A Newcastle resident and former municipal official recently became the acting commissioner of the Dept. of Environmental Protection (DEP).
Patricia “Pattie” Aho, of Newcastle, a former lobbyist, first came to the agency as a deputy commissioner in February of this year. Following the brief tenure of former Commissioner Darryl Brown and the departure of his temporary replacement, Jim Brooks, Gov. Paul LePage appointed Aho acting commissioner.
It’s unclear, at this time, whether LePage will nominate Aho as Brown’s permanent successor. “It’s clearly the governor’s decision,” Aho said. “I just hope to be able to stay involved with the policy issues at the department.”
Aho, born in Boothbay Harbor, is familiar to area residents as a former Boothbay Harbor selectman and one-time chairwoman of the Boothbay Region Refuse Disposal District, one of the first of its kind in the state.
Aho was already commuting to Augusta in 1989, while her husband, Ron Aho, was working for the Dept. of Marine Resources at its Boothbay Harbor laboratory.
The young couple “drew a radius on the map to see what would basically split our commutes,” Aho said. The mid-point turned out to be Newcastle, and “I’ve loved it here ever since,” she said.
Aho served her new community as the chairwoman of the Newcastle Appeals Board, as well as a member of the town’s finance and governance committees.
Outside politics, Aho served on the boards of the Lincoln County Community Theater and the Maine Tourism Association, as well as other advisory boards and committees.
LCCT has a special significance for the Ahos, as they met while cast members in the company’s mid-80s production of “Guys and Dolls.”
An alumnus of Nasson College and Western New England College, Aho’s private sector career as a business advocate focused on environmental issues and government relations.
Her first job as a lawyer was as a staff attorney at the Maine Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 1984, where she started an environmental advocacy program.
“I loved learning governmental regulations and legislative/regulatory issues,” Aho said.
Her career includes a 13-year stint as executive director of the Maine Petroleum Association, a period as vice president of the Maine Oil Dealers Association and, most recently, six years at Pierce Atwood Consulting, a subsidiary of a large law firm with offices in five New England cities, Washington, D.C. and Sweden.
“I’ve been doing this work in one way or another for the private sector since 1984,” Aho said. “I always wanted to have an opportunity to experience it from the other side.”
Aho got that opportunity just five months ago, when she accepted the position as deputy commissioner. “I was thrilled to get a chance to start at DEP and work on the policy and environmental issues from within the agency,” she said.
Aho is continuing Brown and LePage’s efforts to streamline the agency’s regulatory process while, according to a DEP press release, “ensuring sustainable economic development in Maine through a balanced stewardship of the state’s natural resources.”
At the top of Aho’s list was developing a policy to ensure agency enforcement actions “would be done in a rapid and fair manner,” addressing criticisms about the speed and equity of such actions prior to Aho’s tenure.
The agency is also reviewing nearly 200 rules. “We have layer upon layer upon layer of laws and regulations,” Aho said. “Are there any that are outmoded, outdated, unnecessary? If there are, can they be repealed?”
The answer appears to be ‘yes,’ as the department will propose rules for repeal in the coming weeks, as well as changes to other rules to make them “more understandable” for the public, Aho said.
“We are also working diligently to reduce the length of time it takes an applicant to receive a permit,” Aho said.
The department’s goals also include the reform of shoreland zoning rules, an important issue for Lincoln County, with its miles of coastline along islands, peninsulas, lakes and wetlands.
The DEP hopes to “find ways to make our shoreland zoning guidelines less confusing and easier to understand,” Aho said, particularly in regards to natural resource protection zones.
“The guidelines are decades old and they really haven’t been updated recently to mesh with all our other laws and rules,” Aho said. The department, in keeping with its overall goals, hopes to “un-layer” shoreland zoning and “allow more say at the municipal level,” she said.
Aho spoke highly of her new boss, Gov. Paul LePage.
“I find him very bright, very analytical and very smart,” Aho said. “I’m enjoying the way he reviews documents and analyzes those documents. He reads everything and I find that characteristic a good quality for a decision-maker because he is well-informed.”
Acting Commissioner Aho’s day starts at 7:30 a.m. “if I’m lucky,” she said. The day’s activities “can range anywhere from fielding questions regarding proposed licenses and permits” to addressing “proposed enforcement and compliance issues” to, like any manager, dealing with personnel issues and day-to-day administration.
Aho is the DEP’s primary liaison to the legislature and the LePage administration. This time of year, with the legislature still in session, she spends “a lot of time” discussing bills with Maine lawmakers.
For the acting commissioner, “there is no typical day,” Aho said. “I’ve learned that so far.”
Aho encourages Lincoln County residents seeking “fast and effective answers and assistance” from the department to visit http://maine.gov/dep or call the DEP Office of Innovation and Assistance at (800) 789-9802.
