Greenbank Park

(Delaware Environmental Education Center & Jack A. Markell Trail)

DuPont Environmental Education Center & Jack A. Markell Trail — Wilmington’s Urban Wildlife Refuge and Riverfront Trail

A 212-Acre Urban Wildlife Refuge, a Panoramic Environmental Education Center, and 5.5 Miles of Off-Road Trail Along the Christina River

Not everything worth visiting in the Wilmington area asks you to walk through historic rooms or pay an admission fee. Sometimes the most remarkable thing in a city is the wild marsh at the edge of it. The Russell W. Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge — managed by the Delaware Nature Society at the DuPont Environmental Education Center (DEEC) on Wilmington’s South Side — preserves 212 acres of tidal marsh, wetland, and coastal plain habitat directly adjacent to the Port of Wilmington, offering an ecological counterpoint to the industrial landscape that surrounds it.

The DuPont Environmental Education Center is open year-round. Grounds and trail access are free. The visitor center building has staffed hours that vary seasonally — check delawarenaturesociety.org for current interior hours.

The Jack A. Markell Trail — a 5.5-mile off-road multi-use path connecting the DEEC to the Wilmington Riverfront and Historic Battery Park in New Castle — is free and accessible at any time.

The Russell W. Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge

The Russell W. Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge is named for the former Delaware governor who was also a research chemist at DuPont — a combination of roles that made him unusually well-placed to understand both the value of industrial development and the cost of environmental degradation. Peterson became a fierce environmental advocate after his time in office, lending his name and credibility to Delaware conservation efforts for decades.

The refuge is one of the most ecologically productive areas in Wilmington. Its tidal marshes, freshwater ponds, and coastal plain habitat support an extraordinary diversity of birds, fish, reptiles, and invertebrates — including species that most Wilmington residents would be startled to find a short drive from downtown. Great blue herons, osprey, bald eagles, and great egrets are regular visitors. The marsh supports diamondback terrapins and a full complement of wetland amphibians. Seasonal migrations bring waves of shorebirds and waterfowl through the refuge in spring and fall.

The contrast between the refuge and its surroundings is stark and strangely beautiful: the Port of Wilmington’s cranes and container ships on one side, the quiet marsh grasses and tidal channels on the other. It is a reminder that nature does not actually need vast wilderness to function — it needs appropriate habitat, protected from disturbance, wherever it can be found.

The DuPont Environmental Education Center

The DEEC visitor center itself is worth a visit as a building. The facility features:

• Panoramic views of the Christina River and the adjacent marsh from large observation windows
• Educational exhibits on the ecology of the Russell W. Peterson Refuge, the Christina River watershed, and Delaware’s diverse natural environments
• A 10-acre ornamental garden surrounding the center, designed to demonstrate native plant landscaping appropriate to the Delaware Piedmont
• Program space for school groups, community programs, and nature education events run by the Delaware Nature Society

The center serves as the primary trailhead for the Jack A. Markell Trail and provides interpretive orientation for visitors exploring the refuge.

The Jack A. Markell Trail

The Jack A. Markell Trail — named for former Delaware Governor Jack Markell — is a 5.5-mile multi-use off-road trail connecting the DEEC at the South Side of Wilmington to Battery Park in Historic New Castle, following the Christina River and Delaware River shoreline through a combination of elevated boardwalks, paved paths, and scenic waterfront segments.

The trail passes through:

• The Russell W. Peterson Urban Wildlife Refuge tidal marsh
• The Port of Wilmington industrial waterfront
• Wilmington’s South Side waterfront development areas
• The Christina River confluence with the Delaware River
• Historic Battery Park in Old New Castle, with views across the Delaware River to New Jersey

The Markell Trail connects to the broader East Coast Greenway — a developing 3,000-mile trail system running from Maine to Florida — and to Wilmington’s downtown riverfront trail network. It is accessible to walkers, joggers, and cyclists at any time, free of charge.

Trivia: Russell W. Peterson, for whom the refuge is named, was inducted into the Delaware Greenways Conservation Hall of Fame after his death in 2011. He remains one of the few people in American history to have served as both a Fortune 500 research chemist and a major environmental activist — having done significant DuPont work on Mylar and other synthetic materials before becoming one of the company’s most prominent environmental critics.

Programs and Community Engagement

The Delaware Nature Society uses the DEEC as an active programming hub:

• School field trips and environmental education programs for K–12 students
• Public nature programs on local ecology, wetland wildlife, and conservation
• Community litter cleanups along the refuge and trail corridor
• Seasonal guided walks exploring the refuge’s changing ecological character through the year
• Monarch butterfly programming during fall migration, when monarchs move through the refuge on their way south

DEEC in the Wilmington Waterfront Context

The DuPont Environmental Education Center sits at the convergence of several Wilmington attractions — within walking or biking distance of the Kalmar Nyckel Foundation (east along the riverfront), Old Swedes Historic Site (north), and Fort Christina Park (immediately adjacent). The Markell Trail connects the site directly to Historic New Castle’s Battery Park to the south, making it possible to combine a wildlife marsh experience with colonial American history in a single afternoon without getting back in the car. That is not a combination most cities can offer.