Newsroom

CORVALLIS - Gail L. Achterman, a leading state and national natural resource policy adviser, has been named director of the Institute for Natural Resources at Oregon State University - a center for research, information access and policy analysis established by the Oregon Legislature.

She was an assistant to former Oregon Gov. Neil Goldschmidt on natural resource issues from 1987-91, and earlier served as a legal adviser for the U.S. Department of the Interior. She also chaired the Governor's Task Force on Impacts of Growth for Gov. John Kitzhaber in 1998 and is now a member of the Oregon Transportation Commission.

Created in 2001 as part of the Oregon Sustainability Act, the Institute for Natural Resources conducts important research on natural resource issues, and develops and evaluates data that help Oregon's political and resource management leaders create sound policy based the latest scientific findings.

Rich Holdren, vice provost for research at OSU, called the hiring of Achterman "an exciting success" for the institute.

"Gail has natural resource policy experience in the state and federal government, she has worked with environmental law in private industry, and she has headed a non-profit corporation," Holdren said. "She is a non-traditional hire in that her background isn't from academia. However, in these times of tight resources, it was critical that OSU identify an individual who can work across - and within - the web of political, economic, social and environmental interests in the state.

"Her wealth of experiences and her dedication to sound policy will enable the university to play a key role in addressing Oregon's natural resource needs," Holdren added.

For the past three years, Achterman has been the executive director of the Deschutes Resources Conservancy. The non-profit corporation has led an unusual initiative to carry out ecosystem restoration in Central Oregon, bringing local, state, federal and tribal governments together with private stakeholders to work on restoring stream flows and improving water quality in the Deschutes River basin.

From 1991-2000, she worked as a partner with Stoel Rives LLP in Portland, where she practiced natural resource and environmental law, with an emphasis on issues involving water and endangered species. She has a law degree and a master's degree in natural resources policy and management from the University of Michigan. Achterman graduated from Stanford University in 1971 with a bachelor's degree in economics, with honors.

Achterman described the Institute for Natural Resources at OSU as a bridge between public policy makers and the Oregon University System's research and information capabilities.

"For the first time, Oregon citizens, legislators and government officials have a single 'storefront' where they can get objective, independent advice on scientific issues that pervade natural resource policy decisions," Achterman said. "The institute can act as an information clearinghouse, a research unit, and a center for policy analysis."

Achterman will be the first full-time director of the institute, which already is involved in several projects. Hal Salwasser, dean of OSU's College of Forestry, has been interim director of the center since its inception.

Working with a grant from the Meyer Memorial Trust, the institute is leading a collaborative effort on the Willamette Basin Conservation Project - developing maps and data that will become available to the public through a digital library. It also is working with other northwest institutions and agencies on a Sustainability Atlas for the Pacific Northwest.

Salwasser said the institute has completed a review of the Oregon Scenic Waterways Program for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, and led a refinement of environmental benchmarks for the Oregon Progress Board. More information on the Institute for Natural Resources is available at: http://inr.oregonstate.edu/.