Office of the Secretary

For Immediate Release: October 7, 1999

Contact: Steve Adamske 202/208-5205
Jeff McCracken 926/978-5100

Secretary Babbitt Appoints Lester Snow as Regional Director
of the Bureau of Reclamation's Mid-Pacific Region

WASHINGTON, DC - Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt today announced the appointment of Lester Snow as Regional Director of the Bureau of Reclamation's Mid-Pacific Region. Snow succeeds Roger Patterson who retired in February 1999. The appointment becomes effectively immediately.

"Lester Snow has served the State of California and the Interior Department in one of the toughest jobs in California--managing the future water resources in that state," said Babbitt. "He did a remarkable job building consensus and managing California's complicated and often competing interests. I am delighted to have him on my management team."

As Director of the Mid-Pacific Region, Snow will oversee Reclamation's water projects in the northern two-thirds of California, northern Nevada, and the Klamath Basin in Southern Oregon. The Region is one of the integral components of the CalFed program which includes the Central Valley Project (CVP), a system of some 20 dams and reservoirs, 11 power plants and 500 miles of canals. The project provides urban water to 2.5 million people, irrigation water to more than 3 million acres, environmental water for fishery restoration and generating 5.6 billion kilowatt hours of electricity annually. The CVP is also the subject of landmark reform legislation-the Central Valley Improvement Act of 1992-that amends previous authorizations of the CVP to include fish and wildlife protection, restoration and mitigation as project purposes having equal priority with irrigation and domestic uses. Some 800 employees work in the Region.

Since 1995, Mr. Snow has served as Executive Director of the CalFed Bay-Delta Program and guided the collaborative efforts of State and Federal agencies together with leading urban, agricultural, and environmental interests to address the environmental and water management problems associated with the Bay-Delta system.

Prior to his leadership position at CalFed, Snow served as General Manager of the San Diego Water Authority from 1998 to 1995; Director of the Tucson Active Management Area of the Arizona Department of Water Resources from 1984 to 1987 ; and, Deputy Director of that same agency beginning in 1981. Prior to 1981, he held management positions with the Central Arizona Association of Governments.

Mr. Snow holds a master's degree in Water Resources Administration from the University of Arizona and a bachelor's degree in Earth Sciences from Pennsylvania State University.

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