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(Lincoln, NE) Gov. Dave Heineman today announced the impending resignation of Roger Patterson, director of the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources (NDNR). Patterson, who has served as a department director since his appointment in January 1999, plans to start a private consulting firm in Omaha. His last day with the department will be Aug. 19.
"Roger has guided our state through some of the toughest years of drought in recent memory and has managed to confront difficult issues with an acute sense that all of us are friends, neighbors and Nebraskans," Gov. Heineman said. "His service will be missed."
During his tenure, Patterson oversaw the merger of the Nebraska Department of Water Resources and the Nebraska Natural Resources Commission into NDNR. The department negotiated settlements in several U.S. Supreme Court cases, including disputes with surrounding states involving the North Platte and Republican rivers. NDNR also organized the Water Policy Task Force to address the state's water management issues as a result of historic legislation, LB 962, and worked to complete the Missouri River Master Manual.
Prior to his appointment, Patterson spent 25 years with the Bureau of Reclamation in the U.S. Department of Interior, working in several western states.
In addition to his role as director, Patterson serves as chairman of the Nebraska Boundary Compact Commission and is the state representative to the Missouri River Basin Association, the State Environmental Trust Board, the Blue River Compact, the Republican River Compact, and the Upper Niobrara River Compact.
Patterson said, "It has been a pleasure and a privilege for me to have served Nebraskans during the past six and a half years. Working with two good Governors and water users across the state during difficult times of drought and change has been especially rewarding."
NDNR deputy director Ann Bleed will serve as acting director until a permanent replacement is named. Bleed is a professional engineer licensed in civil engineering. She also is an adjunct professor in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources and the College of Engineering at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln.
She served as Nebraska's State Hydrologist from 1988-2000.
Bleed said, "I am pleased to have the opportunity to serve this department in such an important role. I don't expect to fill Roger's shoes, but want to continue strengthening the partnerships he developed with the NRDs, irrigation districts and other water interests across the state. Together we will continue working to ensure the sustainable use of Nebraska's natural resources."
Bleed holds degrees in ecology and industrial and management systems engineering, among others, earning her doctorate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Her salary will be $94,270 as interim director.
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