Personnel Notes

Former U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Director Marcia McNutt has landed a new job editing Science, the research journal published by the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

McNutt, who left the Interior Department’s USGS in February, will become editor-in-chief of the Science family of journals on June 1, the organization announced Tuesday.

She will be the first woman to hold the job since pioneering inventor Thomas Edison founded the journal in 1880.

James Hansen, the NASA scientist who issued early warnings about climate change and has spoken with increasing urgency about the threat, is retiring to focus on his advocacy work.

Hansen, 72, said in news accounts that retirement after 46 years at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies will enable stepped-up campaigns for tougher action to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

The New York Times first reported on Hansen’s move. The paper reports:

America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA) has landed Marty Durbin, a senior lobbyist for the American Petroleum Institute, as its next CEO.

ANGA represents large independent natural-gas producers, putting the group in the thick of political and lobbying battles over hydraulic fracturing, gas exports and other topics as U.S. gas production soars.

Durbin will join ANGA on May 1, arriving from his role as API’s executive vice president of government affairs.

“Marty comes to us with deep industry knowledge, nuanced understanding of the needs of our key demand audiences, and the ability to ‘hit the ground running’ as we seek to build on the momentum the Board established over the first several years of this organization,” said Steve Farris, ANGA’s chairman, in an email to member companies and others obtained by The Hill.

A Republican spokesman for the House Natural Resources Committee is leaving to join Sen. Tim Scott's (R-S.C.) staff as legislative assistant for energy and natural resources issues.

Spencer Pederson's first day with Scott, who serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, is Thursday. He had been with the House Natural Resources Committee for three years.

The Sierra Club named a new national political director on Wednesday.

The green group tapped Melissa Williams for the slot. She will assume the role in the middle of March.

Williams is a former deputy director of the WOMEN VOTE! program at Emily's List, where she headed an independent expenditure program targeting House races. The effort saw 15 of its 17 preferred candidates get elected.

Rebecca Rosen, a lead architect of Mitt Romney’s energy platform in the 2012 election, is joining the big natural gas producer Devon Energy Corp. as a senior lobbyist.

Rosen, who is also a former staffer on the Senate’s energy committee, will lead the Oklahoma-based oil-and-gas company’s Washington, D.C., office as vice president of federal government affairs.

“Devon is actively engaged in the federal energy policy development process, and we are pleased to have Rebecca lead that effort from our Washington office,” said Devon President and CEO John Richels in a statement.

The head of the Energy Department’s (DOE) fossil fuel program will leave the agency on Friday, according to an internal memo.

Charles McConnell will resign his post of assistant secretary for fossil energy, Energy Secretary Steven Chu said in a Tuesday email to staff. McConnell held the position for nearly two years.

A State Department official who helped lead international climate talks is moving to the Energy Department (DOE) to head that agency’s climate operations.

Jonathan Pershing will begin his new role as DOE deputy assistant secretary for climate change policy and technology on Tuesday, David Sandalow, DOE secretary for policy and international affairs, said in a Friday email to staff.

Pershing will oversee domestic climate and clean-energy initiatives for that office, Sandalow noted. He replaces Rick Duke, who left the agency in September.

At State Department, Pershing served as deputy special envoy for climate change under special envoy Todd Stern. He helped lead the U.S. envoy in United Nations global warming talks for the past four years.

The Energy Department (DOE) has promoted the Bonneville Power Administration’s (BPA) second-in-command to lead the electric utility, BPA announced Wednesday.

Bill Drummond will head the DOE-managed power marketer beginning next month. He replaces retiring Administrator Steve Wright, who helmed the organization since 2000.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) will have a new staff director as she dives into her next two years as the top Republican on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

McKie Campbell is leaving the job in two weeks after more than four years in the role, according to Robert Dillon, Murkowski’s committee spokesman.

Campbell has previously been a principal at the Campbell Group, a consulting firm specializing in natural resources, and also served as commissioner of the State of Alaska’s Department of Fish & Game.