waterkeeper Alliance, 2016). He also served as photo editor for Waterkeeper Magazine, where his striking images carried the movement’s message worldwide (Waterkeeper Alliance, 2020).
But Rick’s greatest gift may have been his mentorship of others. CCRW Executive Director Lisa Rider first met Rick more than 20 years ago on the banks of the New River while working in local government and volunteering with the New River Foundation.
“Rick embodied strength, compassion, and conviction. He spoke the truth without hesitation, even in the hardest moments, and his courage compelled others to rise and stand with him.” Lisa recalls.
“Rick’s wisdom was steady and constant, always just a phone call away. He taught not with words alone but through powerful example. From the cockpit of a small plane, circling above fields and rivers to reveal the scars of pollution, to being on the water beside volunteers, he showed people the truth with their own eyes. His way of teaching left no room for doubt, he made sure you felt what was at stake in your heart as much as you saw it with your eyes.”
A Living Legacy of Water, Service, and Courage
Rick’s legacy is not only written in headlines, reports, or courtroom victories. It lives in the rivers that flow clearer today than they did decades ago. It lives in every Waterkeeper who carries forward the fight he helped begin. And it lives in the countless people he mentored, who will forever walk a path shaped by his lessons.
“This is a living legacy that we will continue through our mission,” reflects CCRW Executive Director Lisa Rider.
Rick often reminded us, ‘When you don’t know what to do, go down to the river and sit with it.’ Watch the current, see the life it carries, and notice the wounds it bears. If the river could speak, it would call on you to defend it. That call is yours to answer. The fight will never be easy; those who cause the harm are powerful and well-resourced, but it is a fight worth every ounce of grit and courage you can give. Go to the water and you will understand why the struggle matters, and why you can never give up. His voice will be missed, but his words remain, guiding us to listen closely to the waters he loved and to act with the same courage, conviction, and compassion that defined his life.
Through every chapter of that life, his lifelong love, Joanne, was by his side. She was his source of strength and devotion, the steady presence that grounded him as he carried forward his work. Friends and colleagues often said that there was never a conversation with Rick where he did not acknowledge Joanne’s role in supporting and sustaining his mission. Her encouragement was constant, her love unwavering, and together they built a life rooted in partnership, purpose, and shared service to others.
We honor Rick best not only by remembering, but by continuing. His life was anchored by water, service, and vision, and his legacy is a living one, flowing forward in every river that is protected, in every community that is defended, and in every person who chooses to carry his work onward.
Our hearts are with Joanne and all of Rick’s family. May they find comfort in knowing that his spirit lives on in the waters he loved, in the communities he protected, and in the countless lives he touched.
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