Richard Harrel

Beaumont | Biologist

Dr. Harrel worked as a professor in the biology department at Lamar University in Beaumont, where he taught zoology, ecology, limnology, aquatic entomology and other courses for over 30 years. His research focused on the water quality, benthic organisms, and ecology of east Texas streams, particularly in the Neches River basin. Through his teaching and research, he became aware of the impaired quality of many streams in southeast Texas due to paper mill and petrochemical plant discharges, and, for more than 40 years, ran Clean Air and Water, a public interest group that  worked with the region’s government and industry, often through Citizens Advisory Panels, to reduce these impacts.