Former Wyoming legislator Cyrus Western picked to run EPA regional office in Denver

Former Wyoming state Rep. Cyrus Western has been tapped to run the Environmental Protection Agency’s Denver field office, replacing former Colorado House speaker KC Becker who served as Region 8 administrator during the Biden administration.

The appointment, one of about 3,500 across the federal government the Trump administration is working to fill, does not require Senate confirmation.

“When the president asks you to work for him, you don’t say no,” Western told Cowboy State Daily. 

Western, who earned a masters in environmental science at Harvard University, served in the Wyoming Legislature from 2019 to 2024, rising to House majority whip before deciding not to run for re-election.

Western said he was recommended for the post by Wyoming’s U.S. Sens. John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis.

The Region 8 administrator is in charge of implementing EPA policies and approving mining and industrial regulations in the region, which includes Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming, as well as 28 federally recongnized Tribes. There are about 650 employees in the region.

Regional administrators oversee air and water quality issues, emissions from oil and gas operations and automobiles and address groundwater contamination. He’ll also oversee managing Superfund sites and the response for any massive spills and other industry-caused catastrophes.

“They’re the person, the boots on the ground, approving grants, granting wastewater exemption permits, CO2 injection permits, that kind of stuff,” Western said of his new job, which began Monday.

Todd Parfitt, director of the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, told Cowboy State Daily that Western understands how to balance environmental protection with economic growth and will be extremely valuable for Wyoming.

“He understands the importance of common-sense approaches and cooperative federalism,” Parfitt said in a statement. “I look forward to working with Cyrus as we implement effective environmental programs to address the priorities of the EPA, the state of Wyoming, and the Region.”

The position is also critically important to mining and industrial projects.

Western’s Views

Western has expressed a mixture of pro-energy and pro-recreation views in the past.

While in the Legislature, he served on the Minerals, Business and Economic Development Committee, chaired the Oil and Gas Bonding Working Group and was vice chair of the Tourism, Recreation and Wildlife Committee.

During the 2024 legislative session, Western passed a bill into law adding more requirements and oversight on people who bid for oil and gas leasing on state lands in Wyoming.

Western said his time on the Minerals Committee specifically goes hand-in-hand with his new job.

“I think my time on the Minerals Committee has given me a time of experience and exposure to these types of issues that you deal with,” Western said. 

Later that same year Western expressed concern that a Lander-based conservation advocacy organization was waging a war on Wyoming’s middle class through the state’s oil and gas lease auction bidding process by placing bids.

In 2024, he also successfully opposed a controversial state land swap in Sheridan County he worried would hinder hunting and recreation opportunities there.

Travis Deti, executive director of the Wyoming Mining Association, said the regional administrator role is important for Wyoming from the simple standpoint of understanding the state’s needs and concerns.

“We want to solve problems rather than have an administration where there was an adversarial relationship,” Deti said. “It’s good for Wyoming and good for Wyoming industry.”

Under the watch of Becker, an environmental attorney from Boulder, the Region 8 office rejected several state-issued air pollution permits for the Suncor refinery in Commerce City and launched an investigation into whether Colorado’s air pollution regulations discriminated against racial and ethnic minorities.

The Trump administration has moved swiftly to roll back environmental protections in preference for development, appoint fossil fuel industry leaders to top EPA positions and prioritize fossil fuel projects.

“President Trump has made it clear he wants a pro-energy, pro-middle class agenda, and to help implement his agenda is a huge honor,” Western said.

Wyoming Petroleum Association President Pete Obermueller said the rash of cuts made to the EPA and other federal agencies under Trump won’t make Western’s job easier. “Logistically, it’s going to be hard.”

To read more of this story visit Cowboy State Daily.