News Release

May 4, 2006

Citizens' council board chooses new officers, seats new member

The Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council board elected its seven-member executive committee May 2 and 3 during a meeting in Valdez.

The board also seated a new member who will represent the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce.

The executive committee, which will serve until the board’s May 2007 meeting, is as follows:
Stan Stephens of Valdez, Steve Lewis of Seldovia, Marilynn Heddell of Whittier, and Jane Eisemann of Kodiak were re-elected as president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer, respectively.

Blake Johnson of Kenai was re-elected as an at-large member of the executive committee, while Patience Andersen Faulkner of Cordova and John Velsko of Homer were newly elected as at-large members.

Bill Schoephoester of Anchorage was seated as the new representative of the state chamber of commerce. He is a consultant to the non-crude oil industry in the state, including work on oil-spill prevention and contingency plans. He replaces Tom Jensen on the board.

The Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council is an independent non-profit corporation whose mission is to promote environmentally safe operation of the Valdez Marine Terminal and the oil tankers that use it. The council's work is guided by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, and its contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. The council's 18 member organizations are communities in the region affected by the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, as well as aquaculture, commercial fishing, environmental, Native, recreation, and tourism groups.