New Fisheries Director - Tom
O’Connell
I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Tom O’Connell as DNR’s new
Fisheries Director, effective immediately.
Those of you who know Tom, know that he brings a great personal passion for
protection of our fishery resources as well as the scientific and management
experience that will be critical to addressing the management challenges to
insure sustainable fishery resources for future generations.
As the Fisheries staff knows well, this is not only a time of great challenge,
but also one of great opportunity. We have important decisions to make regarding
blue crab conservation and oyster restoration strategies, and much work underway
in support of the new Fisheries Management Task Force. At the same time, we are
benefitting from new resources provided both by recreational anglers and through
the Governor’s commitment of matching funds. Together, they give us a chance to
work together for real progress on behalf of these resources and our
stakeholders.
A 15-year veteran of the department, Tom is extraordinarily well-respected by
colleagues and stakeholders alike. Since joining the DNR Fisheries Service in
1993, Tom has served as a Striped Bass Program Biologist, Legislative and Policy
Manager, Oyster Restoration Program Manager, and most recently the Assistant
Director for Estuarine and Marine Fisheries.
Tom holds a Bachelor of Science from the State University of New York’s College
of Environmental Science and Forestry. Before coming to DNR, Tom worked as a
biologist with Wildlife International, Ltd. and as a wildlife and fisheries
technician with both the New York Department of Environmental Conservation and
the Adirondack Ecological Center.
Please join me in congratulating Tom on this well-deserved appointment. I would
also like to take this time to thank Harley Speir for serving as the Acting
Director of the Fisheries Service for the past several months, and all of the
rest of the Fisheries Service staff for your hard work and dedication during
this time of transition.
John
April 4, 2008