The Interstate Environmental Commission Welcomes New Commissioners
On May 31st, 2019, New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo nominated Philip M. DeGaetano and Jeffrey A. Myers for appointment as Commissioners of the Interstate Environmental Commission. The New York State Senate confirmed their nomination on June 20th, 2019.
Philip M. DeGaetano retired in 2003 from a 35-year career with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Division of Water. During his tenure at NYSDEC, DeGaetano served the Division of Water in varying capacities related to Water Quality Management, including representing NYSDEC on the Management Committees of the Long Island Sound Study and the NY-NJ Harbor and Estuary Program (NY-NJ HEP) as well as supervising the State’s Water Quality Standards program, the Non-Point Source Program and the Division of Water’s Public Information/Education efforts. He retired from NYSDEC as Assistant Director of the Division of Water.
From 2003 through 2016, DeGaetano worked with New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission and NYSDEC to review and revise New York State’s Water Quality Standards and provided guidance related to New York State’s involvement with the NY-NJ Harbor and Estuary Program and EPA’s TMDL Oversight Workgroup.
From 2011 through 2013, DeGaetano worked for the Interstate Environmental Commission, providing programmatic, technical and financial management assistance and serving as IEC’s Executive Secretary from June 2012 through September 2013.
DeGaetano also serves as Treasurer and Board Member of the Hudson River Watershed Alliance and is an active member of the New York Water Environment Association’s Government Affairs Committee. DeGaetano holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Manhattan College and a M.S. in Environmental Engineering from Renssalear Polytechnic Institute.
Jeffrey A. Myers retired in 2017 after 35 years at the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. He spent his entire NYSDEC tenure in the Division of Water where he was involved with a number of programs, most notably:
- The Rotating Integrate Basin Studies (RIBS) Program, New York’s ambient lake, river and stream monitoring effort, which he directed from 199199.
- The Waters Inventory/Priority Waterbodies List (WI/PWL), a statewide inventory of all waters in the state that characterizes and tracks known and/or suspected water quality problems and identifies restoration plans. He established and managed the WI/PWL from 19982016.
- The biennial development of New York State’s Clean Water Act mandated Section 303(d) Impaired Waters List and Section 305(b) Water Quality Report to Congress, which he managed from 1998 until his retirement.
- Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) development for the restoration of waterbodies identified as not meeting water quality standards.
From 2010 until his retirement in 2017, Myers served as Director of the Bureau of Water Assessment and Management. In this role he also oversaw the Water Quality Standards and Reclassifications program, and the New York Water Quality Improvement Program (WQIP) and other grant procurement and award programs. He also represented NYSDEC on the Management Committee of the NY-NJ HEP for many years. Myers holds a B.S. in Environmental Engineering from Penn State University.
Together, DeGaetano and Myers bring over 70 years of experience in managing water quality projects and programs to the Interstate Environmental Commission.