McLarney, a Franklin resident who divides his time between WNC and Costa Rica, will receive the award at the Society’s annual meeting in late February in Durham. 

The Fred A. Harris Fisheries Conservation Award, established in 2002 by the N.C. Chapter of American Fisheries Society, recognizes non-Chapter members who have distinguished themselves by service or commitment to the Chapter or to the fisheries resources of North Carolina. The timing of this award coincides with the 25th anniversary of the Aquatic Biomonitoring Program that McLarney established. Since the program began, more than 2,000 volunteers have participated in monitoring activities at more than 150 sites. This work has generated the largest fish-based biomonitoring database in the world for any comparably-sized watershed, according to the LTLT.