BOARD OF DIRECTORS
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Nils Lunder, President of the Board
Russell Reid, Vice President of the Board James Wilson, Treasurer Phil Noia Bennie Johnson |
Staff
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Michael Hall
District Manager
Michael Hall started working with the District in 2020 bringing with him a diverse and multidisciplinary background in natural resource management. He spearheads our conservation programs which focus on addressing issues in the unique forest ecosystems of Plumas County. Michael has worked as a wildlife technician, park interpreter, GIS specialist, trail builder, and grant writer for organizations in Colorado, Montana, and throughout the Sierra Nevada region. He hopes to combine these skills to implement projects that will not only the help natural resources, but the communities that depend on them.
Michael lives in Quincy with his wife Mandy and dog Scout and enjoys a multitude of mountain sports. When not at work you can find them somewhere deep in the wilderness, often lost, seldom bored, and usually hungry. |
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Jacob Potter
Sierra Nevada Alliance Forestry Fellow
Jacob grew up in Southern California and fostered an appreciation for the outdoors exploring the local mountains and desert. He is a graduate of Humboldt State University, having received a BS in Environmental Science. Since college he has explored the conservation field in a variety of positions related to restoration, invasive plant management, wilderness and trails. He is now focused on helping improve the health of California's forests and looks forward to joining the RCD's and its partners' conservation efforts in Plumas County.
For more information on the Sierra Corps Forestry Fellowship Program, click here. |
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Julia Sidman
Conservation Project Coordinator
Originally from the Boston area, Julia came to the District in the spring of 2020 to work as a forestry technician on our Moonlight Fire Area Restoration Project. After receiving a degree in Forest Ecology from UMass Amherst, Julia has worked in various states across the country as a forester, trail builder, and outdoor educator. With a passion for forest health and resiliency, she is excited to contribute her skills to the RCD team and such important work!
Julia enjoys hiking, struggling through crossword puzzles, and inundating friends and family with pictures of her cooking and baking adventures. |
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Brad Underwood
Conservation Project Coordinator
Brad Underwood is a Plumas County native with roots in the community that reach back five generations. After earning a bachelor’s degree in Biology from CSU Chico and working throughout the Sacramento Valley in wildlife and fisheries management, Brad returned to Plumas County in 2019 as a forestry technician with the Feather River RCD. In working with the RCD, he hopes to bring a local voice to the table while developing projects that will conserve and enhance the district’s resources and communities. He currently serves as a Conservation Project Coordinator at the RCD, where he is most notably involved with the Moonlight Area Reforestation Project and projects within the Crescent Mills Wetland Conservation Area.
Brad spent much of his childhood on cattle ranches and in the mountains surrounding Indian Valley. He and his family enjoy the resources of the area by hunting, fishing, woodcutting, and taking advantage of the many forest roads and OHV trails within the county. |
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Leaf Van Pelt
Operations Manager
Having grown up in Plumas County, Leaf brings a lifetime of knowledge of experience living and working in the area. After graduating with a BA in Liberal Arts from Saint Mary's College of California, Leaf spent several years traveling the world gaining useful perspective to bring back to his community of Plumas County. Leaf places strong value in his community and the environment surrounding it and has found an avenue to promote the worth of natural resources and the importance of their sustainability through working with the RCD.
Leaf started as the Operations Manager with the RCD in May 2021 and is dedicated to being a supportive and effective addition to to Feather River Resource Conservation team and its partners. |
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Mitch Poling grew up in Michigan and attended Grand Valley State University. There, he studied natural resource management, with an emphasis on wildlife management and ecosystem restoration. He moved here with his partner Jac and his dog Milo, and they pretty quickly became enamored with Plumas County. With its unique ecology and beauty, Mitch decided that this is where he wanted to work to promote the wellbeing of wildlife and the ecosystems that they reside in. While living here, he has done surveys for Northern goshawks, black-backed woodpeckers, California spotted owls, Sierra Nevada yellow legged frogs, willow flycatchers, and carnivores, as well as various habitat restoration and fire management efforts. Mitch started working at the RCD in 2021 as a forestry technician.
When it's the off season for field work, he's oftentimes working in commercial kitchens. When he isn't doing field work or working in the kitchen, he enjoys a good hike, camping, birding, fishing, reading old sci-fi novels, playing guitar, experiencing new music, watching old cartoons, and relaxing by the creek. Mitch's favorite bird is the hermit thrush! |
