I read a very good blog post from the NRDC regarding the EPA's reconsideration of California's request for a waiver under the Clean Air Act so that California can implement stricter greenhouse gas emission regulations for automobiles. The post is here. Once the waiver is granted, New Jersey's regulations which adopt the California regulations will be effective. These clean car regulations is part of New Jersey's plan to address global warming gases under its Global Warming Response Act.
Administrator Jackson was the Commissioner of DEP at the time that DEP adopted the Ca. regulations and she was very involved in the passage of the Global Warming Response Act. I believe that bodes well for her decision to grant the waiver.
I'm sure we'll hear business complain about how now is the time to not impose stricter regulations, just as they did when the economy was strong. You would think Lisa Jackson, with her prior involvement in the issue would favor such a move. I always enjoy the arguments of those who advocate state's rights, but then try to block the decisions of the states that they don't agree with.
Update II, VMars style -- Apparently the Senate GOP took a laxative and unclenched their science hating sphincters. Jackson got confirmed unanimously along with a few others.
Update, VMars style -- Looks like TPM screwed the pooch on this one and they were wrong about Barrasso -- and also wrong about Inhofe who they hadn't even mentioned. It's some other ignorant science hater who is blocking the first competent EPA head from New Jersey.
Talking Points Memo determines that Senator John Barrasso, Science-Denier of Wyoming, is at least one of the buffoons putting a hold on the nomination of New Jersey's Lisa Jackson to head the EPA.
Apparently Wyoming's leading luminary is afraid that Jackson's efforts to stave off global warming will destroy Wyoming's beef industry. You know, 'cause the methane farts of the cows and everything.
The confirmation of Obama?s choices for EPA administrator, former New Jersey environmental chief Lisa P. Jackson, and White House Council on Environmental Quality chairwoman, Nancy H. Sutley, were delayed because a senator has put a hold on their nominations, a Democratic aide said. The identity of the senator holding up the nominations and the reason for blocking them could not be immediately determined.
This is a surprising development as Jackson was not expected to be a flash point from everything I've seen. We'll have to see what comes out about who put on the hold and why they felt it was necessary. Anyone have a guess?
Lisa P. Jackson, chosen to head the Environmental Protection Agency, said at her confirmation hearing Wednesday morning that she would assure that political appointees at the agency would not overrule scientists and other professionals to tilt policy decisions.
Her promise was an implicit rebuke of the management of the E.P.A. under President Bush, where career officials? recommendations were at times ignored in decisions on lead in the air, arsenic in water, and carbon dioxide coming from tailpipes and smokestacks. Senator Barbara Boxer, chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, which is considering Ms. Jackson?s nomination, has regularly complained about alleged political interference in scientific and technical decisions on environmental matters.
Imagine that, going by science. What a concept. The Times talked about Jackson's prospects moving forward:
Her confirmation appears on track. The ranking Republican on the committee, Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma, a skeptic on global warming, called her ?accessible and reasonable? and said he planned to vote to confirm her.
And here's video of Senator Menendez introducing Jackson where he said:
She will not only be the first African-American Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, I believe she will be the best Environmental Protection Agency Administrator we have seen in this history of that department, said Senator Menendez before the committee.
Montclair attorney Jeh Charles Johnson, a longtime Democratic advisor and fund-raiser, was nominated today by President-elect Barack Obama to be general counsel for the Department of Defense.
Johnson, 51, a partner in the New York firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, served as a foreign policy adviser to the Obama campaign. He previously served as general counsel for the Department of the Air Force during the Clinton administration. In that position, Johnson was awarded the Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service.
Here's what the President Elect had to say about his latest selections:
Johnson, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, was one of three Defense Department nominations Obama announced yesterday. The others were William J. Lynn III to be Deputy Secretary of Defense and Robert F. Hale to be Under Secretary of Defense.
"I am confident that these distinguished individuals have the expertise and commitment needed to help me implement a sustainable national security strategy that combats 21st century threats and keeps the American people safe," Obama said in a statement. "They share with me the utmost respect for our brave men and women in uniform, and will work day and night to support our troops, strengthen our military, and advance our capacity to carry out 21st century missions.
"Together, we will work to responsibly to end the war in Iraq, defeat al Qaeda and the Taliban, and renew America's strength and standing in the world. I am honored that they have joined me in this mission, and I trust that they will serve the American people well," the president-elect said.
He may be looking to tap former New Jersey Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa Jackson.
"It seems like it's pretty close to a done deal. She'll be a very strong candidate,' said one Democratic Senate aide.
Jackson previously authored the global warming law for New Jersey and was heavily involved in Super Fund administration for the tri-state region of New Jersey, New York and Connecticut.
As a member Obama's energy and natural resources transition team, Jackson is currently reviewing the inner workings of the EPA, where she had been a manager.
We'll have to see the reaction of environmental groups if Jackson does in fact get the job. Let's hope she does a better job than Christie Whitman. The EPA and New Jersey: Perfect Together.
