The Coconino National Forest announced on Thursday, Aug. 15, that acting Red Rock Ranger District District Ranger Alex Schlueter has been selected to fill the position permanently, starting Sunday, Aug. 25.
“Some of the ethics that I learned from my grandfather, about caring for the landscape [is] not only doing the right thing on the ground, but having emotions attached to what you’re managing,” Schlueter said, citing his grandfather as his conservation role model. “It provides an ability to show empathy to other people who may not have the same perspective. But what you can connect on is that you all care about this landscape.”
Schlueter grew up in Minnesota, where he received a bachelor’s degree in recreation resource management and a master’s degree in natural resources science and management from the University of Minnesota. His first Forest Service job was at Lake Superior in northeastern Minnesota as a ranger in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. He spent his youth whitetail hunting with his grandfather and uncles, and returns to his home state annually in November for the hunt with his lifetime hunting license.
“What attracts me to this agency is balancing all those different uses,” Schlueter said. “As a hunter, something I appreciate is the opportunity to hunt on national forests, as opposed to some landscapes where preservation is the approach. My grandfather worked in the timber industry, so that definitely is something that I understand the need for, sustainable supplies of timber for the nation … My family history plays an influence on why I’m more attracted to that multiple use mandate versus that preservation mandate.”
Schlueter said his three main priorities would be carrying out the Forest Service’s national Wildfire Crisis Strategy and fuel reduction within the forest, recreation management and riparian area management.
“Within the next year, we’ll be doing some modeling and looking at fire risk around Sedona and Village of Oak Creek so that we can better set ourselves up to where to prioritize our resources and do treatments,” Schlueter said. “That is going to take significant time, but I think in the next year to two years, we’ll be not only identifying those areas, but also coming up with proposed actions to get into our planning process.”
“A typical day off I would spend with my girlfriend and our dog,” Schlueter said. “We’d probably get up, go hiking for a couple hours before it gets too hot out, or if it’s in the winter, maybe go exploring and do a longer hike. And then I like to cook, so maybe going to the grocery store, grabbing ingredients and try a new recipe and just relaxing at home for the evening.”
He said he has hiked about half the trails in the district and aims to complete them all eventually.
“I’m not in a hurry to move up the ladder, I want to make sure every stop of my career I feel like I’ve made a positive contribution,” Schlueter said. “I anticipate being here at least about five years and then who knows, but probably being a forest supervisor at some point.”
Several other staff vacancies remain in the Red Rock Ranger District, including district hydrologist and an administrative assistant. The district has hired two resource assistants who will start later in the year, through Durango, Colo.,-based nonprofit Conservation Legacy, for a period of one year.
“We’ll have resource assistance coming on … they’re going to help with some of our OHV monitoring challenges, and just get plugged into the greater Sedona Recreation Collaborative effort,” Schlueter said. “Similarly, we’re bringing on an archaeologist. “They’re not a Forest Service employee, but we’ve got a different type of funding that we can use for those types of programs.”
“I’m sure there will be many unpredictable things that come up over the next few years, but what I take solace in is that I’ve had an opportunity to establish a number of relationships here, and can depend on them with partners and with individuals, and that’s what’s going to get us through,” Schlueter said.
