From Erika Bolstad in Washington D.C. --

Pat Pourchot, an official with the Alaska office of the National Audubon Society who once served as the commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources under former Gov. Tony Knowles, will be the Interior Department’s main representative in Alaska.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar today appointed Pourchot as his Special Assistant for Alaska Affairs. Pourchot will be based in Anchorage. Salazar said that Pourchot will work closely with Interior’s senior management in Alaska as well as the department’s D.C.-based Director of Alaska Affairs, Kim Elton.

"Pat's background with the Department of Interior, the state of Alaska Native organizations, and the environmental community make him uniquely qualified to represent the Department of the Interior in Alaska," Salazar said.

Pourchot spent seven years with the Department of Interior in the 1970s, including working with the Bureau of Land Management on environmental issues surrounding the transport of Alaska oil to U.S. markets. He left the department to work on Capitol Hill, where he helped fashion the Alaska Native Land Claims Act and worked on oil and gas, mining, forestry and environmental issues.

In 1981, Pourchot signed on as land manager for the Alaska Federation of Natives and then worked as resource manager for one of the Alaska Native regional corporations. He held leadership positions in both the Alaska House of Representatives and Alaska Senate.

Pourchot also served under former Gov. Tony Knowles as his legislative director, then went on to serve as commissioner of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. There, he was in charge of state oil and gas leasing, large mine developments, state parks and state land and water management. Most recently, he was the senior policy representative for Audubon Alaska.

Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, called Pourchot's appointment "a great choice."

"I'm confident Pat has the diplomatic skills to balance competing interests facing Interior issues in Alaska and won’t be bashful about telling the Obama administration the blunt truth about Alaska issues," Begich said. "I look forward to working with Pat and his team at Interior to advance their understanding of Alaska at the highest levels in Washington, D.C."

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, described Pourchot as "a person of integrity."

"The breadth of Pat’s experience in Alaska gives him a valuable depth of knowledge and understanding of Alaska’s issues," she said. "Whether we agree or disagree on specific issues, all of our office looks forward to working with Pat to furthering Alaska’s best interests."

The Interior Department manages more than 200 million acres of land in Alaska, and oversees the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs and Fish and Wildlife Service.