Warren's career as a Forest Hydrologist
May 9, 2022
Warren Charles Harper
9/4/1939 to 9/22/2020
Warren was born near Wichita, Kansas in a little town called Neosho Falls.After graduation from North High in 1957 he thought he would follow in his brother’s footsteps and become an engineer but soon realized that engineering was not his cup of tea. Instead, he focused on his love of the mountains from childhood camping trips and decided to attend the School of Forestry in Ft. Collins, Colorado. Warren envisioned a life of managing wildlife on horseback. He got a BS in Forestry with a major in Watershed Management from Colorado State University, the trendy new major that would keep him close to his love of the outdoors.Warren’s first job was as a Hydrologist with the Sante Fe National Forest (1965-66), followed by a year with the US Geological Survey in California. (1966-67). He must not have liked that much because he moved on to Corvallis, OR to work on his MS in Forest Engineering at Oregon State University. After obtaining his degree in 1969, he needed to move closer to Kansas to be with his ill mother. He was hired by the Pike National Forest as a Hydrologist (1969-1971). He could finally realize his dream of checking watershed conditions with his pick-up truck and his favorite dog, Pete.
After his mother passed, Warren returned to Oregon as the Forest Hydrologist on the Siuslaw National Forest (1971-1974) and to work on his PhD. He finished his PhD course work, but before he finished his dissertation, Weyerhaeuser Company in Tacoma, WA snatched him up to be a Project Leader for Forest Hydrology Research followed by Manager of Environmental Affairs for Land and Timber (1974-1980).He always regretted not completing his PhD (and being Dr. Harper).His ABD, a PhD without a dissertation, did not give him the full credential he coveted.
The next big career move brought Warren to the Forest Service Headquarters in Washington, DC (1980-2003). Mike Barton enticed both Warren and Robert Delk to use their watershed management skills in the Washington Office working for him as the director. Unfortunately, Mike Barton moved on to a job in Alaska soon after. In order to escape the Bureaucracy of Washington, Bob and Warren took up sailing on the Chesapeake Bay. After Bob moved on to Montana, Warren stayed in DC and embraced the political and bureaucratic aspects of the work, providing leadership and guidance to advance water quality in the agency. His awards included: USDA Merit Award for Assisting in the development of the ‘President’s Clean Water Action Plan and the Unified Federal Policy; Clean Water Action Plan Principals’ Award; EPA Assistant Administrator’s Interagency Clean Water Leadership Award and the Secretary of Agriculture Superior Service Award.
The people Warren met in his career meant a great deal to him. In his home life, Warren loved to travel and was lucky enough to visit the Holy Land, take two African safaris and many other adventures.
Warren retired at the end of 2002 and was proud of his career in watershed management. He believed deeply in the importance of protecting our natural resources and achieved much by bringing his expertise to the policy makers at the National Level. He was a staunch believer in natural resource conservation, and that our collective duty is to pass these resources on to future generations. This was his life’s work.