NLIS 2
August 28, 2001
(Executive Council)
 

Premier announces senior appointment

Premier Roger Grimes announced today that Shane Mahoney has been appointed to the new position of executive director of science in the Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation. Mr. Mahoney most recently held the position of chief of wildlife ecosystem research with the Wildlife Division of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.

The position reports to the assistant deputy minister for Natural Heritage and Recreation and is responsible for the design, development, operation and supervision of a provincial scientific research program for inland fish and wildlife. The program will be in support of the management of these resources and will work in cooperation with the Wildlife Division and other divisions of the department.

In addition, the position will be responsible to work with post-secondary institutions in the province to foster cooperation on research in the field.

"The new position is being put in place now in recognition of the importance of scientific research to the proper management of our inland fish and wildlife resources," said Premier Grimes. "Mr. Mahoney brings considerable expertise to the position."

Media contact: Carl Cooper, Office of the Premier, (709) 729-3960.

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SHANE MAHONEY
Appointed as
Executive Director of Science
Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation

Born and raised in Newfoundland, Mr. Mahoney is a biologist, writer and frequent lecturer on environmental and resource conservation issues. He has a masters degree from Memorial University of Newfoundland and is completing his Ph.D. at the University of Calgary, Alberta, where he is studying with Valerius Geist, the well-known animal behaviourist and conservation writer. Mr. Mahoney has spent 20 years conducting extensive field investigations of wildlife species as diverse as caribou, seabirds, black bear and moose, and has been published in many scientific journals. He has authored or co-authored more than 120 scientific articles and reports, spanning fields as diverse as animal behaviour, parasitology, predator-prey interactions and population dynamics. In addition, he has authored management plans and co-authored wildlife policies for Newfoundland and Labrador. Over the past 20 years, he has been responsible for a variety of wildlife management programs, including inventories, quotas and hunting seasons for big game species in Newfoundland. In 1992, he was appointed head of wildlife research and inventory for all wildlife species in Newfoundland and Labrador and has been responsible for the creation and direction of a new wildlife research unit in the province.

2001 08 28                                                    10:25 a.m.