Regardless of whether Jon Corzine ends up as Treasury Secretary or anywhere else in an Obama Cabinet for that matter, NJ will certainly have its hand in shaping pieces of an Obama Administration. First at the EPA:
New Jersey Environmental Protection Commissioner Lisa Jackson has landed a sought-after spot on President-elect Barack Obama's energy and natural resources transition team.
The appointment was announced Friday , about two weeks after she was named to one of the highest-profile jobs in Trenton as Gov. Jon S. Corzine's next chief of staff. She also could be in the running for an even more prestigious permanent post in the Obama administration in Washington.
It will be interesting to see if she is asked to play more than just a role on the transition team based on that speculation that she is in fact being considered for the "more prestigious permanent post." But Lisa Jackson isn't the only person providing some Jersey input:
President-elect Obama's transition team today tapped Rutgers University history professor Clement Price to help choose the next director of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
[...]
"I will lead a team, a subcommittee, that will be part of the transition team's larger examination of federal agencies," Price said.
Obviously the spotlight has been on the Governor and his possible involvement, but it is certainly significant that we have other people representing New Jersey and playing a prominent role in shaping the Obama Administration
I predicted practical LED lighting for your home would be available around February, 2010. That was 18 months ago. I think we're on track to meet that target. Let's see how that prediction is coming along.
Some interesting new products have begun to emerge, to be discussed shortly. But first please take a few moments to sign a petition. I'll explain what this has to do with LED lighting below.
Although the law gives final say to EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson in cleanup disputes with other federal agencies, the Pentagon refuses to recognize that provision. Military officials wrote to the Justice Department last month to challenge EPA's authority to issue the orders and asked the Office of Management and Budget to intervene.
Experts in environmental law said the Pentagon's stand is unprecedented.
I view this is as yet another crisis caused by the Bush Administration's belief in lawlessness -- or more specifically, the belief that select individuals and organizations are above the law.
Do you live in Sussex, Warren, Burlington, Somerset, Salem, Cape May, Union or Essex county? If so, thankfully, you aren't breathing air that is too polluted for human beings to breathe safely, according to a new EPA report. But for every other county in N.J. and much of the Eastern seaboard, and several more state's counties (345) in total, there are too many carcinogens and hazardous materials in the air to make it safe to breathe.
"We need the waiver enabling California's proposed greenhouse gas emission standards for new motor vehicles, which are vital to the health and well being of New Jersey residents," state Attorney General Anne Milgram said.
EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson yesterday denied a request from California to implement stricter greenhouse gas emission standards than the federal government mandates. California had received more than 40 such waivers in the past. Apparently this was done as a favor to the auto industry in exchange for their muted opposition to the energy bill. This was the first time such a waiver request was denied. Over a dozen states, including New Jersey, have adopted the California standard, so in effect we were also denied the ability to adopt stricter standards.
The EPA knows the decision is bullshit. An internal powerpoint presentation had a slide addressing what would happen if they denied the waiver and were taken to court. It admitted: "EPA likely to lose suit".
Earlier today Assemblyman Reed Gusciora - the sponsor of the 2004 law that tied the state's emission standards to California's - wrote to Attorney General Anne Milgram to urge the state to join California "in any imminent litigation seeking to reverse the EPA's decision." California has announced the state will sue the EPA.
"It's a horrendous decision," said Corzine, who pushed New Jersey to adopt tougher standards on greenhouse gas emissions. "The fact that the EPA has used sort of crazy reasoning to get to their solution is just a horrible decision. Some of us are considering pursuing legal action on this score."
New York Governor Spitzer called the EPA's decision "incomprehensible," while Vermont, Maryland and Washington state have already announced they will take legal action.
The New York Times reports ( http://www.nytimes.c... ) that the Bush EPA has denied California's request to enact stronger controls on pollution emitted from cars. That effects NJ and 16 other states that had planned to follow California's lead.
The California regulations would have forced the car companies either to sell two separate fleets of vehicles - one for states with the higher standard, one that met the federal standard - or more likely, to achieve the higher standard across all vehicles.
The operational part of that quote is the bit that makes it clear that with 17 states (mostly large) mandating a much higher standard; the auto manufacturers would have been forced to comply throughout the whole nation.
See below for more info, some hope, something we can do and a nifty video!
On Monday, Hopeful shared the news that the Justice Department had settled an eight-year-old case brought by the EPA, eight states (including NJ), and environmental groups seeking to force Ohio-based utility American Electric Power to reduce emissions from its coal-fired power plants. "Now, any settlement by the Bush administration should be examined carefully," Hopeful warned, "but the initial reporting is good."
Hopeful's healthy skepticism no doubt was rooted in BushCo's history of giving polluters a pass, and of giving a little with one hand while taking a lot more with the other.
Sure enough, a closer examination of the "history-making settlement" hailed by environmentalists reveals that the deal represents "a significant victory for the power industry." From today's WaPo:
Buried in paragraph 133 of the consent decree, in which the utility agreed to install $4.6 billion in pollution-control measures at 16 existing plants and pay $75 million in penalties, is a section that assures AEP that the government will not pursue any action stemming from the "modification" of these plants between now and Dec. 31, 2018. The EPA has inserted similar language in other settlements.
