LM Program Manager Retiring After 17-Year Career with DOE

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management (LM) Uranium Mill Tailings Radiation Control Act (UMTRCA) Program Manager Mark Kautsky is set to retire Dec. 31, after 17 years with the office. 

Before his retirement, Kautsky reflected on his journey throughout LM and what he looks forward to in the future.

“It’s been an incredible ride and a lot of really exciting things have happened during my time in Grand Junction,” Kautsky said. “It’s bittersweet being at the end of your career. There are so many memories, and it’s such a big part of your life.”

After finishing his master’s in hydrology and hydrogeology from the University of Nevada-Reno in 1984, Kautsky and his wife moved to Grand Junction, Colorado, for a job with a contractor for the DOE.

Kautsky worked at the Monticello site, characterizing groundwater, and estimating floodplains. “It was a great and exciting time to be involved in this work because it was so new and emergent. UMTRCA was still in its infancy and computers had just started making their way into environmental work. We were still doing a lot of longhand reporting.”

During that time, Kautsky also contracted with the U.S. Air Force around the country, working on projects in states such as Ohio and Colorado before being assigned to the Moab site in Utah. After three years in Moab, Kautsky joined LM in 2007. 

“When I first started at LM, I was involved in the Nevada Offsites program, working on sites like Amchitka and Chariot in Alaska and Shoal in Nevada,” Kautsky said. “Then the opportunity arose to be the UMTRCA program manager, and I’ve been involved ever since.”

Kautsky’s love of hydrology and hydrogeology started after he finished his bachelor of science at Sonoma State University in California.

“I worked for a company doing environmental geology. The EPA had just gotten started, and I had a lot of projects in the California region and did a series of basinwide studies. A lot of communities relied on groundwater and had no sewer systems,” Kautsky said. “The mentors that I had in my time there were heavily involved in this line of work, and they became large influences.”

Soon after, Kautsky decided to pursue his master’s degree, focusing on groundwater, and taking a fellowship at the Desert Research Institute in Nevada.

“Desert Research had contracts through the DOE and worked on Nevada Offsites. So then, when I moved over to DOE, it was great that I had that in my background,” Kautsky said. “It’s so interesting because the job my thesis advisor did essentially became my own job down the road. It just shows that if you keep working away, things will keep taking amazing turns throughout your career, and you may end up doing what did when you first started but maybe with a new angle or perspective.”

Since becoming UMTRCA program manager, Kautsky’s days are filled with budgeting, site planning, and developing several different reports to continue to keep tabs on some of LM’s higher-risk sites. Kautsky is also involved in fieldwork, including inspections and construction.

When not actively working on a project or report, Kautsky spends a lot of time talking and consulting with partners through LM’s international work, presenting at conferences, and participating in workshops.

Three years ago, Kautsky also was tasked with working on the Applied Studies and Technology program after the retirement of a fellow colleague.

“Basically, if I’m not reviewing something or making plans for the coming year, I’m preparing to speak at a conference or symposium,” Kautsky said. “We definitely have a lot to keep us busy.”

Over the course of his career, Kautsky has several accomplishments to be proud of. 

“There have been so many things that have been really amazing accomplishments. One of my most memorable was probably when we had a closure of the central Nevada Test Area on Shoal,” Kautsky said. “We were able to work closely with our partners and develop solutions to our underground test sites. It was awesome to work on those type of site management solutions that resulted in closure of the site and getting them ready for long-term maintenance and surveillance.”

When asked what he most appreciated about LM, Kautsky was quick to respond. 

“The people have been fantastic. I work with some exceptional people, from leadership to site managers to contractors,” Kautsky said. “It’s been so hugely influential to work with such a strong and dynamic organization with talented and incredibly smart individuals.”

As for his departure from LM, Kautsky is most looking forward to taking the time to reflect on his career and catching up on hobbies and projects.

“I love piano and studying music. I also am a cyclist on a somewhat competitive level,” Kautsky said. “I’m a bit of a homebody, so I’m going to spend some time reading and just doing things I haven’t had much time for.”

Kautsky is also planning on getting back to his studies by enrolling in a local university and continuing to learn.

“I love to learn. I believe you have a lifelong opportunity to learn, so that’s the plan,” Kautsky said. “I almost think of my retirement as graduating high school again for me. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, and it sorted itself out. I’m going to allow this time to process and then move on the next adventure.”