By Brad Bowman    

EKU intern Miller Riddlell watches a drone’s flight pattern while piloting under the guidance of FAA Certified Remote Pilot for Division of Water Wesley Turner. Photo by Brad Bowman

Miller Riddell believes that biodiversity and conservation are issues we should all be concerned about. The Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) senior, along with more than a dozen other EKU students, is exploring how to turn such beliefs into action this summer as an intern with the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet. 

“I think both are really pressing issues we should all be worried about, especially with the prevalence of things like monocultures,” Riddell said.  

“I grew up with people like Steve Irwin (zoologist, naturalist, famous as the crocodile hunter) and (Sir David) Attenborough (English broadcaster, naturalist) instilling in me the importance of conservation. I have always been fascinated with living things and plan to pursue knowledge about them for the rest of my life.” 

Riddell is one of 73 interns learning new skills while getting paid this summer at the Cabinet. He, along with Abbey Bleuel, Jesse Trost, Bella Bailey-Sims, and Jack Koontz, shared what it’s been like to work alongside environmental professionals. 

Riddell has a keen interest in marine biology, and any job that would allow Riddell to be regularly out in the field would be a dream job, he said. But there’s a few “next steps,” before that happens. He has one semester at EKU in the fall before graduating and plans to continue to graduate school. 
 
“I’ve really enjoyed my internship,” Riddell said. “I’ve really enjoyed flying the drone and all the drone expeditions I get to tag along with. Just yesterday, we went to eastern Kentucky and I saw parts of the state I had never been to before, where a lot of coal mining is done. I may have never seen that had I not interned here.” 
 
Abbey Bleuel 

 Abandoned Mine Lands intern Abbey Bleuel works on GIS data at her desk. Photo by Brad Bowman

Abbey Bleuel, a rising junior at EKU majoring in environmental geology, worked last summer as an intern with the Division of Abandoned Mine Lands and returned this summer to work with the same division using geographic information system mapping.  

Bleuel said she hopes to get certified in GIS and hopes to return a third time as an intern when she’s not attending EKU. 

“Everyone (at EEC)  has been super welcoming and helpful,” Bleuel said. “Working with GIS (geographic information system mapping), I’ve learned a multitude of information that can help me later on.  “I don’t know yet exactly what my dream job would be. I still have two years (at EKU) left. I want to work with helping people and the environment…those are just the two things I love.”  

On a trip with Berea College students, Bleuel takes water samples at a site where there was acid mine drainage in Worley branch, which leads to the Cumberland River in the Big South Fork Area. Photo submitted.  
 

In her spare time, Bleuel said, she is always outdoors hiking, camping, paddling, biking and has been active with EKU’s rock climbing club. But her interest in science and the environment continue to inspire her.  

“I have a dream of one day starting my own business. I wonder if I could make handmade laundry detergent, dish soap and household cleaners that are safe for the environment in reusable containers,” Bleuel said. “Even if it isn’t a big business I think I’d enjoy doing it anyway.”  
 
Jesse Trost

Trost works on a industrial pretreatment spreadsheet for the Division of Water’s wastewater management branch. Photo by Brad Bowman

Jesse Trost, who recently graduated from EKU and plans to go back for his masters, said  walks along creeks in his childhood helped inspire him to pursue a biology degree at EKU with a concentration in biodiversity and conservation. This summer, he is interning in the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) commissioner’s office.   

He’s been updating an internal wastewater treatment plant pretreatment agreement spreadsheet to include relevant data from 2022 pretreatment agreement reports and will also include industries that may be a potential source of PFAS. He also hopes to develop both public and internal PFAS information sheets.   

“I’ve always wanted to do something like biology that’s involved with being outside in the environment,” Trost said. “As my studies progressed, I got interested in the water quality aspect of it and keeping people and the environment safe…that’s why I wanted to be here.”  

After returning to EKU for his masters, Trost said he can envision having a job where he samples water for contaminants then processes them and writes recommendations of the steps needed to alleviate the pollution.  “I would really be doing biological community samples of areas, identifying movement patterns and what contaminants that exist in streams and wetlands.”  

Trost said he has enjoyed his time at the cabinet, finding the staff to be professional, helpful and welcoming. He said that after college he would like to make an impact in Kentucky, his home state, instead of relocating elsewhere.  

“I’ve thought about going elsewhere but I enjoy what the state has given me and I want to give back,” Trost said. “I’ve worked for the federal government before, and after doing that, I want to work on a more local level.” 

Bella Bailey-Sims 

 Bella Bailey-Sims, an intern for the DOW, works on graphics concerning lead.  Photo by Brad Bowman 

A sophomore at EKU, Bella Bailey-Sims learned about internships at the Energy and Environment Cabinet from her biology professor. She’s currently doing graphic design on a booklet on environmentally friendly ATV operation for the Division of Water. 

Bailey-Sims said she hopes to be a nurse anesthetist but decided to apply for an internship at EEC, because she’s “…really passionate about the environment and I wanted to have some new experiences.” 

Bailey-Sims said she’s always been an advocate for community service and likes seeing the different aspects of what occurs in taking care of the environment.  
 
“I’ve always been passionate about helping people and the environment,” Bailey-Sims said. “I wish more people valued that. I think that’s why I like it here at the EEC. Helping other people seems to be a priority here and everyone, no matter the branch, seems to be working toward a common goal…helping the commonwealth.”  

Jack Koontz  
 
 

Intern Jack Koontz works on GIS data at his desk. Photo by Brad Bowman. 

Jack Koontz’s interest in geographic information systems (GIS) brought him to his internship at the ECC this summer but he hopes it may lead him eventually to work for the U.S. Department of State in foreign affairs.  

Koontz, a recent EKU graduate with a bachelors in political science and a bachelors in globalization and international affairs, said a former professor who worked in counter terrorism tracking insurgents using GIS, interested him in the field. “I ended up doing the certificate in the last two years of school,” Koontz said. 

The cabinet’s ability to offer him experience working with GIS led Koontz to apply. 
 
“I was at a job fair at EKU. I talked with Mirei (Mirei Holland, EEC’s former talent acquisition specialist) about any possible GIS openings,” Koontz said. “Right now, I’m an intern in Mine Permits and Abandoned Mine Lands said they may find a way to hire me full-time.” 

Koontz said it has been eye-opening to see the many ways GIS is used.  “I don’t think I’ve worked with two people that do the same job yet. I see five different people using it (GIS) for five different things. It’s very interesting for me to see how widely different it’s getting used.”  
 
EKU interns are working in cabinet branches as diverse as the divisions of Water, Waste Management, Water Quality, Mine Safety, Mine Reclamation Enforcement, and at the Public Service Commission.  
 
Additional EKU interns include Samantha White (Waste Management), JoBeth Connelly (Division of Water), Firas Sofyan (Environmental Program Support), Ian Kratzer (Water Quality), Kinnley Johnson (Mine Safety), Carol Akers (Public Service Commission), Wesley Ashby (Mine Safety) and Owen Sizemore (Mine Reclamation Enforcement).  

The Energy & Environment Cabinet employs more than 1,300 full-time employees throughout the Commonwealth and began its current internship program in the summer of 2022. During that time, the cabinet had 46 interns and hired 10 into full-time positions at the end of their internship experience.

EEC is currently accepting internship applications for the fall 2023 semester and it’s never too soon to inquire about 2024’s summer internship opportunities.

Do you know someone who might be interested in a full-time position or an internship at the Energy and Environment Cabinet? Learn more here.