In the News

Michelle Roos, Executive Director of EPN, was quoted in The Wall Street Journal about an email sent out to two million federal employees earlier this week that offered a
“deferred resignation” in an attempt to scare employees into quitting.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in Inside EPA about how regulating PFAS compounds as a class can still leave room for essential uses and remove the need for individually reviewing each compound.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in Inside EPA about the presence of PFAS on agricultural land and if the public will ever see a final risk assessment on the matter. 

Bob Perciasepe, former EPA Deputy Administrator, was quoted in E&E News about Trump’s surprise firing of inspectors general across all federal agencies and a video that was posted ahead of the presidential election created by a conservative think tank that advocated for this action.

Stan Meiburg, former Acting EPA Deputy Administrator, and Kevin Minoli, former EPA Acting General Counsel, were quoted in Bloomberg Law about former Trump-appointed Inspector General Sean O’Donnell’s firing and the risks of politicizing the role.

Tracey Woodruff, former EPA senior scientist and policy advisor, was quoted in The New Lede about UCSF’s new Center to End Corporate Harm, an organization that will expose financial and lobbyist ties to the chemical industry that influence policies and regulations, as well as investigate practices that undermine science that ultimately affect public health.

Stan Meiburg, former Acting Deputy Administrator, was a guest on WAMU NPR for a segment about the roles and responsibilities of the EPA and USDA.

Stan Meiburg, former Acting Deputy Administrator, was quoted in an article by E&E News that interviewed several former EPA officials from past administrations. The former officials spoke highly of what Biden’s EPA accomplished and are concerned about the rescission of progress in a second Trump presidency.

Linda Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Toxicology Program (NTP), was quoted in Bloomberg Law about the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) recent ban on food coloring Red Dye No. 3.

Barnes Johnson, former Director, EPA Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, was quoted in The Guardian about exporting hazardous waste from the US to Mexico and Canada, posing unknown public health concerns and environmental threats abroad because of differences in environmental regulations.

Jeremy Symons, Senior Adviser to EPN, was quoted in Nature about the importance of EPA and other science-based government agencies, and the health dangers of putting polluters in charge of the air we breathe and the water we drink.

Jeremy Symons, Senior Adviser to EPN, was quoted in the Sierra Nevada Ally about the importance of EPA and NOAA and the health dangers of putting polluters in charge of the air we breathe and the water we drink.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water was quoted in E&E News about how the incoming administration will not be able to ignore a court-ordered ruling to regulate perchlorate in drinking water.

Linda Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Toxicology Program (NTP), and Tracey Woodruff, former EPA Senior scientist and policy advisor, contributed to a paper referenced in The Guardian that found links between multiple childhood diseases to synthetic chemicals and provides recommendations to protect children in the future.

Jeremy Symons, Senior Adviser to EPN, was quoted in Inside EPA about how the public and Congress do not support extreme budget cuts for EPA, despite Trump’s plans to do so. EPN’s post-election poll was also referenced.

Judith Enck, former Regional Administrator, EPA Region 2, and Stan Meiburg, former Acting Deputy Administrator, were quoted in Bloomberg Law about how enforcement under Trump will most likely fall to record lows but could remain steady in select offices.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in The New York Times about elevated levels of PFAS found in sewage sludge used as fertilizer across the nation.

EPN’s post-election poll was cited in a U.S. News article about the dangers of Lee Zeldin.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in the Port City Daily about an alternative way to enforce state permit plans on Lear Corporation, a company that was found to have been dumping large amounts of PFAS into Cape Fear River.

EPN’s post-election poll and Breathing Easy Report were referenced in an article by Public News Service highlighting that most voters are concerned about Trump’s pick to run EPA and that Maryland has received $130 million in EPA grant funding to invest in green infrastructure.

Judith Enck, former Regional Administrator, EPA Region 2, was also quoted in The Guardian about EPA’s formal review of five chemicals, including vinyl chloride, the chemical released in the East Palestine, OH, train derailment in 2023.

Eric Schaeffer, former director, EPA Office of Civil Enforcement; Matt Tejada, former Deputy Assistant Administrator for Environmental Justice, EPA OEJECR; and Tim Whitehouse, former Attorney-Adviser, EPA Office of Enforcement and Compliance, were quoted in Politico about issues of retaining staff, politicizing science, and pollution enforcement in anticipation of Trump’s incoming administration.

Tracey Woodruff, former senior scientist and policy advisor, EPA Office of Policy, was quoted in The Detroit News about a UCSF study that found suspected links between microplastics and colon and lung cancer.

EPN’s post-election poll was mentioned in Public News Service, highlighting that the majority of voters support environmental regulations that keep our air and water clean.