DNR names new director

The SC Department of Natural Resources board cooled six weeks of turmoil Thursday when it picked veteran agency law enforcement chief Alvin Taylor to replace John Frampton as the department’s director.

Taylor, a 35-year DNR employee, will take control of a wildlife department that is drawing heavy criticism over the way Frampton’s retirement was handled.

State senators have questioned whether the DNR would be moving in a different direction after Frampton’s apparent forced retirement by the board, the majority of whose members were chosen by Gov. Nikki Haley after she took office a year ago. A senate committee has scheduled a hearing next week to question DNR board members about what happened.

But in choosing Taylor, the DNR board may have quelled some of those concerns. The 58-year-old Mullins native is well-known among South Carolina outdoorsmen – and state legislators who oppose major shifts in how the wildlife department is run.

He takes charge of the agency March 17, the day after Frampton’s retirement becomes effective.

“People were concerned that if they got rid of Frampton, they must have somebody in mind who would make a totally radical shift from where the department has been,” said Democratic Sen. Brad Hutto, who sits on the committee that will question DNR board members. “It does give people a comfort level, although it doesn’t answer all of the questions we have of the board.”

Taylor said he never expected to become agency director, but was approached in the past week by board members to gauge his interest in the job. He told them he “absolutely” was interested, Taylor said. The job was not advertised, but legally did not need to be, officials said.

“I am looking forward to this,” Taylor said.

Taylor, the first DNR director since 1959 to come from a law enforcement background, told The State he plans no wholesale changes. Taylor said he sees protecting wildlife habitat – a DNR priority for years – as a major agency initiative. He also will support department employees and work to improve conditions for agency workers, Taylor said.

The Department of Natural Resources regulates hunting and fishing in South Carolina, protects and manages land, conducts marine research and studies climate. It is one two major environmental departments in South Carolina, the other being the Department of Health and Environmental Control.

Taylor is a biologist by education who got into law enforcement after starting with the agency in 1977. A 1976 Clemson University graduate, Taylor has been the DNR law enforcement chief since 2004. He formerly supervised the agency’s aquatic investigations team. He also has supervised boating safety and hunter education programs for the department. He lives on Yonges Island south of Charleston, is married and has two children.

The DNR director does not need confirmation from the state Senate to take office, as does the director of the SC Department of Health and Environmental Control, South Carolina’s other major environmental agency. State labor chief Catherine Templeton of Mount Pleasant, picked Wednesday by the DHEC board, faces close scrutiny from senators worried about her lack of experience as a health and environmental regulator.

While Taylor lives in Charleston County, he said he intends to live in Columbia during the week. He said he will likely rent an apartment in the capital city. Templeton plans to work out of DHEC’s North Charleston office.

The DNR board’s choice of Taylor comes six weeks after a tense meeting in which two agency board members accused chairwoman Caroline Rhodes and the rest of the board of conspiring to get rid of Frampton without their knowledge. Speculation has centered on whether Haley orchestrated Frampton’s ouster after appointing a majority of new board members to help carry out her pro-business agenda. Rhodes said that is not the case, but she apologized to the two board members at Thursday’s meeting for not handling the Frampton retirement better. A Haley spokesman said last month the board wanted to take the DNR in a new direction.

But Norman Pulliam, one of two board members upset about secret board discussions concerning Frampton, said he’s delighted Taylor will run the department. He nominated Taylor for the post during Thursday’s meeting.

“We’ve got the person here who we know, we trust, and who can continue to take this agency to the next level,” Pulliam said, noting that “we’ve got a known, proven commodity here.”

Ann Timberlake, director of the Conservation Voters of South Carolina, said she is relieved the board picked Taylor. He doesn’t have the same connections in Washington to bring in federal or private funds for the DNR, as Frampton did, but he is a solid agency employee who cares about natural resources, Timberlake said.

“I am reassured by this,” she said. “Alvin is so supportive of the bigger mission of DNR.”