News Release 520

DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES OPENS WILLOW SPRINGS
AND FREDERICKTOWN SATELLITE OFFICES

Volume 34-520

Contact: Kerry Cordray

(For immediate release)

573-526-4220

JEFFERSON CITY, MO, NOV. 22, 2006 -- Environmental assistance will be closer at hand to more southeast Missouri communities than ever, as the Missouri Department of Natural Resources holds open houses on Dec. 4 for its two newest satellite offices in Willow Springs and Fredericktown.

An open house for the Howell County Satellite Office will be held at the Willow Springs Chamber of Commerce, 112 E. Main St., from 9 to 10:30 a.m.

Later the same day, the new Madison County Satellite Office will host an open house from 1:30-3 p.m. at the Fredericktown City Hall, 24 W. Main St.

The department's satellite offices in Willow Springs and Fredericktown will complement and extend the environmental services provided to the region by the department's Southeast Regional Office at Poplar Bluff. Other offices opened to serve the southeast region during the last year include locations in Rolla and Portageville.

Department Director Doyle Childers will welcome visitors to both of the open houses. "Meeting community environmental needs more quickly by placing department staff closer to the public we serve is one of our most important department goals," said Childers. "The new offices in Willow Springs and Fredericktown will allow us to provide more timely and local service to many more communities in the region."

The Howell County Satellite Office holds one environmental specialist for drinking water and wastewater issues. The Madison County Satellite Office will be staffed by two environmental specialists dealing with drinking water, wastewater, air pollution, solid waste and hazardous waste issues. Both offices will also provide nearby counties with facility inspections and compliance assistance services.

In the last year the department has also opened satellite offices in Carthage, Maryville, Portageville, Rolla and Warsaw. The satellite offices are the newest part of the department's Field Services Division, which oversees the agency's five regional offices, thirteen additional satellite offices, Environmental Services Program and other key field activities. "We're on the front line of protecting the environment and serving the public," said Jim Macy, director of the division. "Our staff conduct inspections and provide technical assistance at regulated facilities, investigate environmental complaints, provide laboratory analytical services and respond to environmental emergencies. Adding the offices at Willow Springs and Fredericktown will mean we can protect the environment better and serve the public more efficiently." For a map of the department's regional and satellite offices, visit the department's web page at /regions/regions.htm.

The new offices can be contacted at the following addresses:

Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Howell County Satellite Office
906 Springfield Road
Willow Springs, MO 65793
Phone and fax: 417-469-0025

Missouri Department of Natural Resources
Madison County Satellite Office
120 West Main Street
Fredericktown, MO 63645
Phone: 573-783-2385
Fax: 573-783-6294

For news releases on the Web, visit www.dnr.mo.gov/newsrel. For a complete listing of the department's upcoming meetings, hearings and events, visit the department's online calendar at www.dnr.mo.gov/calendar/search.do.

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