Bloomington, IL – David Flakne, Senior State Government Relations Manager for Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc, is the recipient of the Illinois Corn Growers Association’s (ICGA) 2010 Environmental Award. The award recognizes individuals who exhibit commitment to conservation and environmental preservation.

“Dave’s dedication to clean water in the state of Illinois is to be commended,” said Tim Lenz, ICGA President.  “We honor him with this environmental award today to be certain that his efforts with the Council on Best Management Practices and on atrazine have not gone unnoticed and that he understands our appreciation for his efforts.”

Flakne started his career in sales with Ciba-Geigy in 1982 holding positions in sales, marketing management, and environmental & public affairs.  Since 1991, he has actively worked in his current position with federal and state agencies, universities, and various trade and industry associations on legislative and regulatory affairs, policy development and environmental issues.

Flakne is most interested in proactive strategies to address water quality.   He was a founding member of the Council on Best Management Practices (CBMP) which works to teach farmers how to best management environmental concerns on their farms.  He has also worked within the state of IL for more than 20 years focusing on atrazine stewardship.  Part of that effort has been the education of local community watershed groups and encouraging farmers to adopt practices to minimize atrazine runoff. 

“As a result of this work, we really have no community water systems in the state that have issues with atrazine in raw or finished water.  Producers have adopted practices and we’ve managed to keep raw water before treatment well below allowable atrazine levels,” Flakne said.

Flakne is a University of Minnesota graduate, living in Madison, Wisconsin that serves fourteen states with Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc.

-30-