USDA Forest Service Chief to Speak at Yale University On Federal Programs to Assist Private Landowners

Michael P. Dombeck, chief of the USDA Forest Service since January and former acting director of the Bureau of Land Management, will speak at Yale on the role of the Forest Service in helping private landowners manage non-federal lands. The talk, which is sponsored by the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies – F&ES – and the Yale Forest Forum, will be at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 10, in Bowers Lecture Hall, Sage Hall, 205 Prospect St. The talk and reception following are free and open to the public.

“The Forest Service currently is reassessing the mission of its State and Private Forestry Division to provide more programs to assist private landowners with the management of their lands,” said F&ES Dean John Gordon, who estimates that there are about 10 million small woodland owners nationwide – with a large share of them in Connecticut. “Chief Dombeck is expected to discuss some of these changes and the implications for current and future Forest Service programs.”

Dr. Dombeck, who is the 14th chief of the Forest Service, was born in Wisconsin’s lake country and worked as a fishing guide in the region for 11 summers. He earned undergraduate and graduate degrees in biological sciences and education from the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point, and the University of Minnesota. He earned his doctorate in fisheries biology from Iowa State University and is noted for research contributions on muskies and lake habitat management.

Dr. Dombeck taught biology, chemistry, science, zoology and fisheries management at public schools and universities before joining the Forest Service 15 years ago. In his post as National Fisheries Program Manager for the Forest Service in Washington, D.C., he was recognized for outstanding leadership in developing and implementing fisheries programs and forging partnerships. He also spent a year as a legislative fellow working in the U.S. Senate with responsibility for natural resource and interior appropriations issues.

Dr. Dombeck was named acting director of the Bureau of Land Management BLM in February 1994. He focused on two major objectives: creating a long-term BLM vision to improve the health of the land and reinventing the agency to reduce red tape, streamline functions and improve customer service. As acting director, Dr. Dombeck oversaw management of 270 million acres of surface land and over 570 million acres of mineral estate. He also managed a budget of more than $1 billion and a work force of about 10,000.

For more information on this and other Yale Forest Forum events, please visit the website at: www.yale.edu/yff or call 432-5966.