Ken Bierly of the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board to receive ESA Regional Policy Award
The Ecological Society of America (ESA) will present its fifth annual Regional Policy Award to Ken Bierly of the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board during the Society's upcoming conference in Portland, Oregon. The ESA award recognizes an elected or appointed local policymaker who has an outstanding record of informing political decision-making with ecological science. "We are delighted to present this prestigious award to Ken Bierly for his long-term commitment to Oregon's streams, rivers, wetlands and other natural areas," said ESA President Steward Pickett. "His pioneering initiatives with the Oregon Department of State Lands in developing and implementing wetland regulations and Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board in developing tools for watershed management have enabled Oregonians across the state to use science to help improve and protect the rivers and streams of their communities." "I am greatly honored and stand on the shoulders of a great number of researchers, fellow agency staff and citizens of the state who deeply care about and wish to understand more deeply about our precious natural heritage," said Bierly. Bierly's career ties in well with ESA's 97th annual meeting theme: "Life on Earth: Preserving, Utilizing and Sustaining our Ecosystems." For over twenty years, Bierly has distinguished himself as a state employee through his innovative approaches to restoring and protecting habitats. Accomplishments include: developing freshwater wetland legislation in 1989, formulating a science-based regulatory program for wetlands, guiding the expansion of the Governor's Watershed Enhancement Board, and a key team member of Governor Kitzhaber's administration in the development of the Oregon Plan for Salmon and Watersheds. See the complete press release at: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-07/esoa-kbo072612.php
