Staff Spotlight: Dana Reiss

Dana Reiss

Dana Reiss is an Implementation Project Manager for the Center for Restoration Finance within the department’s Chesapeake and Coastal Service.

Dana joined the restoration finance team after working for a local mortgage company for 11 years. This strong foundation in project management, as well as budget and risk assessment, along with working with local stakeholders has translated successfully to the restoration finance field.

As the daughter of a waterman, Dana knows the importance of a clean and healthy Chesapeake Bay. She grew up on Maryland’s Eastern Shore and earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from Towson University.

As an Implementation Project Manager, I work with counties, municipalities, non-governmental organizations and other state agencies to fund and execute a wide variety of best management practices that reduce nitrogen, phosphorus and sediment to the Chesapeake Bay. These projects, which consist of reforestation, stream restoration, stormwater retrofits and wetland creation have helped Maryland reach both mandated and voluntary water quality milestones and local watershed goals.

Our team manages the Chesapeake and Atlantic Coastal Bays Trust Fund, which allows Maryland to accelerate bay restoration by focusing our limited financial resources on the most efficient, cost-effective, non-point source pollution control projects. We with local partners to administer the money in ways that leverage the funds to the greatest extent possible, target the funds geographically and engage the community at large.

In addition to Trust Fund work and managing multi-year, multi-partner restoration portfolios, I am part of a team that assembles innovative funding partnerships that continue to improve efficiency and cost-effectiveness in the state non-point source pollution reduction investments.  It is our job to maximize restoration opportunities, leverage financial resources, and promote the sharing of knowledge and use of innovative restoration practices, especially those that include climate resiliency.

Through cross-programmatic collaboration, we are improving restoration financing strategies, advancing the science, and building strategic partnerships to reach our water quality goals.