Melvin R. Adams

Melvin R. Adams was born and raised in the small town of Lakeview in the desert of eastern Oregon. His childhood revolved around the outdoors: hunting, fishing, camping, and backpacking. While earning a bachelor’s degree in general science at Oregon State University, he returned to eastern Oregon each summer to survey roads in the Fremont National Forest. His experiences in the desert instilled in him a love for and deep interest in the natural and human history of the region.

After earning a master’s degree with dual majors in biology and geology from the University of North Dakota, Adams began a career as a science teacher. Later, prompted in part by his growing concern for the environment of the West, he returned to college to study environmental engineering, beginning a new career with CH2M Hill Hanford Group, Inc. During his twenty-four years there, he focused his scientific and engineering expertise on the environmental problems associated with nuclear waste disposal in arid environments. Adams authored or co-authored many scientific and technical articles and papers and holds a patent related to isolation barriers for nuclear waste disposal.

He is an award-winning essayist and has written for a variety of magazines and journals. WSU Press published his book, “Netting the Sun, in 2001.” Now retired, he lives in Richland, Washington and enjoys searching for undocumented petroglyph sites, nature photography, bird watching, and fly fishing.