Chip Merriam
Deputy Executive Director,
Water Resources

Chip Merriam was named Deputy Executive Director of Water Resources in September 2001. A 25-year water and natural resources management veteran, he is responsible for overseeing the broad functions of environmental research and data collection, permitting and water supply planning/implementation.

This resource area comprises the region's major watersheds and the initiatives designed to better understand and protect the interconnected ecosystem including the Kissimmee River, Lake Okeechobee, the Everglades and coastal estuaries and bays. It also encompasses the critical functions of environmental resource regulation; water supply planning development and consumptive use permitting; water quality monitoring, evaluation and assessment; and coordination of federal and state efforts on numerous restoration projects.

Following nine years in the private sector, Mr. Merriam initially joined the District in 1990 as an Intergovernmental Program Representative. In 1992 he was named Director of the agency's Fort Myers Service Center – a position he held until his promotion to executive management in 2001. In that role, he developed and implemented the District's model for a "full service" satellite office which included all regulatory, planning, management, local and state government and outreach functions.

Mr. Merriam is a native Floridian and a graduate of the University of Florida with an educational background in Chemistry, Zoology and Marine Benthic Ecology. He is a member of The Environmental Professionals of Florida, Inc. and the Florida Chapter of the American Water Resources Association.

He served as an ex-officio member of the Southwest Florida Regional Planning Council for five years and as a member of the first Masters of Public Administration Program Board for Florida Gulf Coast University. Mr. Merriam is a graduate of both Leadership Lee County and Leadership Southwest Florida.