Saint Paul – Governor Tim Pawlenty today announced the appointment of Alan Ek, Dale Erickson, Rob Harper, and Joel Koemptgen, and the reappointment of Bruce Cox, Dave Epperly, Kathleen Preece, and John Rajala, as members of the Minnesota Forest Resources Council.

Cox, of Bagley, is the Clearwater County Land Commissioner. He is vice chair of the Minnesota Association of County Land Commissioners. Cox is reappointed to the council position for a county land commissioner to a four-year term that ends January 2, 2012.

Epperly, of Farmington, is the Minnesota State Forester. He also serves as director of the DNR Division of Forestry. Prior to joining the DNR, Epperly served as the St. Louis County Land Commissioner. He also previously served as director of Douglas County (Wisconsin) Resources. Epperly received a bachelor of science degree in forest management/surveying from Michigan Technological University. He is reappointed to the council as a representative of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to a four-year term that ends January 2, 2012.

Ek, of Shoreview, is a professor and head of the Department of Forest Resources, College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resources Sciences at the University of Minnesota. He received his bachelors of science and master of science degrees in forestry from the University of Minnesota, and a doctorate degree in forest measurements from Oregon State University. Ek was awarded a Fulbright Scholar grant for lecturing and research in environmental sciences in 1997. Ek is appointed to the research/higher education position on the council to a four-year term that expires January 2, 2012. He replaces Robert Stine on the council.

Erickson, of Birchdale, operates his family’s logging business. He is a former member of the Governor’s Advisory Task Force on the Competitiveness of Minnesota’s Primary Forest Products Industry, and has served two terms as president of the Minnesota Timber Producers Association. Erickson is appointed as the representative of commercial logging contractors to complete a four-year term that expires January 3, 2011. He replaces Richard Walsh on the council.

Harper, of Cass Lake, is the forest supervisor for the Chippewa National Forest and has over 17 years of experience with the U.S. Forest Service. Harper has worked as a district ranger, a water rights hydrologist, a firefighter and a smokejumper. He graduated from Lake Superior State College with a degree in geology and earned his master of science degree in geology from Indiana University. He is appointed as the U.S. Forest Service member to a four-year term that expires January 2, 2012. He replaces Jim Sanders on the council.

Koemptgen, of Duluth, is the president and CEO of Great Woods North, a non-profit corporation that is dedicated to responsible forest development. Koemptgen has served on the Minnesota Nature Conservancy Board and presently serves on the Board of Minnesota Audubon. He is appointed as the representative of an environmental organization to a four-year term that expires January 2, 2012. He replaces Paige Winebarger on the council.

Preece, of Bemidji, is the owner of 10 acres and manages 200 acres of forest land. She is the editor and publisher of BetterFORESTS magazine. Preece is reappointed to the council position for an owner of non-industrial private forest land to a four-year term which ends January 2, 2012.

Rajala, of Deer River, is the vice president of Rajala Lumber Company. Rajala Companies is vertically integrated, overseeing its products from the forest floor through early secondary manufacturing. Rajala Companies manages 25,000 acres of timberland and saws up to 30 million board feet of lumber annually, nearly all of it locally grown. Among his industry involvement, Rajala is President of the Minnesota Wood Campaign, and a board member of Itasca County’s Jobs 20/20 initiative. He has served as a member of the Composite Materials Standards Committee of the National Wood Window and Door Association, the Natural Resources Research Institute’s Forest Products Advisory Committee, and the Itasca Development Corporation. Rajala is reappointed as the representative of secondary wood manufacturers to a four-year term that expires January 2, 2012.

The Minnesota Forest Resources Council develops recommendations to the Governor and to federal, state, county and local governments with respect to forest resource policies and practices that result in the sustainable management, use, and protection of the state’s forest resources. The council consists of 17 members appointed by the Governor.