After 18 years as the executive director of the Kenai Watershed Forum, Robert Ruffner announced Friday that he will be stepping down. “It was not an easy decision to leave,” Ruffner said. “This is something I have struggled with for a while.”

Ruffner said he is not going to rush the exit process, which will be steadily carried out for the next six months. The forum works with groups and organizations across the Kenai Peninsula. Ensuring those connections are left in a stable position is a priority, he said.

The forum’s board of directors will be tasked with selecting the next executive director, Ruffner said. 

Ruffner said he made the decision to leave because he wants to spend more time with his two children and actually be out in the areas he has been working to protect. The job he has held for almost two decades has shifted into a predominantly administrative responsibility, he said.