DNR deputy commissioners named
Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell said Dec. 1 that he has named Ed Fogels and Joe Balash as deputy commissioners for the Department of Natural Resources.
The governor earlier accepted the resignation of Deputy Commissioner Marty Rutherford. Dan Sullivan was named in November to replace Tom Irwin as commissioner of the department.
“Ed and Joe have decades of experience working on critical Alaska resource development issues,” said incoming DNR Commissioner Dan Sullivan. “I look forward to working with them and the other outstanding professionals at DNR on the numerous resource development challenges and opportunities facing the state.”
Fogels has worked for DNR for 24 years; he is currently director of the Office of Project Management and Permitting. He also served as the department’s acting deputy commissioner and as the mining coordinator responsible for the permitting and administration of all large mining projects in Alaska.
Fogels also managed the Alaska Coal Regulatory Program and the department’s land disposal and homesteading programs, and spent several years as resource planner in the Fairbanks office. He has a bachelor’s degree in environmental sciences from the University of Virginia.
Joe Balash currently works in the Office of the Governor, serving as a special assistant to the governor for energy and natural resource development issues. He has coordinated policy among the governor’s office and the departments of natural resources and environmental conservation, and the Alaska Energy Authority.
Balash is also a member of the governor’s gas line team. He has worked as staff to the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee and as chief of staff to the Senate president. Balash earned a bachelor’s degree in politics and government from Pacific University in Forest Grove, Ore.
—Petroleum News
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