August 31, 2010
Team will assist in national search to fill DNR post as soon as possible
Gov. Nixon names search committee for next Director of Department of Natural Resources
JEFFERSON CITY - Gov. Jay Nixon today named a nine-person committee to assist the nation-wide search for the next director of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, following the resignation Monday of Mark N. Templeton. Templeton is leaving DNR to become executive director of the Office of the Independent Trustees of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Trust; he will be responsible for ensuring that funds are available to address the claims of those affected by BP's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
"First and foremost, the director of DNR must be focused on preserving and improving Missouri's priceless natural and cultural resources," Gov. Nixon said. "This is an opportunity to recruit a leader prepared to meet the challenges of environmental stewardship and sustainable economic development in the 21st Century.
"I'm confident that this committee will find an outstanding individual who will create new opportunities for 'green' business practices across the economic spectrum - including within state government - and who will accelerate the state's development of renewable sources of energy, including wind, solar and biofuels," the Governor said.
The search committee members include:
- Charles W. Burson, of St. Louis, senior professor of practice at Washington University School of Law and the former executive vice president, general counsel and secretary of Monsanto Co.;
- Wayne Goode, of St. Louis, former state senator representing St. Louis County;
- Judith S. Heeter, of Kansas City, shareholder and director with the law firm of Polsinelli Shughart and former director of business affairs and licensing of the Major League Baseball Players Association;
- William Jackson, of Brunswick, general manager of AGRI Services of Brunswick, an agriculture retail and fertilizer wholesale company;
- Michael Middleton, of Columbia, deputy chancellor and professor of law at the University of Missouri School of Law;
- David Murphy, of Jefferson City, executive director of the Conservation Federation of Missouri;
- Timothy B. O'Reilly, of Springfield, a partner in the law firm of O'Reilly and Jensen;
- Warren K. Wray, of Rolla, a civil engineer who is provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at Missouri University of Science and Technology; and
- Karl Zobrist, of Kansas City, a partner in the law firm of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, specializing in the energy industry.
On Monday, Gov. Nixon named Kip Stetzler acting Director of the state Department of Natural Resources while the search for a permanent director continues. Stetzler has been the Director of the Western Regional Office of the Governor in Kansas City.
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources includes the Division of State Parks; the Division of Geology and Land Survey; the Division of Environmental Quality; the State Environmental Improvement and Energy Resources Authority; and the Petroleum Storage Tank Insurance Fund. The Governor appoints the Director with the advice and consent of the State Senate.