Doug Jones - Recreational Interest Groups
(President)

Doug Jones is a lifelong Alaskan, born in Anchorage and raised in Kenai. He graduated from Kenai High School in 1961 and attended Alaska Methodist University (now Alaska Pacific University) in Anchorage. After graduating with a degree in geology and mathematics, he went on to earn his master's from the University of Washington's Department of Oceanography where he also met his wife, Jan. They have two daughters in Chicago and he is an active member of Toastmasters, Rotary International, and Habitat for Humanity.

Like Many Alaskans, Doug enjoys mountain biking, running, and skate skiing. Unlike most Alaskans, Doug still runs about 10-12 kilometers every other day and another 20-30 kilometers bicycling or skiing on the opposing days. He even once ran the Crow Pass Marathon, a grueling 24 miles of scree, river crossing, and dense vegetation in the Chugach Mountains between Girdwood and Eagle River.

Doug was introduced to Cook Inlet RCAC in 1991 by volunteering to serve as a public member on the PROPS Committee, and eventually being elected to fill the Recreational seat on the Board of Directors in 2000. He is currently serving his fourth term as President.

Bob Shavelson - Environmental Interest Groups
(Vice President)

Bob Shavelson is a reformed lawyer with backgrounds in biology, chemistry, and environmental sampling and compliance. He was Editor-in-Chief of the University of Oregon's Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation, and has considerable experience in toxics, the Clean Water Act, and Right-to-Know issues. Prior to joining Inletkeeper in 1996, Bob worked in the United States Senate, Oregon's Senate Majority Office, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, the New Jersey Marine Sciences Consortium, and the University of Oregon's Ocean & Coastal Law Center. He currently serves on the Boards of Directors of the National Alliance of Water Keepers and the Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council. He holds a BA in Biology from Boston University and a JD from the University of Oregon.

John Douglas - City of Kenai
(Treasurer/Secretary)

John Douglas was first appointed to his seat on the Cook Inlet RCAC Board of Directors in 1992. In the years since, John has helped shape the Council by serving on the Executive Committee as Secretary/Treasurer, the PROPS Committee, and Chair of both the Protocol and Audit Committees.

John grew up in the oil patch. In the mid 1960s, he worked off the California coast near Ventura as a drilling production foreman and remembers watching the Granite Point platform being towed toward its final destination in Cook Inlet. John first came to Alaska in 1966 and then returned permanently in 1969 to become the production superintendent for Shell Operations. He retired from Shell after 34 years. John lives in a log home just north of Kenai with his wife of 58 years, Jean. They have 3 children, each of whom seem to share his professional drive. One is an M.D. and psychiatrist in California, another is a registered agent with the IRS, and a third is a Harvard M.B.A. graduate and vice president for Danaher Corporation.

Molly McCammon - Municipality of Anchorage

Molly McCammon is the Executive Director of the Alaska Ocean Observing System, a coalition of government, academic and private partners working together to integrate ocean observations and provide better information for users of the ocean and ocean resources. She serves as the chair of the National Federation of Regional Associations for Coastal and Ocean Observing and is also a member of the Ocean Research Advisory panel which advises federal ocean research agencies. Prior to that, she served for nearly a decade as Executive Director of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council, administering the billion-dollar restoration fund established as a result of a court settlement between the United States government and the state of Alaska and Exxon Corporation following the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Molly came to Alaska 33 years ago after graduating from the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in journalism. Since then, she has worked as a natural resource policy specialist for Alaska's governor, state legislature and department of fish and game, reported for radio and television news, and homesteaded in the Brooks Range.

James Showalter - Alaska Native Organizations

James Showalter and his family made a living in the area mostly off the land and sea. His family’s fishing site just north of the first trap (an earlier method of beach site fishing) provided his introduction to a way of life he maintains in some respects today. Mr. Showalter rode the wave of construction and oil field work as a millwright at the Valdez TransAlaska Pipeline Terminal, on various North Slope jobs, and on the new addition at Unocal, among other projects. In addition to his work on the CIRCAC Board of Directors and its Environmental Monitoring Committee, Mr. Showalter has been active in Alaska Native politics and tribal work. He has participated over the years with the Alaska Native Intertribal Council, Beluga Commission, National Congress of American Indians, and the Federal Subsistence Advisory Board. Mr. Showalter is also a member of the Peninsula Food Bank Board of Directors.

