2024 PLENARY SESSIONS

David W. Salyers, P.E., Commissioner

Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation

David Salyers, P.E., was appointed Commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Environment by Gov. Bill Lee in January 2019. He previously served as Executive Director of the West Tennessee River Basin Authority for more than two decades where he was recognized as leading one of the most impactful, cost-effective agencies in state government. At WTRBA, Salyers was known for effective public-private partnerships, leveraging federal funding and advancing restoration techniques for streams and wetlands. 

As TDEC Commissioner, he has led implementation of record capital investment in the Tennessee State Park system and developed the TDEC Reimagined initiative to create flexible, accountable work arrangements to attract, engage and retain the highest performing employees in state government. Salyers represents the Administration and department on priority interagency efforts to improve natural resource management, rural economic development, and outdoor recreation opportunities in Tennessee. He has led high-level executive partnerships with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on matters pertaining cleanup on the Oak Ridge Reservation and worked through a variety of multi-state issues with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Salyers has also been a strong advocate for advancing the electric vehicle ecosystem in Tennessee, from partnerships to expand fast-charging networks to the state’s leadership in EV manufacturing and supplier infrastructure.

Prior to his executive experience in state government, Salyers worked in the private sector for more than a decade as an engineer and manager. His career and experience have informed his approach that uses facts, science and a problem-solving mentality to create options that are valid, viable and fair to all involved. Salyers maintains registrations as a professional engineer and geologist. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Murray State and a master’s degree from Missouri University of Science and Technology.

Jeaneanne Gettle, Acting Regional Administrator

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Region 4

Jeaneanne Gettle works closely with eight states (AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, and TN) and six tribal governments to protect human health and the environment across the Southeast. She has been with the EPA for more than 36 years and brings strong leadership, vision, and management skills to the role. Prior to taking on the Acting Regional Administrator responsibilities, she served as the Deputy Regional Administrator and in other Region 4 leadership positions including Director of the Water Division and the Laboratory Services and Applied Science Division.

Jeaneanne has served in a variety of leadership roles throughout Region 4 where she implemented key environmental programs including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (Superfund), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act. Jeaneanne also served in leadership roles at a national level for the Toxic Release Inventory Division in the Office of Chemical, Safety and Pollution Prevention. She has been recognized for significant contributions to numerous Agency efforts.

Jeaneanne is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, having received her law degree from the Georgia State University School of Law.

Tim Kelly, Mayor

City of Chattanooga

Tim Kelly was elected mayor of Chattanooga in April 2021. Kelly grew up in Chattanooga and attended undergraduate school at Columbia University. Upon return to Chattanooga, Kelly expanded his family’s automotive dealership and launched several successful ventures of his own, including co-founding Chattanooga’s professional soccer club. He later earned his MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta School of Business. Kelly has always been active in the community, serving on boards for multiple nonprofits and even teaching as an adjunct professor at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga. Since being elected mayor, he has made great strides on his vision to create One Chattanooga – a city where every resident has the opportunity to thrive and prosper.

Mayor Kelly has continued and reinforced Chattanooga’s leadership and legacy as a sustainable city with advancements in waste diversion, transportation, reduced energy consumption, and improved equity and access for resources.  Chattanooga was recognized with the 2023 Governor’s Award for Excellence in Energy & Renewable Resources and was recently selected to be one of 25 cities selected by Bloomberg Philanthropies for its American Sustainable Cities Program.

John (Jay) Arthur Mullis II, Manager

U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM)

John Arthur (Jay) Mullis II serves as the Manager of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management (OREM). He has served in this position since November 2017. Mullis is responsible for safely executing the environmental cleanup of the 30,000-acre Oak Ridge Reservation, which entails successfully managing the cleanup of the East Tennessee Technology Park, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the Y-12 National Security Complex. He oversees environmental cleanup and stewardship, decontamination and decommissioning activities, waste processing and management, surveillance and maintenance programs, historic preservation efforts, and procurement and contract functions.  Jay also recently served as the Acting Associate Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regulatory and Policy Affairs (APDAS) in the Office of Environmental Management (EM) from November 2021 through January 2023. The office provides technical and policy support in the planning and field execution of EM waste and materials disposition, soil and groundwater remediation, and deactivation and decommissioning of EM facilities. He also provided leadership on matters related to regulatory affairs defined by law or negotiated or stipulated compliance agreements. 

Before serving as the OREM Manager, he also served as the Acting Manager and Deputy Manager beginning in February 2015. In this capacity, he helped direct and support the office’s division directors and federal project directors to ensure federal oversight and progress conducting environmental cleanup across the Oak Ridge Reservation.  Prior to his selection as Deputy Manager, he was the Acting Deputy Manager and Director of the Engineering, Safety and Quality Division for OREM.

