Steve Cole named interim director of state Regulatory Services at Clemson

Published: March 29, 2013

Steve Cole image by: Clemson University

CLEMSON — Steve Cole, head of Clemson University’s plant industry department, has been named interim director of the state's Regulatory Services at the university. He succeeds Neil Ogg, who is retiring Friday following 37 years of service.

Clemson Regulatory Services is the designated state agency to safeguard the health of South Carolina’s crops, forests and landscape plants.

"Neil Ogg's career of service to the state has been exemplary," said George Askew, Clemson associate vice president for Public Service Activities. “He has championed a number of visionary causes, such as leading the effort to keep fertilizer from being misused as an explosive, the first such legislation in the nation.

"He has been at the forefront of securing new technology, such as the polymerase chain reaction laboratory in the Plant Problem Clinic and new software allowing soil recommendations to be downloaded to smart phones," Askew said.

"South Carolina agriculture and Clemson University have benefited greatly from Neil's career of leadership," he said. "We are fortunate to have strong leadership within the unit that enables us to continue to move forward. Steve Cole is well-prepared to shepherd Regulatory Services during this transition."

A former Georgia Department of Agriculture official and county Extension agent, Cole joined Clemson in 2012 to oversee plant inspection and certification programs designed to protect South Carolina farms, forests and green-industry businesses.

Cole served for more than a decade managing regulatory programs in the Georgia agriculture department, most recently as director of the department’s seed, fertilizer and feed section. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees at University of Tennessee and a doctorate at the University of Georgia.

Clemson’s Regulatory Services include four areas: plant industry, pesticide regulation, plant problem clinic and homeland security:

• Plant Industry functions include nursery inspection, survey and eradication of invasive plant and pest species, fertilizer and lime regulation, and seed and organic certification.
• Pesticide Regulation is responsible for licensing pest management professionals and pesticide applicators, analyzing and registering pesticide products, and investigating pesticide misuse cases.
• The Plant Problem Clinic identifies plant diseases, insect pests and weeds for regulatory action, as well as for the public in collaboration with Clemson Extension agents.
• Homeland Security protects the state's agricultural and food crops against agroterrorism or other catastrophic events.

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