In the News

Stan Meiburg, former DRA in Region 4 and Region 6 and Acting Deputy Administrator, was quoted in Savannah Morning News about EPA’s recently announced power plant rules and how they will affect utilities and consumers.

Ronnie Levin, former EPA Senior Scientist, Region 1, was quoted in The Washington Post about the challenges of implementing national lead pipe replacement standards and working with thousands of utility companies across the country.

Judith Enck, former EPA Region 2 Administrator, co-authored an op-ed with Pamela Miller in Fortune about the UN Plastics Treaty and calls for reduction requirements in plastic production and the phaseout of hazardous plastic chemicals.

Bob Sussman, former EPA Deputy Administrator and Senior Policy Counsel to the EPA Administrator, was quoted in Politico about a petition from the Asbestos Disease and Awareness Organization (ADAO) that asserts EPA’s recent ban on asbestos is not strong enough.

Betsy Southerland, former Director of the Office of Science and Technology in EPA’s Office of Water, was quoted in The Port City Daily about the designation of PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances and the clean-up requirements of emitters that accompany the designation.

Tracey Woodruff, former EPA Senior Scientist and Policy Advisor in the Office of Policy, was quoted in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel about the new Superfund rule, adding that it is a step in the right direction, especially for low income communities and communities of color.

Walter Mugdan, former EPA Region 2 Deputy Regional Administrator and Superfund Director, was quoted in Common Dreams about EPA’s recently finalized rule to hold industrial polluters accountable for PFAS contamination across the country.

Ronnie Levin, former Senior Scientist, Region 1, was quoted in the Washington Post about arsenic contamination in Sunland Park, NM, despite years of sampling and violations.

Brian Swett, EPN Board Member, was appointed by Mayor Michelle Wu to be the City of Boston’s Chief Climate Officer, leading the Environment, Energy, and Open Space (EEOS) Cabinet. Brian is a nationally recognized leader in climate change and sustainability, with more than 20 years of experience working with municipal governments, private sector real estate developers, federal governments, and nonprofits

Mark Hague, former EPA Regional Administrator and Deputy Regional Administrator in Region 7, penned an op-ed about the importance of civil service employees and the dangers of “Schedule F,” an executive order signed by Trump–later rescinded by Biden–that would no longer protect civil service employees from politically-motivated firings.

Mike Koerber, former Deputy Director, Office of Air Quality and Planning Standards, Office of Air and Radiation, was quoted in ProPublica about how a new EPA rule that requires fenceline monitoring could help Calvert City, KY, address severe community pollution.

Jeremy Symons, Senior Advisor to EPN, was quoted in Public News Service about a new EPA rule requiring select chemical plants in West Virginia and other states to lower pollution of ethylene oxide, chloroprene, and other cancer-causing pollutants and report their emissions to EPA.

Linda Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program, was quoted in Smithsonian Magazine discussing EPA’s new federal limits of PFAS in drinking water.

Tracey Woodruff, former EPA Senior Scientist and Policy Advisor in the Office of Policy, was quoted in Live Science about the FDA’s expected ban of formaldehyde in hair products and notes that other dangerous chemicals in many products are not tested for safety.

Linda Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program, was quoted in this article about the importance of the federal drinking water standards for certain PFAS compounds.

Linda Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program, was quoted in this article about the very real concern of passing PFAS from mother to child through breastfeeding.

Betsy Southerland, former Director, Office of Science and Technology, EPA Office of Water, was quoted in NPR discussing the positive impacts of the agency’s recently finalized drinking water standards for six PFAS chemicals.

Linda Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program, was quoted in Environmental Health News about bandaid brands containing organic fluorine, a strong indicator that PFAS are present.

A Politico article mentioned a set of public comments written by EPN on air emissions reporting requirements. EPA is expected to issue a final rule in the coming months.

Elin Betanzo, former Environmental Engineer, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water, Standards and Risk Management Division, and Betsy Southerland, former Director of the Office of Science and Technology, Office of Water, were quoted in NPR about Chicago’s 400,000 lead service lines and how the city has lacked enforcement of EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule.

Margo Oge, former Director, Office of Transportation and Air Quality, penned an op-ed in Forbes about EPA’s final heavy-duty vehicle emissions rule and writes about how it advances economic, climate, and public health goals.

Stan Meiburg, former DRA in Region 4 and Acting Deputy Administrator, and Jeremy Symons, EPN Senior Advisor, were quoted in E&E News about Biden’s delicate climate agenda ahead of the 2024 election.

Judith Enck, former Regional Administrator, EPA Region 2, was quoted in Politico about an Exxon Mobil plant–one of 33 projects announced–that is up for millions of dollars of federal funding to decarbonize. Many argue that this funding goes against Biden’s climate commitments.

Tracey Woodruff, former EPA senior scientist and policy advisor in the Office of Policy, was quoted in Grist about endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) found in many plastics that humans are exposed to on a daily basis. These EDCs are also released and found in the air, water, soil, and food.