Board Member Profile

James Waters – Arkville, NY

Mr. Waters is currently the new Executive Director of the Catskill Forest Association, a not-for-profit organization representing private landowners throughout the 6 counties of the Catskills.  Mr. Waters earned his B.S. degree in Forest Management from the University of Vermont in 1975.  While working, he did post graduate work in business at the University of Maine, University of Tennessee and Clarkson University. 

Mr. Waters began his working career in 1976 at St. Regis Paper Co. / Champion International.  The work took him from Maine, to New Hampshire and Vermont and finally to the Adirondacks of New York. His most recent position with the company was Regional Manager of Forestry & Leasing.  In this capacity, Mr. Waters was responsible for all land management activities on more than 500,000 acres in three states.

In 1989 Mr. Waters went to work as Division Manager of Lassiter Properties, Inc., starting up and managing which at the time was the largest individual private ownership of timberland in NY, totaling over 120,000 acres.  In 1997, Mr. Waters joined the Gutchess Lumber Company (Cortland, NY and Latrobe, PA) where he spent 3 years acquiring land for mill expansion and developing its inside and western US kiln dried lumber sales programs.  Mr. Waters also worked towards the company’s focus on marketing and customer service goals.

In 2001 Mr. Waters provided consulting services to Orion Power, a large hydroelectric company in NY, setting up its land-use and management programs on its lands adjacent to its reservoirs. Orion Power purchased all of Niagara Mohawk’s hydroelectric sites as well as their plants in New York City. 

Mr. Waters joined the Catskill Forest Association in September 2001.