Grace Merkes - Kenai Peninsula Borough

Grace Merkes has been an Alaskan resident for over 50 years. She homesteaded in Sterling and lives there with her husband, Leon Merkes. They have 8 adult children, 7 of which still live in Alaska. Some of the government & non-profit organizations she has been involved in are: Alaska Municipal League, Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council, National & local Republican Women's Organizations, Chairperson of the AK. Human Rights Commission, Kenai Peninsula Brown Bear Task Force, elected Borough Assembly member (1991 to present), Sterling/Ridgeway Fire Service area Board, KPB Planning Commission and a State House of Representative candidate.

Grace was appointed by the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly to the Cook Inlet RCAC Board in 1998. Grace has seen the KPB grow from the days of the discovery of oil in the Swanson River area to what it is today, with the diversity of oil platforms, fishing industry, pipelines, refinery, LNG, Agrium, tourish, etc.. She currently sits on the PROPS, Executive and Audit Committees of Cook Inlet RCAC. Her goal on these committees & the Board is to weigh all issues fairly and represent all the people in a way that is in the best interests of the citizens of the Kenai Peninsula Borough, the Cook Inlet environment and the oil industry.

Rob Lindsey - City of Kodiak

Rob Lindsey was born in Kodiak several years prior to the 1964 earthquake and tidal wave. Commercial fishing was the source of income for his family and his first career for about 30 years in the waters around Kodiak, Shelikof Strait and the westward region.

A graduate of the Kodiak school system, he has enjoyed a wonderful life watching Kodiak and the whole state grow and still be seen as a pristine global treasure. The effects of the Exxon Valdez oil spill confirmed his belief that everyone is involved in the oil industry. Rob says it's been a great honor to be a part of the Cook Inlet RCAC.

Carla Stanley - City of Homer

Ms. Stanley began teaching marine science, art, and other subjects at Kenai Junior High. She later taught at both Soldotna and Skyview high schools before retiring to Homer in 1997 and has remained active in the marine science community over the years writing curriculum, serving as the Alaska Director for the Northwest Association of Marine Science Educators, plus working and volunteering for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Her efforts there are in some ways an extension of her work that dates back to the Exxon Valdez. After the spill, Ms. Stanley led an Alaska Department of Fish and Game team that tracked commercially caught King Salmon during summers. “The marine environment is very precious to me,” commented Ms. Stanley “Keeping it clean and safe is important.”

Gary Fandrei - Aquaculture Association

Gary Fandrei has a B.S. degree with a major in Ecosystems Analysis from the University of Wisconsin - Green Bay and an M.S. degree with a major in Environmental Biology from the University of Minnesota - Duluth. Gary is a Certified Fisheries Professional by the American Fisheries Society and has earned a Certificate in Nonprofit Management from the Foraker Group. Prior to coming to Alaska, Gary worked for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency as a Pollution Control Specialist and a Research Scientist. He currently holds the position of Executive Director for the Cook Inlet Aquaculture Association where he previously served as a biologist. Gary also serves as an alternate Director for the Cook Inlet Salmon Brand, Inc. (Kenai Wild), as a member of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council's Public Advisory Committee (PAC), as a Deputy Commander of the Kenai Composite Squadron of the Civil Air Patrol and recently served on the Finance Subcommittee and the Hatchery Subcommittee of the Alaska Legislative Task Force on Salmon Fisheries.

Mary Jacobs - Kodiak Island Borough

Mary Jacobs left the University Of California, Berkeley in 1971 to seek adventure in Alaska and found her first job fishing in Petersburg. She fished for the next 32 years, running her own boat and In 2003, she began working for the Kodiak harbormaster. The EXXON oil spill convinced her that as a lover of Alaska’s pristine environment she needed to be involved in crude oil policies; CIRCAC gave her a place to be involved Statement:  “I consider the role of CIRCAC as a liaison between the public and industry as its most important function. The staff and representatives on the council stay informed and prevent the perception that the oil industry works in a void in which the same industry controls the information.”

Mavis Owens - City of Seldovia

Mavis Owens came to Alaska in 1976 with the Air Force. She decided to stay in Alaska and started with the Anchorage Fire Department as an administrative assistant, later moving into dispatch. She left the Municipality in 1992 and moved to Seldovia full time in 2000. She and her husband, Jim cleared their land and built their home themselves.Mavis's background is mostly recreational boating. She started sailing out of Seward and Whittier in 1980 and has sailed extensively in PWS and Resurrection/Ailiak Bay Areas. She brought two sailboats ( a 28' and a 50') up to Seward/Whittier from Seattle, and sailed from Seward to Seldovia. They no longer have a sailboat but now own a Tolman skiff. She has worked for the City of Seldovia as the Fire Administrator and the Deputy City Clerk/Treasurer. She currenly works part-time for Hopkins Brothers Construction at the Borough Landfill.