The Bureau of Land Management Director Tracy Stone-Manning on May 17 announced the hire of Melanie Barnes to serve as New Mexico State Director.

Barnes was a graduate student and teaching assistant at the University of New Mexico, according to a press release by the Bureau of Land Management. She completed a doctorate in Biology with a focus on plant population ecology. She also earned a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Reed College.

“As we continue to rebuild the BLM, leadership has never been more important,” Stone-Manning said, according to the release. “That’s why I’m pleased to announce the appointment of Melanie Barnes as the New Mexico State Director. Her natural resources and land management experience and deep understanding of New Mexico will benefit the communities and constituents we serve.”

As the Acting State Director for BLM in New Mexico, Barnes oversaw the management of public lands and minerals in New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas, the release states. The role began in June 2021.

She was the Deputy State Director for Land and Resources for BLM New Mexico, Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas from 2017 to 2021, the release states. She also served five months as the Acting Deputy Assistant Director for Resources and Planning with BLM Headquarters.

Barnes started with BLM in 2007 as a Biological Science Technician with the BLM Rio Puerco Field Office in Albuquerque, and later was a Surface Protection Specialist with RPFO from 2008 to 2011, according to the release. Barnes moved to the New Mexico State Office in 2011 as a Planning & Environmental Specialist. 

According to the release, Barnes begins her new role as BLM’s New Mexico State Director at the end of May.