Acting Administrator: Julie Yamamoto
Julie is OSPR's Acting Administrator and also serves as OSPR’s Deputy Administrator and is responsible for oversight of various scientific programs and functions, including natural resource damage assessment, response technologies, geographic information systems, oiled wildlife response, environmental field response, spill data tracking, marine invasive species, petroleum and water quality laboratories, military base cleanups, marine invasive species, the Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center, and spill preparedness (drills, spill training, and health and safety). Julie also supports OSPR’s administrative and legislative functions. She has been a part of the OSPR team for 18 years.
Julie holds an MS in avian biology, and PhD in environmental toxicology from UC Davis. Her past research has focused on impacts of various contaminants on wild birds. She worked at the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment in their Ecotoxicology Unit for 5 years prior to coming to OSPR.
Deputy Administrator: Julie Yamamoto
Julie is OSPR's Deputy Administrator and is responsible for oversight of various scientific programs and functions, including natural resource damage assessment, response technologies, geographic information systems, oiled wildlife response, environmental field response, spill data tracking, marine invasive species, petroleum and water quality laboratories, military base cleanups, marine invasive species, the Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center, and spill preparedness (drills, spill training, and health and safety). Julie also supports OSPR’s administrative and legislative functions. She has been a part of the OSPR team for 18 years.
Julie holds an MS in avian biology, and PhD in environmental toxicology from UC Davis. Her past research has focused on impacts of various contaminants on wild birds. She worked at the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment in their Ecotoxicology Unit for 5 years prior to coming to OSPR.
Assistant Deputy Administrator: Amir Sharifi
Amir serves as OSPR's Assistant Deputy Administrator and is responsible for overseeing Prevention, Financial and Administrative Services, Public Outreach and Regulation operations. His team is responsible for providing a myriad of services that support OSPR's mission in protecting California's resources.
Amir holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Managerial Economics from the University of California, Davis. As an avid fisherman, when Amir's not at work you will find him spending time with friends and family on California's waterways.
Environmental Response Branch Chief: Kathleen Jennings
Kathleen is OSPR's Chief of Environmental Response, overseeing environmental scientists that are members of three regional Field Response Teams statewide. She also manages the OSPR Incident Tracking Database and provides oversight for OSPR’s Spill Desk, which provides spill notifications to OSPR responders.
Kathleen has been with the department for 22 years, serving in roles including field environmental scientist, supervisor and now branch chief.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Theology and a Master of Science in Environmental Management from the University of San Francisco (USF). She also holds a PhD in Wildland Resource Science from UC Berkeley. Her past research focused on impacts of various contaminants on terrestrial food chains and human-wildlife interactions. She has conducted human health and ecological risk assessments as a consultant and taught full-time in the USF Department of Environmental Science undergraduate and graduate programs.
Environmental Program Manager I: Janna Rinderneck
Janna began work for the department’s Water Pollution Control Laboratory in 1986, conducting pesticide extractions and analysis, while pursuing her Bachelor of Science in Biological Conservation. After graduation, she gained experience in fisheries, bioassay, and laboratory auditing, until serving from 1998 to 2011 as CDFW’s statewide expert and technical specialist for hazardous material spill response and inland oil spill response. After supervising the Petroleum Chemistry Laboratory for four years, Janna became Environmental Program Manager for the OSPR Laboratory Program, overseeing five field and laboratory functions: The Petroleum Chemistry Laboratory, the Water Pollution Control Laboratory, the Aquatic Bioassessment Laboratory, the Marine Invasive Species Program, and the Marine Pollution Studies Laboratory. The projects include a statewide field bioassessment program and chemical analysis for spill responses as well as supporting various other CDFW programs.
Prevention Branch Chief: Jon Victoria
Jon serves as OSPR’s Chief of Prevention. He joined OSPR in 2011 as Prevention Branch Supervisor for Southern California. He has over three-decades of oil spill response experience in the marine environment, including hazardous materials emergency response situations. He started his career with the U.S. Coast Guard and eventually joined the oil spill co-op Clean Coastal Waters (CCW), an entity established to protect the coast and offshore oil platforms from spills. When CCW merged with Marine Spill Response Corporation he continued his work responding to spills and natural disasters on the west coast and in the Gulf of Mexico. He later headed up the Oil Spill Response Organization (OSRO) program for National Response Corporation in Southern California and was directly involved in major oil spill incidents including Cosco Busan and Deepwater Horizon.
Public Affairs Unit Manager: Eric Laughlin
Eric manages OSPR’s public affairs unit. He first joined the department as a public information officer in 2012, after a decade-long career as a television and print journalist. He has served in leadership roles at numerous oil spill responses statewide, including the Refugio Beach spill near Santa Barbara in 2015, and the Southern California Pipeline P00547 spill in 2021.
