Ken DeBeaussaert has always had an interest in the environment during his long career in public service, both in elected and appointed positions.

That service stopped Jan. 1 when Jennifer Granholm left office and Gov. Rick Snyder moved in. Snyder replaced DeBeaussaert, so he's no longer director of the Office of the Great Lakes.

But his interest in the local ecological system hasn’t waned. DeBeaussaert was spotted at a gathering Friday for the Lake St. Clair Coastal Wetland Restoration Project, in which officials aim to improve 500 acres of marshland, mostly at Metro Beach Metropark in Harrison Township.

When asked to introduce himself, DeBeaussaert shrugged his shoulders and said, “private citizen.”

Later, DeBeaussaert was able to easily rattle off some the financial history behind the source of the grant funds.

Once a policy wonk, always a policy wonk.

DeBeaussaert, a former state lawmaker, was a little vague on his future. But the former “Bonior boy” didn’t seem keen to running for office again.

But The Insider speculates that we haven’t heard the last of DeBeaussaert. We don't need a crystal ball to envision him involved in government and/or the environment in some fashion.