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Jeff Zenk, the Southwest region communication manager for the Washington Department of Ecology and a contributor to the agency’s air quality and climate programs, has been tapped as the next director of the Office of Chehalis Basin.
Zenk will now work with the seven members and five ex officio members of the Chehalis Basin Board to craft the Chehalis Basin Strategy and spend the group’s yearly budget, according to a Thursday news release from the Department of Ecology. The strategy includes dual goals of reducing flood-related damage and restoring and protecting aquatic species habitat in the Chehalis Basin.
“Jeff knows how to cultivate important partnerships with the public, tribes, elected officials, business groups and environmental and conservation organizations,” Ecology Director Laura Watson said in a news release. “He has an impressive record bringing people together to achieve sustainable outcomes based on consensus and science.”
Zenk has worked at the Department of Ecology since 2019. He has also worked as a legislative analyst with the Washington state Senate and has run his own public affairs firm.
“Jeff also grew up fishing, hunting and exploring the Chehalis Basin and knows firsthand how flooding and habitat loss are affecting people in the community. He brings a wealth of experience and understanding to this office,” Watson said.
The Legislature created the Office of Chehalis Basin in 2016 to address severe flooding and water degradation. Since 2012, state and local partners have spent more than $340 million on roughly 150 projects in the basin.
Zenk takes over for Andrea McNamara Doyle, who resigned as director last June after five years in the role. McNamara Doyle moved on to work in the private sector, allowing her to move back to her hometown of Bellingham, according to a news release. McNamara Doyle will now work as part of the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub initiative.
