Klamath Basin Area Office Manager Dave Sabo has been selected as the new Assistant Regional Director for the Upper Colorado Region (UC) of the Bureau of Reclamation in Salt Lake City, Utah.

"Dave Sabo’s long association in private industry and with Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) will provide significant insight and leadership in the coming years," said UC Regional Director Rick L. Gold. "He will provide direction as we work with the seven states in the Region, and with Tribal Governments and public groups amid critical issues, including those in both the Colorado and Rio Grande River drainages."

Reclamation’s UC Region includes Utah, New Mexico, parts of Wyoming and Texas, west of the Pecos River. The Region is involved with contemporary water issues that must be carefully balanced and managed to help meet accommodate residential, industrial, agricultural, hydropower generation, environmental, and recreational needs.

As Area Manager of the Klamath Basin Area Office in Klamath Falls, Oregon, since February 2002, Sabo directed a range of program activities for the Federal irrigation project encompassing 240,000 acres. Sabo currently oversees all operations and maintenance activities as well as compliance with all Federal and State regulations for the Klamath Project. The Klamath Project provides water for row crops including onions, potatoes, mint, horseradish, and grains, as well as water for the Klamath National Wildlife Refuges.

Kirk Rodgers, Mid-Pacific Regional Director said, "Dave has solidified an extensive series of programs to address the Klamath Project’s water issues and developed a great team to implement them. His keen skills as a consensus builder have been particularly helpful over the past several years. We will miss him and wish him well in his new duties."

A public service veteran with more than 25 years of experience in water resources and power, Sabo joined Reclamation from WAPA where he was the Manager of the Colorado River Storage Project Management Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. Sabo also managed WAPA’s Environmental and Public Affairs Office in Salt Lake City serving as the agency’s representative working on the Glen Canyon Environmental Impact Statement, the Upper Colorado Endangered Fishes Recovery Program, and numerous projects associated with Native Americans.

Before joining the Federal Government, Sabo worked for the Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) in Albuquerque where he was the Lead Power Contracts Administrator. His duties included contract negotiations, power sales, and strategic planning focusing on utility restructuring efforts. Sabo was involved in a number of special projects related to the water supplies of Santa Fe and Las Vegas, New Mexico, while serving as PNM’s Senior Environmental Coordinator. Among numerous other duties, he served on a Native Plants Advisory Board in New Mexico and on the New Mexico State Lands Advisory Board.

Sabo is a 1977 graduate of the University of New Mexico where he studied biology, chemistry, and computer science, and earned both bachelors and masters degrees in biology. Sabo is a Vietnam Veteran, where he served in the U.S. Navy submarine service. He and his wife, Patti, have two children, Megan and Michael.