Wackowski named senior Interior advisor

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has named Steve Wackowski of Anchorage as his senior advisor for Alaska affairs. Zinke made the announcement May 30 while on a tour of Alaska and said Wackowski will be based in Anchorage.

“A lifelong Alaskan and Air Force Major, Steve is perfectly qualified to advise me on Alaskan issues,” Zinke said in a statement. “Like 10 percent of Alaskans, Steve served in the military, and he then continued his service as a civilian working for elected officials.”

Zinke said Wackowski’s broad range of experience would “prove to be invaluable as the Department focuses on future energy opportunities in Alaska, the welfare of Alaska Natives, and the vast expanses of lands and waters under Interior’s management.”

Wackowski grew up in Anchorage and worked summers for his family’s Ninilchik halibut and salmon sport-fishing business. A graduate of Bartlett High School in Anchorage, Wackowski played division I-AA football at Saint Mary’s College where he earned a degree in computer science and a commission in the Air Force Reserve from UC-Berkeley’s Air Force ROTC program.

Wackowski is a major in the Reserve and drills at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson at the 611th Air Operations Center. He has served several active duty tours including contingency deployments to Afghanistan, Haiti and Iraq.

After his last active duty tour he moved home to Alaska to work as the remote sensing operations manager for Fairweather Science LLC in Anchorage.

Wackowski was a professional staff member on the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Commission and was the late Sen. Ted Stevens’ last serving press secretary. He most recently managed U.S. Senate Energy Committee Chairman Lisa Murkowski’s reelection campaign.

An avid hunter fisherman, Wackowski says he is continually out-fished by his wife Lindsay. They enjoy spending time in the Alaska outdoors with their 2-year old son, Lucas, and their red fox lab, Cali.

- PETROLEUM NEWS