Federal Coordinating Committee
In June 2010, the Departments of Agriculture, Defense, and Interior formalized their commitment to the America's Longleaf Restoration Initiative and the goal of restoring 8 million acres in a Memorandum of Understanding. This landmark agreement also established the FCC, a committee to coordinate efforts among federal agencies to restore the longleaf pine ecosystem across nine Southern States. The Federal agencies are working with over 30 State agencies and NGOs who have signed a Declaration of Partnerships that commits each organization to being actively engaged in the restoration effort. In 2023, a new Memorandum of Understanding was signed to renew partnership efforts to restore longleaf pine forests across the South for another fifteen years.
Principle Agency Contacts:
- Department of Agriculture:
- Ken Arney, USDA Forest Service, Regional Forester
- TBD, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service
- Department of Defense:
- TBD
- Department of the Interior:
- Mike Oetker, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Regional Director, Southeast Region
The FCC activities are supported by the following staff from the participating agencies:
- Department of Defense:
- Anne Jewell, Natural Resources Management Specialist (Wildland Fire)
- U.S. Army Corp of Engineers:
- Jeremy Crossland, Program Manager for Land Use and Natural Resources
- USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service:
- Matthew Vandersande, Longleaf Partnership Initiative Coordinator
- USDA Forest Service:
- Kay Reed, Director of Cooperative Forestry
- Earlene Jackson, Regional Silviculturist
- USDA Farm Service Agency:
- T.J. Wilson, Director, Conservation Division
- Emily Horsley, Agricultural Program Specialist
- U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:
- David Gonzales, Conservation Partnerships Chief
- National Park Service:
- Mark Frey, Acting Chief of Science and Natural Resource Management