ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - A U.S. Forest Service official who voiced concerns about alleged pesticide misuse in forests across the Southwest has been fired.

Doug Parker, who worked as the pesticide coordinator and assistant director of forestry health for the agency's Southwestern region, told The Associated Press that he was removed from his duties last week because his supervisor said he failed to follow instructions.

Parker, who has not spoken publicly about his case, worked for the agency for nearly four decades and said he was proud to wear the Forest Service uniform.

"The whole reason behind this is I reported some significant pesticide misuse problems to the regional forester and they don't want to have controls over this process," he told the AP. "They want to be pesticide cowboys and go out there and do what they want to do without consideration of compliance with their own policies, regulations and environmental laws."

Parker filed a whistleblower complaint earlier this year that pointed to what he called a "systemic problem" when it comes to proper pesticide use across several forests in New Mexico and Arizona.

He accused some managers of not preparing environmental risk assessments and failing to get approval from agency officials who have the authority to make decisions about pesticides.

Parker is concerned that not following agency policies or laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act - which serves as the basis for federal management of public lands - could lead to public safety and environmental threats.

"When it comes down to it, besides the violation of policy and law, it's a betrayal of the public trust," Parker said. "If we're going to use toxic chemicals out in the environment, we need to assure the public that what we're doing meets our policy, which is ensuring the proper use of pesticides."

The Forest Service has declined to comment about Parker's case, citing pending legal actions. But officials have argued that all projects involving pesticides and herbicides undergo a process to ensure the public is involved and that requirements spelled out by federal law are met.

Parker said his termination and three previous suspensions for alleged misconduct amount to reprisal for speaking out about potential problems.

Citing his number of years with the service, Parker said he was fired over "silly stuff" that was concocted by his supervisor. He was accused of failing to turn in a progress report on time, not training more than one person in a month's time and turning in a report that wasn't properly formatted.

Parker claims his reports contained the information his supervisor requested and he surpassed a goal for training other workers in pesticide use before the deadline set by his supervisor.

The agency defended Parker's firing in a Sept. 26 letter. Deputy Regional Forester Lucia Turner wrote that Parker had repeatedly been warned.

"Following supervisory instructions is a basic element of any job. … There is no doubt in my mind that you were put on notice of your responsibilities and the consequences of your failure," the letter stated.

Turner also denied in the letter that Parker was disciplined and eventually fired because of his whistleblowing activities.

The two sides have scheduled a dispute resolution meeting later this month.