WASHINGTON--Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne today announced Henri Bisson will be Acting Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Alaska Affairs. He replaces Drue Pearce, whom President Bush nominated as the Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects.
Bisson has served as Deputy Director of Operations for the Bureau of Land Management since November 2006 and will continue in that position. He transferred from BLM's Alaska State Office, where he had served as the State Director since 2002.
"Henri Bisson's breadth of experience with both the BLM and Alaskan issues will be valuable in his role as advisor," Secretary Kempthorne said.
Bisson's career at BLM has spanned more than 30 years and included service in a variety of management positions in California, Arizona, Colorado and Alaska, as well as in the bureau's Washington offices. His accomplishments have included successful project management efforts, such as major mining operations, interstate pipelines, and a number of land management plans and amendments. In 2003, he received the Meritorious Presidential Rank Award, one of government's highest executive awards.
Bisson holds a B.S. in forestry from the University of New Hampshire and an M.S. in watershed management from the University of Arizona.