Jay Smith, who has served as an executive with forest restoration companies such as Good Earth Power AZ and Southwest Forest Products, has been appointed as the Coconino County Forest Restoration Director.
In the position, he will look at both agency and operational advocacy opportunities in supporting forest industry development and provide significant capacity to address the number one public safety issue facing Coconino County, catastrophic wildfires and post-wildfire flooding.
Smith will also work on pilot projects that involve a potential expansion of Good Neighbor Agreements to include counties and to work with the Ecological Restoration Institute at Northern Arizona University to design and promote a wood manufacturing business cluster and biomass facility in northern Arizona.
“By hiring a Forest Restoration Director, Coconino County has demonstrated its commitment to bring innovation and leadership to move critical forest restoration objectives forward,” said District 1 Supervisor Art Babbott. “Viable forest industries are a pre-requisite for successful restoration and Jay’s decade long involvement in the private sector will serve the interests reestablishing successful industry in our region.”
Smith earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Forest Management from Northern Arizona University.