Jay also worked about nine years in the Naval Nuclear Propulsion program at Charleston Naval Shipyard with the balance of his service working for DOE in various assignments related to environmental restoration, decontamination and decommissioning, and waste management activities. He has led or been a member of numerous audits and assessments, including Conduct of Operations and Conduct of Maintenance assessments.

Mullis holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina, and he is a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of South Carolina. He completed extensive training and was qualified as a nuclear engineer while working for the Navy at the Charleston Naval Shipyard and has been a fully certified Facility Representative for the DOE.

Ken Rueter, President & CEO

United Cleanup of Oak Ridge

Ken Rueter is President and Chief Executive Officer of UCOR, the Department of Energy’s (DOE) cleanup contractor for the Oak Ridge Reservation. As President of UCOR, Rueter has guided and motivated a professional management team and hundreds of skilled workers as they successfully undertake the largest environmental cleanup in DOE’s history. Together, he and the UCOR workforce are eliminating hazards and reducing risks in East Tennessee.

Under Rueter’s oversight, UCOR has experienced an unmatched record of success – not only finishing major projects ahead of schedule and under budget but doing so safely as demonstrated by DOE’s awarding UCOR Star status in its Voluntary Protection Program. As a result of Rueter’s leadership, UCOR’s incentive award fees from DOE have been among the highest in the complex.

During almost three decades of industry experience, Rueter has led all aspects of site cleanup and remediation, radioactive waste treatment and project integration, including construction, risk management as well as cost and schedule development. Previously, he served as President of Savannah River Remediation LLC and as Project Manager for the Savannah River Liquid Waste Project. Earlier in his career, Ken served as Chief Operating Officer for the Hanford Tank Operations Contract in Washington State and as Director of Project Integration for Washington River Protection Solutions at DOE’s Hanford site.

In Oak Ridge, Rueter is an active community leader, representing UCOR as a member of local organizations that promote economic development, entrepreneurship, health and wellness, outdoor recreational opportunities, and civic pride. These groups include the East Tennessee Economic Council and the Energy, Technology and Environmental Business Association. He also serves on the Tennessee Nuclear Energy Advisory Council. 

He was the 2016 recipient of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers’ prestigious Management Division Award. In 2017, he was presented with the East Tennessee Economic Council Muddy Boot Award, recognizing his contributions to the Oak Ridge community. In 2019, the National Safety Council recognized Rueter’s personal commitment to safety and his philosophy of safety as a prerequisite to all work by naming him a CEO who “Gets It.” This prestigious designation is presented to leaders who go above and beyond to protect employees both on and off the job. Ken earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from Cleveland State University.

Jeaneanne Gettle, Acting Regional Administrator

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Region 4

Jeaneanne Gettle works closely with eight states (AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, and TN) and six tribal governments to protect human health and the environment across the Southeast. She has been with the EPA for more than 36 years and brings strong leadership, vision, and management skills to the role. Prior to taking on the Acting Regional Administrator responsibilities, she served as the Deputy Regional Administrator and in other Region 4 leadership positions including Director of the Water Division and the Laboratory Services and Applied Science Division.

Jeaneanne has served in a variety of leadership roles throughout Region 4 where she implemented key environmental programs including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (Superfund), Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act. Jeaneanne also served in leadership roles at a national level for the Toxic Release Inventory Division in the Office of Chemical, Safety and Pollution Prevention. She has been recognized for significant contributions to numerous Agency efforts.

Jeaneanne is a member of the State Bar of Georgia, having received her law degree from the Georgia State University School of Law.

Gregory T. Young, Deputy Commissioner for Environment

Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation

Greg Young was appointed TDEC Deputy Commissioner Environment in February 2019, bringing 18 years of experience in practicing environmental law in Tennessee. His private sector practice included environmental permitting, rulemaking, compliance and enforcement cases reflecting a range of matters involving water quality, air permitting, solid and hazardous waste, utility regulatory programs and more. He has also worked on conservation projects involving land donations, conservation easements, greenhouse gas credits, and stream and wetland mitigation.

As Deputy Commissioner he oversees eight divisions with delegated authority from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to manage programs responsive to key federal environmental statutes regarding clean water, drinking water, clean air, solid & hazardous waste management, remediation, reclamation, underground storage tanks, and radiological health. Young is active as Tennessee’s representative on the Environmental Council of the States and is chair for the ECOS Federal Facilities Forum. He has been actively involved with the landmark Executive Leadership Team approach bringing together federal, state and local leaders to address critical issues on the Oak Ridge Reservation

Young has been the department’s primary point of contact for major economic development projects and initiatives across Tennessee, including the historic Blue Oval City development (Ford, SK Innovations) at the West Tennessee Megasite. His approach reflects his belief “TDEC is a resource, not just a regulator.” His emphasis is outreach, information sharing, creative problem solving and finding workable solutions for all involved.

Young is a proud Mississippi native, avid hunter, and outdoorsman who earned his law degree from Tulane University in 2001 after receiving a bachelor’s degree from Mississippi College in 1998.

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