John Devens, former council executive director, dies at 74

John Devens, Sr, executive director of the council from 1998 to 2009, passed away at his home in Copper Center, Alaska on June 13.

In June 1989, the Alaska Oiled Mayors hosted a conference with a group of elected officials from Brittany, France, known as Syndicate Mixte. Seven major oil spills hit the coasts of Brittany during the 20 years prior to the Exxon Valdez spill. The Alaskans learned much from their French counterparts about their experiences. Left: Devens meets with Syndicate Mixte leaders Alphonse Arzel (left) and Jean Baptiste Henri (right). Photo from Proceedings of the International Conference of Oiled Mayors: www.bit.ly/EVOS_OiledMayors

Devens was the mayor of Valdez when the Exxon Valdez tanker hit Bligh Reef, spilling 11 million gallons of oil into Prince William Sound.

Devens headed the “Oiled Mayors,” a group of elected officials from Exxon Valdez-affected communities that banded together after the spill.

During Devens’ time as executive director, the council pushed for a number of improvements in the oil-industry operations in Prince William Sound including: a state-of-the-art radar system that monitors for ice from Columbia glacier drifting through the tanker shipping lanes; the reduction of harmful air vapors from the terminal ballast water treatment plant; and the arrival of the highly safety redundant, double rudder and double-engine room ships from Alaska Tanker and Polar Tanker into Prince William Sound.

21 years later, Devens shared his Exxon Valdez experiences with a group of community leaders who travelled from the Gulf of Mexico to Alaska following the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster to learn from Alaskans’ experience with the Exxon Valdez spill. Left, Mayor Tim Kerner of Jean Lafitte, Louisiana, listens as Devens talks about his experiences. Below, Devens speaks with other Louisiana leaders he invited to his home in Valdez in 2010. — 21 years later, Devens shared his Exxon Valdez experiences with a group of community leaders who travelled from the Gulf of Mexico to Alaska following the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster to learn from Alaskans’ experience with the Exxon Valdez spill.

After his retirement from the council, Devens ran a bed and breakfast for a number of years, and served as president of the board of directors of Connecting Ties, a non-profit that supports individuals who experience a disability.

Devens was interviewed for the council’s book The Spill, in 2007. His interview was archived recently through the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ Oral History Program, Project Jukebox. You can access Devens profile through their website: Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Project Jukebox – John Devens, Sr

Mayor Tim Kerner of Jean Lafitte, Louisiana, listens as Devens talks about his experiences. Below, Devens speaks with other Louisiana leaders he invited to his home in Valdez in 2010.