BLM Announces Appointments to Coastal Oregon Advisory Council, Aug. 14

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) welcomes 15 newly appointed members to its citizen-based Coastal Oregon Resource Advisory Council (RAC), which advises the BLM on public land issues in the coastal Oregon areas of the Coos Bay, Eugene and Salem Districts. “Our Resource Advisory Councils exemplify the BLM’s collaborative approach to public land management,” said BLM Director Neil Kornze. “I want to welcome our newly appointed RAC members and thank them for their commitment to public service.” The RACs, composed of citizens with diverse interests and backgrounds and chosen for their expertise in natural resource issues, help the BLM carry out its nation-wide stewardship of 245 million acres – the largest land portfolio of any federal agency. The BLM has established 28 RACs across the West, where most BLM-managed land is located. The BLM, an agency of the Interior Department, is responsible for managing these various uses – such as outdoor recreation and forest management – while conserving the land’s natural, historical, and cultural resources. Below are the newly appointed members of the Coastal Oregon RAC: • Dean Finnerty, Trout Unlimited (outdoor recreation); • Kurt Olson, Cougar Mountain Rider’s Association (outdoor recreation); • Kent Tressider, small woodland owner (non-industrial private landowner); • Donald LaFrance, retired Oregon Department of Forestry (commercial timber); • Mark Villers, Blue Ridge Timber Cutting (commercial timber); • Penelope Suess, Oregon Coast Alliance (regional environmental organization); • Chandra LeGue, Oregon Wild (regional environmental organization); • Ryan Cruse, Surfrider Foundation (national environmental organization); • Mike Kennedy, Confederated Tribes of the Siletz (archeological interests); • Harry Hoogesteger, South Coast Watershed Association (watershed association); • Kevin Cellulara, Marshfield High School teacher (teacher); • Melissa Cribbins, Coos County Commissioner (elected official); • Susan Brown, Curry County Commissioner (elected official); • Peter Wakeland, Coquille Indian Tribe (local Indian tribe); • Jim Nielsen, retired U.S. Forest Service (public at large). For more information about the Coastal Oregon RAC, visit www.blm.gov/or/rac/corrac