JUNEAU — Gov. Mike Dunleavy has nominated BLM petroleum engineer Jessie Chmielowski to replace Cathy Foerster on the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.
The nomination, subject to legislative confirmation, was announced to the Legislature on Monday.
Foerster, a petroleum engineer, recently retired after working for 14 years on the commission, which is charged under state law to ensure Alaska’s publicly owned subsurface oil and gas is not wasted.
The board has three members — a geologist, a petroleum engineer and a member of the public — and board members receive state salaries for their full-time work.
The board recently became embroiled in controversy over its former public member, retired state legislator Hollis French. Dunleavy fired French in February, citing “neglect of duty.” French was appointed to the seat by former Gov. Bill Walker and could challenge Dunleavy’s decision.
French’s seat remains vacant. The board has a quorum of two, meaning it can continue to operate with one member missing.
According to her resumé, Chmielowski graduated from Rice University in 1999 and began working for BP in 2000 after a year with Bayer Corp. She worked in that role until joining the BLM as a senior petroleum engineer in 2016.
According to the state’s professional licensing database, she is a registered professional petroleum engineer under the name Jessie Louise Carr Chmielowski.