Oklahoma’s Top Environmental Official Resigns
08-13-2008Calling his role “a joy” and “the best job I’ll ever have,” Miles Tolbert resigned his position as Oklahoma’s secretary for the environment. The announcement was made yesterday.
Tolbert is returning to the Oklahoma City law firm where he practiced before being appointed to the state’s top environmental post by Gov. Brad Henry in January, 2003. Tolbert said the law firm’s increased emphasis on environmental law presented an opportunity too good for him to pass up.
In a written statement, Gov. Henry said that Tolbert “fought tirelessly to protect the environment and the interests of Oklahoma citizens.” The governor also said that Tolbert will be missed and he cited the environmental director’s work on the Tar Creek Superfund site as a key accomplishment since Tolbert took office.
Tolbert said he was proud of that achievement as well as the agreement he worked out with neighboring Arkansas to reduce phosphorus discharges into Oklahoma streams and tributaries by 80 percent. Tolbert was also a key player in bringing over $40 million in federal aid to the state to help private landowners restore habitat along the banks of Oklahoma’s rivers and streams.
While the governor has yet to name a successor, Tolbert said a couple of top priorities awaited his replacement. Oklahoma is in the process of building a long-term plan for its water resources, and needs to refine the plan. He also called on lawmakers to work with landowners to promote conservation and environmental protection, noting that only 5 percent of the state is comprised of public lands.
Photo courtesy of the Oklahoma Office of the Secretary of the Environment, http://www.environment.ok.gov