In an effort to de-politicize the Department of Natural Resources, Governor-elect Jim Doyle said earlier this week he plans to ask the state Legislature to remove the position of DNR secretary from the Cabinet and reinstate appointment powers to the state DNR board.
Doyle told The Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune that he also intends to restore the Office of the Public Intervenor, which can investigate and sue government agencies for environmental misdeeds.
Former Gov. Tommy Thompson turned the DNR leadership into a gubernatorially appointed position and eliminated the position of public intervenor in 1995.
According to the chapter director of the Wisconsin Sierra Club, Caryl Terrell, the move would be a step forward for environmental protection.
\What we need is to restore the integrity of the Department of Natural Resources, which for over 80 years was led by a citizen board that then chose the secretary, and we need to go back to that system,"" Terrell said.
""We also need to restore the office of the public intervenor, which is the environmental watchdog of the Department of Justice,"" she said.
UW-Madison Professor of political science Dennis Dresang said he was surprised by Doyle's decision to voluntarily give up some of his powers.
""I think it's kind of interesting that regardless of political party, we have a governor who is essentially so committed to the idea of the DNR being a professional and nonpolitical agency that he's proposing to give up some of his own appointment power,"" he said.
According to Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, the last public intervenor to serve before the position was eliminated, Doyle promised throughout his campaign to reverse Thompson's changes and return the office to its original position.
""I'm very excited and pleased that Governor-elect Doyle continues to be committed to that important goal,"" Falk said.
Terrell said it is vital for the DNR to have a buffer from direct political control.
""Natural resources need to be protected for the long term, not for the election cycle,"" she said.
According to Dresang, however, any reorganization would have its negatives.
""The policies of the DNR would be farther away from the seat of power,"" he said.
Dresang added it was typical for environmental and conservation groups to support an independent DNR, though economic interests may not endorse Doyle's idea.
""When economic development goes contrary to environmental concerns, the business community would not like to have a strong or independent DNR,"" he said.
