DWR Director J Shirley announces retirement

Salt Lake City — Utah Division of Wildlife Resources director Justin "J" Shirley announced his retirement on Nov. 12 after 22 years of service with the division. His retirement will be effective Jan. 1, 2025.

A resident of Stockton, Shirley joined the DWR in 2002 and became director in 2021 after serving as law enforcement chief since 2019. During his time as director, he also served as:

• A board member of the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission.
• A board member of the Intermountain West Joint Venture.
• The Pacific Flyway representative on the North American Wetlands Conservation Council.
• Acting vice president of WAFWA.

Shirley began his career at the DWR as the Juab County district conservation officer in the agency's law enforcement section. He quickly distinguished himself as a leader and served as the law enforcement section chief for two years.

Under Shirley's leadership as director, the division and its partners accomplished a variety of important things for fish and wildlife, including:

• Acquiring and creating the new Cinnamon Creek Wildlife Management Area in 2021, which opened to the public in 2022 and provides critical summer range for mule deer, elk and moose in the area.
• Acquiring and creating the Blackhawk Waterfowl Management Area in 2023. (The new Blackhawk WMA is located near the Great Salt Lake, but due to current access issues, it is not currently open to the public, but will open at a future date.)
• Acquiring an additional 2,600 acres for the East Canyon Wildlife Management Area in 2024.
• Working with partners on the new Provo River Delta, which benefits the threatened June sucker and opened to the public last month.
• Working with partners to create a new nursery facility for desert bighorn sheep in Utah.
• Acquiring the needed funding to start construction on rebuilding the Loa Fish Hatchery.
• Setting a record for the number of big game animals GPS collared and assessed during winter captures as part of ongoing Utah Wildlife Migration Initiative research.
• Working to prioritize division employees and their job satisfaction.

"As I look back on my time working for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, I am filled with pride and gratitude for the opportunity to work for this agency and with its amazing partners," Shirley said. "The work our employees and partner organizations do is vital. The things that have been accomplished are because of strong partnerships with people and organizations that work with DWR to do good things for wildlife. I am so grateful for the incredible people I have had the privilege of working with on these important issues. I will treasure my time at the division and my relationships with my coworkers."

Shirley received a bachelor's and master's in wildlife and range resources from Brigham Young University. He also graduated from the National Conservation Law Enforcement Leadership Academy.

"J has played a vital role in the division's effort to enhance wildlife conservation and improve partnerships statewide over these last three years," Utah Department of Natural Resources Director Joel Ferry said. "He has accomplished many great things during his time at the division, and we are grateful for his hard work and wish him the best on his next adventure."