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Mary-Ann Warmerdam Announces Resignation from DPR

SACRAMENTO – Mary-Ann Warmerdam has resigned as director of the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), effective March 29, to accept a position with Clorox Co. in the technology and stewardship division. Warmerdam was appointed director in September 2004 by former Gov. Schwarzenegger.

“The past seven years have been both rewarding and challenging,” Warmerdam said. “It has been my pleasure to head a department that is recognized for its leadership role on the international stage for regulating pesticides to protect public health, worker safety and the environment. I appreciate the trust and confidence Gov. Brown and Gov. Schwarzenegger placed in me.”

Warmerdam said her position with Clorox provides an opportunity to grow both professionally and personally.

Warmerdam noted that California is the first state in the nation to identify pesticides that contribute most to air quality problems and take steps to reduce those emissions. DPR’s restrictions on agricultural fumigant applications specifically targeting air quality took effect in 2008.

Other accomplishments under Warmerdam’s tenure include expanding efforts to educate fieldworkers about pesticide safety and what to do if they are exposed and become ill; streamlining pesticide registration; taking steps to ensure consistent, fair enforcement of pesticide laws in California’s 58 counties; and laying the foundation to further protect water quality. DPR anticipates submitting proposed regulations this spring to further restrict pyrethroid pesticides in urban settings because of widespread detections in waterways.

Prior to joining DPR, Warmerdam worked as a manager of state governmental relations for Pacific Gas and Electric Co. She also served as director of governmental affairs for the Regional Council of Rural Counties, general manager of Yolo County Flood Control and Water Conservation and in various capacities with the California Farm Bureau Federation.