Mike Donovan Sees the Forest Through the Trees By Leonard Shapiro
M
ike Donovan has always been passionate about natural resources and the environment. Growing up in Loudoun County, he dreamed about being a farmer, or maybe even a fisherman, with the great outdoors the only office he ever wanted to occupy. Now 48, he has clearly lived that dream, working on the west coast for 17 years as a commercial Mike and Christina Donovan and their sons, Kolton, 12, and Kyvin, 10. fisherman in Oregon and Alaska before deciding to return to Virginia four years ago, the better to spend more time with his family, wife Christina and their sons, Kolton, 12, and Kyvin, 10. “I’d be away for long stretches at a time,” Mike said of his work fishing for crab and cod on the west coast. “When I came home, my kids were hiding behind my wife’s legs and asking ‘who is this guy?’ I just wanted to be more of a part of their lives and decided to get off the water and come back here.” He’s now the equipment division supervisor and lead operator with Nature Works LLC (formerly Sustainable Solutions) based in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, with a recently opened office at his home two miles outside of Middleburg. Another bonus of his move east: his parents, Lynne and John Donovan, have been area residents for many years. The company is owned by James Remuzzi. He and Mike met in the second grade at Loudoun Country Day in Leesburg and have been friends ever since. The business offers a wide variety of natural resource management services to public and private landowners. And Mike is most passionate about the forest restoration services his division delivers. “Forest restoration is so rewarding to me because it’s equal parts art and science,” he said. “I bring specialized equipment into an overgrown, overstocked and neglected forest and return it back to a magnificent stand of trees. There are so many invasive and volunteer trees that grow into unmanaged stands and compete with our native oak woodland ecosystem. “Whether I come in with a forestry mulcher or bring in an excavator with a grapple saw, I end up thinning the forest out to a healthy woodland. It’s amazing to see the native trees flourish once the unwanted competition has been removed. After the equipment division work, Nature Works can follow up with services including prescribed burns, invasive plant control or native tree and shrub plantings. Doing so delivers a comprehensive forest restoration service that a healthy forest needs to thrive over the long term. “The end result is not only a healthier forest,” Mike said. “It’s more visually appealing, has better access, less ticks and significantly improved habitat for wildlife and birds.” Nature Works offers its forest restoration clients a greener way to dispose of non-merchandisable wood. It also connects all its clients to cost share programs and ecosystem service markets, all of which help offset the cost of the work for the landowner. “The new Middleburg office will be a source of well paying jobs and a positive environmental impact on the health of our regional forests,” Mike said. “I really love this work. My job sites are beautiful, and I get to make them even more beautiful.”
Country ZEST & Style | Holiday 2023
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