There are some new faces at Redstone Arsenal’s Conservation Law Enforcement section.
Aaron Hanson is the interim Conservation Law Enforcement officer in charge, as longtime head CLE officer Kelly Smith is pending retirement from government service, and Tristan Borostowski is a new conservation law enforcement officer.
“Our role is handling all facets of law enforcement for hunting compliance and species protection,” said Hanson, who continues to be a day shift supervisor with law enforcement for now.
“But the hunting aspects of our job is seasonal,” he said. “We are police officers first, so that job is nonseasonal. Law enforcement is 24/7.
“We are open for business,” Hanson said. “If you see something, report it as soon as possible. If you see something, say something. Our door is always open.”
Hanson, who came on board with his new role on Nov. 11, served in the Army from 2000-08. Originally from Jacksonville Beach, Florida, Hanson joined the Redstone Police Department in 2010. He was a K-9 officer for 10 years and has been a suspect apprehension sergeant and shift supervisor for four years.
“I’ve worked on and off with Kelly Smith for 15 years and I’ve always been excited about any opportunity to work with him,” Hanson said. He said that in his job as a day shift supervisor, he was working with “one of the best group of guys I’ve ever worked with, and I’ve been here a long time. I really hated to step away from them (but) it’s a great opportunity for growth and potential recognition in the department for (the sergeant there). It’s time for him to move up and time for me to move along.”
Borostowski, who’s from Peru, Illinois, is a newcomer to the installation.
He served in the Army from 2017 to this year, and was a conservation officer at Fort Drum, New York, for five years.
“I initially started in the service as an MP and I then got selected about 18 months into my time in service to go work for the conservation section at Fort Drum,” Borostowski said. “I fell in love with it.”
He pursued the conservation officer position at Redstone after seeing the job posting, and “here I am.”
He joined the Redstone Arsenal Police Department on Nov. 6.
“It’s a new face on this place and we’re super excited about getting out there and meeting the people and educating them,” Hanson said.
“I believe this duo of officers will be an asset to the conservation efforts on Redstone Arsenal, as they each bring a different set of knowledge and skills to the Conservation Law section,” Deputy Police Chief Dennis Brown said. “In just a few weeks they have developed a good working relationship between themselves and the other agencies that support the conservation program and have been out in the field continuing the enforcement mission.”
Hanson and Borostowski put in 12-hour days on the 38,000-acre installation and their days off – on Tuesdays and Wednesdays since hunting isn’t allowed on post those days – aren’t the best.
“But we’re super motivated and excited to have the opportunity to serve Redstone in this capacity,” Hanson said, adding that the officers work closely with the Redstone’s Wildlife Biologist Justin Pflueger and Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation’s outdoor rec.
“As a new section, we’ve got a couple of big things we’d like to initiate as soon as we can get through this hunting season,” Hanson said. “Big projects are to come for the 2024 season.”
Social Sharing