My Billings Gazette

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks has hired Ohio's David Risley as its new chief of the new Fish and Wildlife Division.  It's a powerful position that entails almost every aspect of what FWP does except State Parks and handling the money matters.

Here was the job announcement that went out to the press on Thursday:

David Risley, a 30-year veteran of Ohio's state wildlife agency, will guide Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks’ new Fish and Wildlife Division, FWP Director Joe Maurier announced today.

Risley, 55, leaves his post as the wildlife management and research administrator with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Division, a position he's held since 2002. Risley will become the first administrator of Montana's recently combined Fish and Wildlife divisions.

"Montana is the Super Bowl of fish and wildlife opportunities, and to be offered a job like this is the dream of many within the natural resource management profession," Risley said. "I'm honored to have been selected and I'm looking forward to living and working in Montana, where the people clearly value and support their fish and wildlife resources."

Maurier said Risley was selected from a pool of 15 applicants and was among seven finalists interviewed for the job last month. "David has achieved an impressive number of accomplishments during his 30-year career in Ohio, and he has an excellent grasp of the issues facing fish and wildlife managers today. He has the right interests and personality for Montana and he's a great fit for FWP," Maurier said.

 Risley earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in wildlife management from Ohio State University. He began his career with the Ohio DNR's Wildlife Division as a private lands wildlife biologist in 1979. In his current position, Risley directs Ohio's wildlife management and research programs and is responsible for the division's 130 full-time employees and a $4.8 million budget. Risley's appointment will be effective Aug. 15.

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Risley will oversee the old fisheries division, wildlife division, enforcement division, information and education division and strategic planning.

Risley's hiring comes in the wake of the deputy director hiring of Art Noonan, pretty much a lifelong Democratic Party politician who doesn't hunt and hasn't bought a Montana fishing license dating back to at least 1989.

What it means is that the top three officials in FWP have a combined three years experience in Montana resource administration.  Risley has none.  Noonan has congressional staff experience in Washington, D.C., but none in Montana beyond the legislature.   Maurier was hired in 2006 out of Colorado to be the FWP Parks Division administrator and was Gov. Brian Schweitzer's college roommate.

How is it all going to work out for hunters, fishermen, campers, floaters, boaters, hikers and others who have spent their lives here invested in the outdoors?  Who knows?

But it's definitely a changing of the guard in Helena and for any insitutional knowledge whatsoever in guiding the department and protecting our fish and wildlife legacy for future generations, look down in the department -- don't look up.  -- mark