History - Jack W. Thomas, 13th Chief, 1993-1996

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Jack Ward Thomas has published approximately 250 books, chapters, and articles, primarily in elk, deer, and turkey biology, wildlife disease, wildlife habitat, songbird ecology, northern spotted owl management, and land use planning. He has published several books including "The Elk of North America Ecology and Management," "Wildlife Habitats in Managed Forests The Blue Mountains of Oregon and Washington," and "Wildlife Habitats in Managed Rangelands The Great Basin of Southeastern Oregon." Thomas served on the editorial board of the Journal of Forestry, associate editor for the Western Journal of Forestry, and finally as associate editor for the Landscape and Urban Planning. He received a number of awards, including USDA Distinguished Service and Superior Service Awards; Elected Fellow, Society of American Foresters; National Wildlife Federation, Conservation Achievement Award for Science; The Aldo Leopold Medal, The Wildlife Society; General Chuck Yeager Award, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation; and USDA FS Chief's Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer. In addition, Thomas served as president of The Wildlife Society 1976 1977.

Amid controversy about how new Chiefs should be appointed, Thomas was given the job on December 1, 1993, as a political appointee with the assurance that he would be converted to a career appointment through the Senior Executive Service (through which Chief's Peterson and Robertson were appointed). Thomas moved quickly to address a demoralized agency, with the public in opposition to practically anything that the Forest Service proposed to do.

Controversy about the Northwest Forest Plan for the spotted owl region was especially troubling. Another challenge that he faced was implementation of the so called "salvage rider" passed by the 104th Congress to address timber salvage on forests that had extensive fire killed trees. A hostile populace, although small in number, became troubling with increasing violence directed at the agency and employees.

Jack Ward Thomas wrote: We don't just manage land we're supposed to be leaders. Conservation leaders. Leaders in protecting and improving the land...with a broad view of natural resource leadership, and that includes people, because people are part of ecosystems....The Forest Service is going to be a leader in ecosystem management...right now it's more a concept than a practice....What does ecosystem management mean? It means thinking on a larger scale than we're used to. It means sustaining the forest resources over very long periods of time. And from that will flow many goods and services, not just timber. Ecosystem management is not just a timber sale; it's putting the timber sale into a bigger picture, including the watersheds, wildlife, roads, and people's needs and values...Wood production will continue to be a significant part of our program, but we will look more at multiple variables, not just production. We will be more pro-active on wildlife programs, fish programs, and recreation programs...we have to involve the citizens of this country...We are going to have to improve our technical skills across the board...We need to be prepared to move into the 21st century or we'll be left in the dust.