A woman will occupy the position of chief of the U.S. Forest Service for the first time in history when Dale Bosworth steps down in early February.
Abigail Kimbell, the current Regional Forester for the Northern Region in Missoula, Mont., which includes northern Idaho, was named the new chief of the Forest Service on Jan. 12. She will replace the retiring Bosworth on Feb. 2.
As the forest chief, Kimbell will be responsible for managing more than 30,000 employees and a budget of just over $4 billion.
Mike Johanns, secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, said Kimbell "brings a wealth knowledge to her new position."
"She is well respected both within the agency and by our stakeholders," Johanns said in a Forest Service press release. "I'm confident she will do a terrific job as chief."
Women are playing an increasingly significant role in the Forest Service's upper management.
Locally, the Sawtooth National Forest recently appointed its second consecutive woman to supervisor.
Jane Kollmeyer, the former deputy forest supervisor of the Helena National Forest in Montana, began her new job as the Sawtooth supervisor earlier this month. She replaces Ruth Monahan, who accepted a promotion as the regional director for recreation, lands and minerals in Alaska.
Kollmeyer downplays the rise of women to top positions in the Forest Service, saying it's really not all that uncommon anymore. But, she added, "it's a good thing."
Kollmeyer grew up in Michigan, the daughter of a forester. When she was 16 the family took a fateful trip out West.
"I just knew that's where I was going to live," Kollmeyer said. "I knew I wanted to be in the West."
Kollmeyer graduated from the University of Michigan School of Natural Resources with a bachelor of science degree in forestry in 1976. Three years later she kicked off her career with the Forest Service.
In the 27 years since, Kollmeyer has collected numerous awards for her performance. In 1990, she became the deputy district ranger on the Idaho Panhandle National Forest in Wallace, and later served as district ranger on the Fortine Ranger District on the Kootenai National Forest and the Tally Lake Ranger District on the Flathead National Forest, both in Montana.
She has also been the acting forest supervisor on the Idaho Panhandle National Forest in Coeur d'Alene and the Lewis and Clark National Forest in Great Falls, Mont.
Shortly after moving to Twin Falls with her husband, Terry, earlier this month, Kollmeyer said she took her first drive through the Sawtooth National Recreation Area.
"It's gorgeous, absolutely beautiful," she said. "I was pinching myself, thinking, God, I got this job."
As supervisor she will be responsible for management and protection of the entire 2.1 million-acre Sawtooth National Forest, which stretches from the Raft River Division in northern Utah to the Salmon River and Stanley north of Ketchum. The 756,000-acre SNRA also is a part of the forest.
Kollmeyer said her greatest immediate challenges will be instituting the forest's new Travel Management Plan and resolving several grazing issues, some of which are in litigation. The travel plan has been in the works for close to three years and should be formally instituted in 2008.
She added that she's fortunate to be working on a forest with such "a good reputation," and she has no plans to shake up the management style left by Monahan and Interim Supervisor Doug Gochnour.
"I haven't seen anything yet that says, 'Wow, this needs to be fixed,'" she said. "You don't have to start form scratch when you get a new leader in."
Additionally, Kollmeyer noted that partnerships are greatly enhancing Forest Service operations.
"One of the things I've learned over the years is we need to work better with our partners to get things done," she said.
Ed Waldapfel, spokesman for the Sawtooth National Forest, said partnerships with local and regional groups like the Sawtooth Society, The Nature Conservancy, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, National Wild Turkey Federation and countless volunteers have been invaluable.
"We have grazing, timber, great wildlife, fisheries, backcountry and wilderness and tremendous recreation opportunities," he said. "We wouldn't be able to (offer so much) if not for our partners and volunteers."
Jane Kollmeyer is the second consecutive woman hired as supervisor of the Sawtooth National Forest. She replaces Ruth Monahan, who accepted a promotion as the regional director for recreation, lands and minerals in Alaska. Photo by David N. Seelig
