FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Aug. 23, 2013
DEP SECRETARY APPOINTS DREW
BARTLETT AS DEPUTY SECRETARY FOR WATER POLICY AND ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION
TALLAHASSEE — Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary
Herschel T. Vinyard Jr. today announced the appointment of Drew Bartlett as
Deputy Secretary for Water Policy and Ecosystem Restoration. Drew Bartlett
replaces Greg Munson, who is leaving the Department to pursue a professionally
challenging opportunity in the private sector. Bartlett will start in the new role Aug. 26.
“Greg Munson was instrumental in implementing
Governor Scott’s landmark Everglades water quality plan and I am thankful for
his service,“ Vinyard said. “Greg’s contribution to water supply planning will also
have a positive impact on all Floridians for decades to come.”
Drew Bartlett most recently served as Director of the Division of
Assessment and Restoration. Under Bartlett’s leadership during the two previous
years, the state has implemented the most comprehensive nutrient water quality
standards in the nation. Bartlett also made it a priority to protect and
restore Florida’s springs. In 2011, the Department adopted pollution limits for all the
state’s springs. Bartlett’s team also set Florida's first restoration roadmap
for a spring in the Santa Fe River basin.
“One of my top priorities remains getting
Florida’s water right, and Drew Bartlett is committed to using the best science
to restoring the health of our important ecosystems.” Vinyard added, with high
praise for Bartlett’s accomplishments.
In addition to working with the Water Management Districts, the
Deputy Secretary for Water Policy and Ecosystem Restoration will also oversee
both the Division of Environmental Assessment and Restoration and the Office of
Ecosystem Projects, which coordinates and assists with the policy development
and implementation of a variety of restoration projects, including Everglades
restoration. The Division of Environmental Assessment and Restoration is currently housed under Regulatory Programs. With Bartlett’s appointment, the Division will shift over to the Office of Water Policy and Ecosystem
Restoration.
“The Department under Secretary Vinyard is very focused on water
quality, water quantity and ecosystem priorities,” said Drew Bartlett. “I look
forward to continuing to advance the ball on water quality restoration issues
that are critical to our state including Everglades restoration.”
Replacing Bartlett as director of the Division will be Tom Frick,
who has overseen the state's restoration goal (TMDL) and restoration plan (BMAP) programs for three years as Bureau Chief of Watershed Restoration within the Division. Frick, who earned a bachelor's in chemistry from Florida State University and started with the Department in 1994, has more than 18 years of experience in environmental sciences.
About Drew Bartlett
Drew Bartlett has served as the
Director of the Division of Environmental Assessment and Restoration since
2011. Prior to his current position, he was Chief of the Standards, Monitoring,
& TMDL Branch at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 office, responsible
for implementing those programs authorized by the Clean Water Act.
Prior to his work in surface water
quality, Bartlett spent 10 years implementing programs under the Safe Drinking
Water Act. For seven years, he
administered the public water supply program in the southeast through the
transition of the 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments. He also administered
for three years the ground water monitoring, wellhead protection, and
underground injection control programs in the southeast. Bartlett earned a bachelor's in Industrial Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology and master's in Business Administration from Georgia State University.
For a photo of Bartlett click here or here.
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