Goll retires; Alaska gets acting director

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement Director Michael Bromwich said Dec. 20 that Dr. James Kendall will serve as acting director of the Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Region beginning Jan. 1.

John Goll, the current director, is retiring effective Dec. 31.

Kendall is currently chief of BOEMRE’s Environmental Division, responsible for overseeing the bureau’s $30 million applied environmental and socioeconomic research program, its responsibilities under the National Environmental Policy Act, its environmental compliance responsibilities and the Coastal Impact Assistance Program. Prior to joining the BOEMRE headquarters office in 2000, Kendall was chief of the Environmental Sciences Section of BOEMRE’s Gulf of Mexico Region.

“At a time when offshore activities in Alaska are under careful review and consideration by the Department of the Interior and BOEMRE, Jim will serve at a critical time while we search or a permanent head of the Region,” said Director Bromwich. “We’re focused on a number of important issues in attempting to ensure that offshore energy operations be assessed carefully and responsibly, and with appropriate weight given to the special circumstances in the Arctic. Given his strong scientific background, Jim has the right background and credentials to lead the Alaska Region during this period.”

Goll retires after 41 years in public service, having led the Alaska Region as director since 1997. Goll joined the bureau as an environmental scientist in 1982 after service in the U.S. Army, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the U.S. Geological Survey.

—Petroleum News