New supervisor named for Colville National Forest

PUBLIC LANDS — The Colville National Forest has a new supervisor hired from within the forest’s ranks.

Rodney Smoldon, currently the district ranger on the Colville’s Three Rivers Ranger District, has been appointed by Jim Peña, the Pacific Northwest Region’s top Forester based in Portland.

Rodney Smoldon is filling the head position in the Colville after former supervisor Laura Jo West left in June to become supervisor of the Coconino National Forest in northern Arizona.

“Rodney has experience working with diverse resource professionals and stakeholders, and is able to build strong internal and external relationships,” Peña said.

Smoldon has been a district ranger on the Okanogan-Wenatchee, Plumas and El Dorado National Forests, and deputy forest supervisor in the Region 6 headquarters in Portland.

An eastern Washington native, Smoldon graduated from Eastern Washington University in 1985 with a degree in recreation and leisure services. Smoldon began his career on the Colville in 1985 working as a forestry technician on the Kettle Falls District. He was a recreation program manager on the Klamath National Forest in California and a district ranger on the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest in Cle Elum, Washington.

Headquartered in Colville, Washington, the Colville National Forest covers 1.1 million acres in northeastern Washingtron. It includes the Kettle River, Selkirk mountain ranges, and the upper reaches of the Columbia River and has 486 miles of hiking trails.

The Pacific Northwest Region consists of 16 National Forests, 59 District Offices, a National Scenic Area, and a National Grassland. These management units comprise 24.7 million acres in Oregon and Washington and employ approximately 3,550 employees.