This year that title belongs to Ron Sieg, regional supervisor for the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Flagstaff office.
Amongst the accomplishments, Sieg was recognized for his continued dedication to wildlife conservation, including work on the Kaibab Westside Habitat Improvement Project and Condor Lead Reduction Program in Arizona.
The Kaibab Westside project is an effort to improve habitat conditions for deer on the west side (of the Kaibab Plateau) winter range. This 24,000-acre proposed project will include pinyon-juniper cutting/grinding to help release shrubs for the deer, seed shrub species and use herbicide to limit cheatgrass expansion.
The Condor Lead Reduction Program is an effort that began in 2003 to increase voluntary compliance among hunters to use non-lead ammunition when hunting in the core range of the endangered California condor. Lead toxicity from ingesting lead bullet fragments from hunting is the leading cause of mortality for condors in Arizona.