Vermont fish and wildlife commissioner sets out on emergency transportation mission

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Commissioner Chris Herrick plans to leave the department’s top job at the end of the month to take a leading role in managing emergencies at the Vermont Transportation Agency.

Andrea Shortsleeve, a habitat biologist who works with the Fish and Wildlife Service’s private lands program, will replace Herrick as interim commissioner on Dec. 1, marking the first time in its history that a woman has led the department.

Shortsleeve is “really a trained habitat specialist” who spent 10 years with the U.S. Forest Service before joining the department, said Julie Moore, secretary of the Natural Resources Agency, an umbrella organization that covers fish and wildlife.

Moore said Herrick informed him of his plans to leave the department in early November and told him that because of his background in emergency management, “this felt like an opportunity to go home.”

Herrick, who spent most of his career in emergency services until 2021, when his tenure with the wildlife department began, told VTDigger that the new position took him “back to my roots.”

He previously served as the state’s hazardous materials chief, director of Vermont Emergency Management, deputy commissioner of the Department of Public Safety and a ski patroller and emergency medical technician, he said.

in 2023 Vermont’s devastating summer floodsHerrick was running the state’s emergency operations center when the incumbent emergency manager had a disagreement. He said it’s harder not to be in an emergency management role. second round a year later.

“When we had the flood last year, I was just watching everyone running around helping and doing nothing,” he said. “I didn’t feel good about it.”

Herrick will serve as director of safety and emergency management at the Transportation Agency. Here, he will oversee emergencies ranging from hazardous material spills to post-disaster road closures and threats to infrastructure including airports, railways and highways.

Herrick, the fish and wildlife department commissioner, was caught in a stalemate. Contentious debate between hunters and animal protection advocates It was about how to manage the state’s wildlife and was the subject of an ethics complaint filed by Protect Our Wildlife, a group that advocates for animal welfare.

While wildlife groups often criticize Herrick, the commissioner said he tries to include them. Legislators and advocates have overseen the implementation of new best management practices for trapping. new rules are insufficient.

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Although the discussions have reached a fever pitch over the past few years, Herrick said that had nothing to do with his decision to resign.

“Obviously, I’m happy that people are voicing their opinions,” he said. “Sometimes it gets a little over the top, but I never took it personally. I’m glad people are busy.

Herrick listed trapping rule changes among the accomplishments he is most proud of during his tenure with the department, along with habitat restoration and connectivity projects, floodplain restoration and endangered species protection.

Moore said Gov. Phil Scott appoints department commissioners and appointing Herrick’s replacement could take up to a year, but he doubts the process will take that long.