My Co-Worker

County’s deputy manager for the environment hired

WAILUKU – Mayor Charmaine Tavares has appointed Gregg Kresge to be deputy director of the county’s new Department of Environmental Management.

Kresge most recently worked as assistant environment and natural resources manager and senior scientist for Parsons UXB on the Kahoolawe ordnance clean-up, where he oversaw compliance with disposal and storage regulations for hazardous waste.

He previously worked as a consultant and owner of World Environmental Services and Training in Saipan, as an environmental planner for the Northern Marianas Islands government and as an environmental consultant and investigator on environmental safety issues and PCB contamination.

Kresge has a master’s of science degree in environmental management from the University of San Francisco.

Tavares said Kresge’s technical expertise would be an asset to the county.

"His work in Saipan and Kahoolawe brings a distinctive view of how environmental management and government services are administered in an island state," she said in a statement announcing the appointment.

Tavares has named Cheryl Okuma, an attorney and former deputy director for wastewater management in Honolulu, to be director of environmental management.

The new Department of Environmental Management will be separated from the current county Department of Public Works and Environmental Management on July 1. Voters last year approved a charter amendment to split the department, to have the Department of Public Works focus on roadways, building codes and facilities management, and the Department of Environmental Management responsible for wastewater and solid waste services.