In the News

Art Smith, President of Sustainable Futures L3C and former Regional Counsel, EPA Region 5, penned this op-ed recommending changes to water management strategies in Chicago and the great Cook County area in anticipation of future flood events.

Jeff Peterson, former Senior Policy Advisor, EPA Office of Water, wrote this op-ed about steps the federal government could take to assist community preparedness in the face of rising sea levels.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in this article supporting EPA’s proposed rule to ban all current uses of chrysotile asbestos in the U.S.

Bob Sussman, counsel for Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization and former EPA Deputy Administrator, was quoted in this article about EPA’s proposed ban on chrysotile asbestos, stating that only legislation would be able to provide a ban on all asbestos types. Bob was quoted in similar articles appearing in Popular Science and Inside EPA.

Judith Enck, founder of Beyond Plastics and former Regional Administrator, EPA Region 2, was quoted in this article discussing concerns about a proposed extended producer responsibility recycling program for New York State.

EPN’s recent comments on EPA’s coal combustion residual compliance certifications were quoted in this article discussing significant industry pushback on the process the agency is using to deny waivers that permit continued operation of unlined, leaking coal ash ponds.

Tracey Woodruff, Director of the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment at the University of California, San Francisco, and former EPA senior scientist, was quoted in this article discussing the impact toxic emissions from pollution sources have on surrounding neighborhoods.

Dave Coursen, former attorney, EPA Office of General Counsel, was quoted and EPN was mentioned in this article discussing the FY2023 budget proposed by the Biden administration, which includes a budget request of $11.9B for EPA.

Mustafa Santiago Ali, Senior Vice President for Environmental Justice, National Wildlife Federation; former EPA Senior Advisor for Environmental Justice and Community Revitalization; and former EPA Assistant Associate Administrator for Environmental Justice, was quoted in this article regarding the Biden administration’s FY2023 appropriations request for EPA, including $300M for the agency’s environmental justice program.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, authored this article outlining the requirements for a federal scientific integrity framework and the need for federal science policies and practices to be protected by law.

Dave Coursen, former attorney, EPA Office of General Counsel, and Michelle Roos, EPN Executive Director, were quoted and EPN was mentioned in this article regarding Congress’ need to approve EPA’s FY2023 budget request, which includes increased funding for core programs critical to rebuilding the country’s environmental protection infrastructure.

Bob Sussman, lead counsel for Center for Environmental Health, the largest petitioner filing suit against EPA to demand testing orders for 54 per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, was quoted in this article expressing concern that EPA’s motion to transfer the suit to North Carolina is not being done in good faith.

Dave Coursen, former Attorney, EPA Office of General Counsel, wrote this op-ed highlighting the shortcomings of the 2022 omnibus appropriations bill for EPA funding and reiterating the need for increased funding of the agency’s core programs to allow it to carry out its mission to protect human health and the environment.

Ellen Kurlansky, former Air Policy Analyst and Advisor, EPA Office of Air and Radiation, penned this op-ed supporting EPA’s proposal to reinstate the “appropriate and necessary” finding to regulate hazardous air pollutants emissions from power plants, while also suggesting that an updated benefits analysis of reducing mercury emission would strengthen the rulemaking.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in this article discussing California’s proposal to set a maximum contaminant level and a trigger level for hexavalent chromium in the state’s drinking water supply.

Stan Meiburg, former EPA Acting Deputy Administrator and former Regional Administrator, EPA Regions 4 and 6, was quoted in this article regarding a plan by Deborah Shore, the Regional Administrator for EPA Region 5, to have interagency projects that address climate change and environmental justice and promote resiliency.

EPN’s comments on EPA’s draft Lead Strategy were quoted in this article discussing potential agency actions resulting from public comments on the proposed strategy, including the investigation and possible cleanup of half a million parcels and increased funding for lead cleanups and enforcement.

Jim Woolford, former Director, EPA Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation, was quoted and EPN was mentioned in this article about dangerously polluted sites across the US that were recently added to the Superfund National Priority List.

Dave Coursen, former attorney, EPA Office of General Counsel, Bill Reilly, former EPA Administrator, and Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, were quoted and EPN was mentioned in this article discussing past budget and staffing shortages EPA has experienced and will likely continue to experience with the recent passage of the 2022 omnibus appropriations bill.

Bob Sussman, former EPA Deputy Administrator, was quoted in this article discussing the Biden administration’s air policy agenda and possible challenges in getting Senate confirmation of Joe Goffman as Assistant Administrator in EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation.

Penny Fenner-Crisp, former Science Advisor to the Director, EPA Office of Pesticide Programs, was quoted in this article about former EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s blocked nomination to be Virginia’s secretary of natural and historic resources.

Tracey Woodruff, Director, University of California, San Francisco’s Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment; former EPA senior scientist; and Policy Advisor, EPA Office of Policy, was quoted in this article regarding the appointment of Trish Koman as the environmental justice coordinator in EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation.

Mustafa Santiago Ali,  Vice President at the National Wildlife Administration; former EPA Senior Advisor for Environmental Justice and Community Revitalization; and former EPA Assistant Associate Administrator for Environmental Justice, was quoted in this article discussing the increased funding EPA’s environmental justice programs received in the recently-passed FY 2022 omnibus bill.

Jeff Alson, former Senior Engineer and Policy Advisor, EPA Office of Transportation and Air Quality, was quoted in this article about EPA’s decision to rescind the Trump-era withdrawal of the Clean Air Act waiver for California, restoring the state’s ability to set stricter vehicle emissions standards than those set by the federal government.