Jeff Powell

Jeff has served as the Deputy Field Supervisor in the Alabama Ecological Services Field Office (ALFO) in Daphne, Alabama, since 2014. In this capacity he is responsible for providing administrative, scientific, and technical leadership for a variety of projects including the Recovery, Listing, private lands (Partners for Fish & Wildlife), and Coastal programs. In addition to the day to-day operations of a field office, he takes great pride in serving as one of the founding members of the Alabama Strategic Habitat Unit (SHU) Team, currently known as the Alabama Rivers and Streams Network, which tackles a variety of aquatic restoration projects across the southeast.

OTHER POSITIONS 

• 2003-2014 - Senior Aquatic Biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Alabama Ecological Services Field Office, Daphne, AL 
• 1998-2003 - Aquatic Biologist, U.S. Geological Survey, Nashville, TN 
• 1996-1997 - Pathways Student/Hydrologic Technician Intern, U.S. Geological Survey, Knoxville, TN 
• 1995 - Graduate Research Assistant, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 
• 1992-1995 - Aquatic Biologist, Tennessee Valley Authority, Norris, TN

VOLUNTEER and OTHER WORK/COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES 

• 2003-present - First Baptist Church, Fairhope, AL: Deacon, Home Bound Ministries Team, Parking and Safety teams, Youth Sunday School Leader 
• 2007-present - USFWS Region 4 Dive Team Member • 2021-present - USFWS Region 4 Mentoring Program 
• 2023-present - USFWS Southeast Regional Leadership Academy Team 
• 2002-present – American Water Resources Association/Alabama Board 
• 2003-2020 - Southeastern Fishes Council Member 
• 2003-2020 - Freshwater Mussel Conservation Society Member 
• 2012-2015 - Eastern Shore Aquatics Center Board 
• 2009-2012 – Fairhope Youth Basketball Coach

AWARDS, EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL THINGS 

• 2010, 2011, 2023 - USFWS Regional Director’s Awards 
• 2022 - National Conservation Leadership Institute Graduate (NCLI) 
• 2020 - Alabama Wildlife Federation and Governor’s Conservation Award, “Water Conservationist of the Year,” Alabama Rivers and Streams Network 
• 1997 - M.S. Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville 
• 1992 – B.S. Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries Science, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

SELECT PUBLICATIONS

Ahlstedt, S.A., J.R. Powell, R.S. Butler, M.T. Fagg, D.W. Hubbs, S.F. Novak, S.R. Palmer, and P.D. Johnson. 2017. Historical and current examination of freshwater mussels (Bivalvia: Margaritiferida: Unionidae) in the Duck River Basin Tennessee, USA. Malacological Review, 45:1-163.

Johnson, C.C., T.E. Shepard, P.E. O’Neil, J.B. Smith, E.A. Wynn, A. Henderson, E. Spadgenske, and J. R. Powell. 2013. Status Survey of the Trispot Darter, Etheostoma trisella, in Alabama, 2008-2012. OFR 1302. Geological Survey of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL. 95 p. 

Knight, R.R. and J.R. Powell. 2001. Occurrence and Distribution of Organochochlorine Pesticides, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, and Trace Elements in Fish Tissue in the Lower Tennessee River Basin, 1980-98. U.S. Geological Survey, WRIR 01-4184. 33 p.

O’Neil, P.E., T.E. Shepard, J.R. Powell, E.W. Spadgenske, A.R. Henderson, and P.L. Freeman. 2013. A Survey of Fishes in the Paint Rock River System, Alabama. OFR 1213. Geological Survey of Alabama. 26 p. 

O’Neil, P.E., E.A. Wynn, and J.R. Powell. 2015. A Survey of Fishes in the Murder Creek System, Alabama. OFR 1504. 48 p. 

Powell, J.R. 2003. Response of Fish Communities to Cropland Density and Natural Environmental Setting in the Eastern Highland Rim Ecoregion of the Lower Tennessee River Basin, Alabama and Tennessee, 1999. U.S. Geological Survey, WRIR 02-4268. 48 p. 

Powell, J.R. and P.D. Johnson. 2006. Dam Mitigation and Imperiled Species Recovery in the Tennessee and Mobile River Basin. In Global Perspectives on Large Dams. Conference Proceedings, Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies, New Haven, CT. 287 p. 

Starliper, C.E., J.R. Powell, J.T. Garner, and W.B. Schill. 2011. Predominant Bacteria Isolated from Moribund Fusconaia ebena Ebonyshells Experiencing Die-Offs in Pickwick Reservoir, Tennessee River, Alabama. Journal of Shellfish Research, 30(2): 359-366. 

Woodside, M.D., A.B. Hoos, J.A. Kingsbury, J.R. Powell, R.R. Knight, J.W. Garrett, R.L. Mitchell, and J.A. Robinson. 2004. Water Quality in the Lower Tennessee River Basin, Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Georgia, 1999-2001. U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1233. 35 p. 

Wynn, E.A., P.E. O’Neil, S.W. McGregor, J.R. Powell, and M. Gangloff. 2017. Watershed Assessment of the Big Canoe Creek System for Recovery and Restoration of Imperiled Aquatic Species. Bulletin 185. Geological Survey of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL.