President Donald Trump has nominated Barry Myers to serve as the Commerce Department’s under secretary for oceans and atmosphere, which oversees NOAA. | Patrick Semansky/AP Photo Trump nominates AccuWeather CEO to lead key climate agency

President Donald Trump has nominated the CEO of AccuWeather to run the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a key agency in conducting climate research and assessing climate change.

Barry Myers has served since 2007 as CEO of AccuWeather, a media company in State College, Pennsylvania, that provides worldwide weather predictions. He graduated from Penn State with a degree in business and received a law degree from Boston University, but has no science training.


In a news release, the White House called him “one of the world’s leading authorities on the use of weather information.” Trump has nominated him to serve as the Commerce Department’s under secretary for oceans and atmosphere, which oversees NOAA.

At AccuWeather, Myers has led a global expansion of the company. His significant private-sector experience fits with many of the other high-profile Trump administration appointees.

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NOAA has a vast portfolio that includes the nation's weather forecasts and projecting climate change. The agency oversees the National Weather Service and a vast array of research. It also has responsibility for protecting coastal areas and oceans.

Janis Searles Jones, CEO of Ocean Conservancy, said in a statement that if confirmed, Myers must "stay true to NOAA’s mission of service to protect of life and property."

“With Texas still recovering from the impacts of Hurricane Harvey, and Florida and the Caribbean – especially Puerto Rico – still reeling from Hurricanes Jose and Maria, NOAA’s relevance to our lives has never been more apparent," Searles Jones stated. "These critical functions have flourished under past administrations and must continue under the leadership of Myers or any other NOAA Administrator – informed by the best available science and needs of the American people.”