As I understand it, the settlement gives AEP the green light to upgrade plants and expand output without being subject to "New Source Review" and higher clean-air standards.
The language of the settlement indicates that the administration has not wavered in its distaste for a Clinton-era policy of using the law to force power plants to upgrade their pollution controls whenever they significantly update or expand a plant. That marks a significant victory for the power industry, which has strenuously opposed the "New Source Review," saying that it penalizes them for efficiency improvements that
ultimately benefit consumers and the environment.
The lesson is one that Hopeful obviously grasped: Never breathe easy with BushCo in charge.
You may remember that the EPA, New Jersey other states sued American Electric Power for their pollution from coal-burning power plants in the Ohio Valley. We're downwind, so we suffer from their pollution. CNN is reporting a $4.6 billion settlement Now, any settlement by the Bush administration should be examined carefully, but the initial reporting is good:
In the largest environmental settlement in Justice Department history, American Electric Power has agreed to install $4.6 billion in equipment to sharply reduce emissions at coal-fired power plants in five states, sources said...
The settlement requires AEP to pay a $15 million civil fine to the federal government and spend $60 million on "mitigation measures" like cleanup and repair of damaged lands, sources said.
And the company will be required to reduce nitrogen oxide by 69 percent within nine years and sulfur dioxide by 70 percent within 11 years, said sources.
While the politicization of the Department of Justice has been unfolding, it's good to keep in mind that the DoJ was not the first executive department to be targeted for ideological purges by the Bush Administration. From Day One, when VP Dick Cheney held his secret meetings with industry leaders to "get their input" on energy policy, the EPA was always Ground Zero for an approach I like to call "Governing by Blind Ideology".
Of course, we've never been able to prove anything - and by "we", I mean everyone who has tried to expose the blunt politicization of the EPA - because the VEEP has outmaneuvered everyone at every step. But his two-step of diminishing returns may be finding its way into the corner with the (perhaps) unwitting help of embattled former EPA Administrator Christie Todd Whitman.
According to the Washington Post today, Her'oner is now breaking her long silence over the Hell that was the EPA Administrator's job under VP Dick Cheney.
Former EPA Administrator Christie Whitman ventured up to Capitol Hill today for some testy exchanges with members of Congress during hearings about the EPA's response following 9/11. Here is video of some exchanges between Congressman Pascrell and Whitman...
"Every effort was made by Mayor Giuliani and his staff to ensure the safety of all workers at Ground Zero in the aftermath of this unprecedented act of terror. All workers at Ground Zero were instructed repeatedly to wear their respirators. This is well-documented and indisputable. No one from the City ever tried to block the Environmental Protection Agency. Any statement or suggestion to the contrary is simply baseless. Administrator Whitman never voiced any of these concerns at the time, not at the daily meetings which included federal, state and local officials, not at any press conferences. Doing so now is revisionist at best." Joe Lhota, Former Deputy Mayor, 6/23/07
Back on the playground when we were growing up, this is the point where someone would scream, FIIIIGHT!
No, no, no. Not that Christie. The one who used to be Governor.
Earlier this week we reported that Christie Todd Whitman refused the testify in front of Congress about her actions at the EPA that risked the health and lives of rescue workers after the 9/11 attacks.
Her excuse was that she was being sued, and couldn't testify because of how that might affect the suits.
The suits are still pending, but the threat of a subpoena apparently caused a flip flop.
Two days ago, Whitman's lawyer Joel Kobert had denied a request from a House panel chaired by Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., for his client to testify, noting she was named in two lawsuits related to the issue.
But today, Whitman herself told Nadler in a hand-delivered letter that she was willing to participate in a hearing "if you insist."
Proving that she really is a Bush Republican after all, former NJ Governor Christie Todd Whitman is refusing to testify in front of a House Committee regarding her post-9/11 work as EPA Chief.
Christine Todd Whitman, the former administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency, has refused to testify before a congressional subcommittee, regarding the government's handling of the air quality at the World Trade Center site following the 9/11 attacks.
In refusing to testify, Whitman's attorney cited that the former New Jersey governor is named as a defendant in two lawsuits involving her statements on air quality following the attacks.
Why is she refusing? It appears that, just like with all other parts of the government, the White House political officers couldn't keep their hands out of non-political work. This one risked the lives of the bravest and finest from both New York and New Jersey.
On Sept. 18, 2001, then-EPA head Whitman released a statement declaring the results from air monitoring tests in New York showed "their air is safe to breathe."
Almost two years later, the EPA's inspector general released a report concluding the EPA's assurances were based on preliminary test results. The report also said that EPA press releases were softened under pressure from the White House.
Since then, multiple studies have documented health problems amongst 9/11 emergency responders and workers. One study released last year by Mount Sinai Hospital in New York showed more than 70 percent of Ground Zero workers suffered health ailments or severe respiratory problems.
I figured I'd be posting about White House influence on someone named Christie in this space, but didn't expect it to be this one.
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