Eric graduated from UC Davis with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication in 2002. He is among a national cohort of less than 200 public information officers that hold the prestigious Master Public Information Officer designation from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Preparedness Chief: David Reinhard
David serves as OSPR’s Chief of Preparedness. He joined OSPR after more than 20 years with the U.S. Coast Guard, in which he was most recently stationed as Commanding Officer of the Pacific Strike Team in Novato. Previous assignments took him to Sector San Diego, the Eleventh District Headquarters in Alameda, and other posts nationwide.
David’s specialty in the Coast Guard was oil spill and hazardous materials response; he responded to incidents including the World Trade Center terrorist attacks, the Anthrax response in Senator Daschle’s office, and Hurricane Katina. He also led Emergency Support Function 10 responses for Hurricane Maria in the U.S. Virgin Islands and Hurricane Florence in North Carolina
As Chief of Preparedness, David oversees the Response Certification and Contingency planning unit, the Drill and Exercise program, and the Certificate of Financial Responsibility program as well as the state’s involvement with Area Contingency Plans and Geographic Response Plans.
David earned a Bachelor of Science in Forestry and Natural Resource Management from California Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo and a Master of Science in Emergency Management from Trident University International.
Resource Restoration Program Manager: Michael Anderson
Mike leads OSPR’s Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) and Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Units. He received his Bachelor’s of Science in aquatic biology from UC Santa Barbara, Master’s degree in zoology from the University of Hawaii, and doctorate in pharmacology and toxicology from UC Davis. Dr. Anderson’s state service spans over 20 years, first acting as an exotoxicologist with the Department of Toxic Substances Control, before joining OSPR in 2007. Prior to state service, he held positions in both academia and consulting. His expertise focuses on the harmful effects of oil and other hazardous substances on wildlife. Dr. Anderson has served as State Lead Representative for several California multi-agency natural resource damage assessments (NRDAs), including the Cosco Busan, Dubai Star, and Refugio Beach oil spills.
Financial and Administrative Services Chief: Lenore Phelps
Lenore serves as OSPR’s Chief of Finance and Administration Services. She started her career with the Department in 1998 as a student assistant with the Bay Delta Region and was involved in the Fishing in the City and Sandhill Crane projects. Lenore has worked for various CDFW programs, including the License and Revenue Branch, big game hunting projects and as part of the exploratory project for a preference point system. She most recently served as an Administrative Officer III, overseeing the Marine Region’s fiscal and administrative operations.
Lenore earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biological Science from California State University, Sacramento.
Response Technology Chief: Greg McGowan
Greg joined OSPR following a 23-year-plus career as a professional ecologist, during which he led an Incident Response and Recovery Team, addressing spills across North America. He has responded to incidents in the U.S. and abroad, typically serving in the Environmental Unit. At OSPR, Greg manages the Response Technology and Support team comprised of six technical disciplines and staffed by an outstanding group of subject matter experts. The technical teams include: Best Achievable Technology, Oiled Wildlife Response, the Marine Wildlife Veterinary Care and Research Center, Applied Response Technology, Fishery Closure, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
Law Enforcement Division Chief: Paul Hamilton
Paul is from Southern California, where he did both his undergraduate and graduate work at San Diego State University. Following his education, he worked as a biological consultant focusing on habitat restoration, small mammal trapping, and avian surveys. Paul came to OSPR in 1998 as a Wildlife Law Enforcement Officer, and has promoted through the ranks as a Lieutenant Supervisor in Long Beach, and as the inland pollution Captain, where he served for 10 years. In 2015, Paul became OSPR’s Chief of Law Enforcement. He oversees a statewide team that protects the wildlife and waterways throughout California. When not working, Paul enjoys spending time with his wife and sons, growing wine grapes, and fishing.
Assistant Chief Counsel: Eric Milstein
Eric came to OSPR after more than 15 years of state service, most recently as a senior counsel at the California State Lands Commission, specializing in public land issues. He previously served as a Navy Flight Officer in the United States Navy and retired as a Commander with 25 years of active and reserve service. This service included multiple deployments from the Arctic to the Antarctic and from the Persian Gulf to Pacific. He holds a Juris Doctorate degree (JD) and Certificate of Governmental Affairs from McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific, and a Bachelor’s of Science from Penn State. During spill responses, Eric and the OSPR legal team deploy to the incident command post, where they provide legal guidance to the OSPR administrator and staff. They also coordinate with other legal counsel involved in the incident, and begin preparation for potential legal actions resulting from the spill.