2021
Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture

Mark Lawlor is the Supervisor of Industry Services with the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture. In this role, he oversees forest fire operations in Newfoundland and Labrador. Mr. Lawlor has been a critical player in the development of policy, focused heavily on improving processes as well as supporting the delivery of programs within forest management.

He has had a long history and career in roles such as fire, enforcement, district and environmental management. His passion for protecting the forest has enabled him to excel with advanced training under the Incident Command System as an Incident Commander, where he was responsible for all aspects of an emergency response. Mr. Lawlor has been the Incident Commander on fires in the province as well as in Ontario and British Columbia.

Along with three of his colleagues, Mr. Lawlor was awarded the New South Wales Premier’s Brushfire Emergency Citation for assisting with the response effort to battle brushfires in Australia during 2019 and 2020.
He has witnessed the effects of climate change and seen first-hand what can occur in light of various forest management practices.

Mr. Lawlor’s commitment to health and safety, staff inclusion and positive communication has helped the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agriculture improve their programs and adopt best practices from other jurisdictions.