Charlie Ester III

Charlie, a 33-year employee of Salt River Project, is currently Manager of Surface Water Resources Operation.  This group is responsible for watershed monitoring, runoff forecasting, reservoir operations planning, emergency reservoir operations, strategic water resource planning, and drought preparedness as well as weather forecasting in support of reservoir and watershed operations and power generation.  He has been in this position for 19 years. Previously, he was a hydrologist in the same division.  Charlie is a 1983 BS Hydrology graduate of the University of Arizona with honors.  Charlie is the current chairman of the Oak Creek Watershed Council, a non-profit group working to preserve the integrity of the Oak Creek and watershed areas.  He is past president of two Resource Conservation and Development Areas in Arizona.

Under his leadership, SRP has successfully managed through the ongoing multidecadal drought and integrated tree ring reconstruction results from the UA LTTR and SRP's drought mitigation strategies.