George appointed to state Environmental Quality Commission

SALEM -- Tribal Council member Kathleen George has been appointed by Oregon Gov. Kate Brown as one of three new members of the Oregon Environmental Quality Commission.

If confirmed by the Oregon Senate during an April 26 hearing, George will begin serving on the commission on May 3.

“The Environmental Quality Commission, now more than ever, has a critical role to play to protect Oregon’s clean air and water resources,” Brown said. “As an oversight body, Oregonians expect the EQC to take decisive action to create rules and guide policies that are protective of human health and preserve vital habitats of diverse species by ensuring our air and water are clean and available for future generations of Oregonians.”

The commission is a five-member panel appointed by the governor to four-year terms. Members serve as the state Department of Environmental Quality’s policy and rulemaking board. It also issues orders, judges appeals of fines or other departmental actions, and appoints the department’s director.

“I am honored to be appointed by Gov. Kate Brown to the Environmental Quality Commission,” George said. “Healthy people, lands and water are fundamental to Oregon’s future and now is an important time to protect and improve that future for all Oregonians. I hope that my experience can be of service to the commission, our governor and our state.”

George will join the commission along with fifth-generation Oregonian Wade Mosby and Oregon State University associate professor Molly Kile. Current commission members Sam Baraso and Ed Armstrong will continue serving on the commission.

George was elected to Tribal Council in September 2016. Before her election, she was director of Spirit Mountain Community Fund, the Tribe’s philanthropic arm, from September 2011 through her election to council.

She also worked for the Tribe’s Natural Resources Department as its environmental coordinator from 1996 to 2002 before moving to eastern Oregon to work for the Umatilla Tribe as a water policy and senior policy analyst. She also worked for the Department of Environmental Quality in Pendleton and owned a natural resources consulting business, Cedar Consulting.

George grew up in Milwaukie and graduated from Dominican University in California with a bachelor’s degree in environmental biology.