CONCORD, N.H. (AP) – As state environmental Commissioner Michael Nolin fights to keep his job, a letter has surfaced that critics say casts further doubt on his commitment to the environment.

The letter, addressed to Nolin, criticizes the use of the term “tree-huggers” at a June 2 state Water Resources Council meeting about the invasive lake weed milfoil and other issues.

“The discussion about the ‘tree huggers’ ‘foiling’ the plans to poison milfoil was unfortunate. … As a Department of Environmental Services agency, are we not the official ‘tree huggers’ for the state of New Hampshire?” wrote Brad Wyman, a council member and retired industrial forester.

“I believe that as the stewards of the public water resources, we should refrain from pejorative reference to citizens who are participating in the public forum and we should respect their views,” Wyman wrote.

It was unclear which council member used the term. Nolin chairs the five-person board, which advises the Department of Environmental Services on water issues.

In his letter, Wyman also objected to council member complaints about a state wildlife biologist. The Associated Press obtained the June 2 letter from the Department of Environmental Services after getting an anonymous tip about its contents.

In a statement Tuesday, Nolin said council members should be able to discuss their views freely. “While I do not use the terms expressed in Mr. Wyman’s letter, as commissioner of DES, I do view participation in the public process as an important step in examining all aspects of an issue. The free and open discourse among members of the Water Resources Council (WRC) represents an example of that process,” Nolin said. “I have discussed with Mr. Wyman the concerns he has expressed and fully support the letter’s incorporation into the official record of the WRC.”

Republican Gov. Craig Benson appointed Nolin in 2003, but his term expired July 7. On July 19, Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat, nominated lawyer Thomas Burack to replace him, but the nomination is stalled because the Executive Council is divided.

Lynch has said he will not reappoint Nolin, regardless of the vote on Burack. But Nolin remains in office and his supporters, including construction, timber industry and agriculture groups, have lobbied hard for the council to reject Burack. Burack, who is chairman of the state’s Land and Community Heritage Investment Program, is supported by most of the state’s major environmental groups, including the Granite State Conservation Voters Alliance.

Alliance chairman Rick Russman, a former Republican state senator from Kingston, said Tuesday that even if Nolin did not make the remarks himself, he should not have tolerated them.

“Unfortunately, the failure to act is just as bad as the act. … The last thing you do as a commissioner is to allow somebody to be disrespectful to either side,” Russman said. “I think it’s another indicator that it’s time for Nolin to go.”

Before retiring, Wyman managed all the timberland owned by the paper and pulp mill complex in Berlin and Gorham. He said in the letter he regretted not speaking up during the meeting.

Wyman was vacationing and did not wish to comment further, he said Monday in a message relayed by his sister. The other members of the council – Burnham “Bing” Judd of Pittsburg, John Bridges of Wolfeboro and Andy Buteau of Clarksville – could not be reached or did not return messages.

The staff assistant for the council said the minutes of the meeting were not available yet.

Wyman’s letter also referred to discussions about proposed logging on land around Lake Francis in Pittsburg that is owned by Environmental Services and managed by the council. During the meeting, someone criticized the state wildlife biologist in the area, who was not named but who is Will Staats of the state Fish and Game Department.

“We should be setting the example of sensitive and balanced forest harvesting rather than complaining about the wildlife biologist assigned to the region,” Wyman wrote.

Staats has looked at the proposed timber cut and has no problem with it, said Steve Weber, head of Fish and Game’s Wildlife Division. But he said the criticism of Staats was disturbing.

“I can, without any question, tell you that Will Staats is one of the most qualified and respected wildlife biologists in the Northeast,” Weber said.