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Greens to EPA chief: Don’t quit over White House smog reversal
A group of environmentalists have launched an online petition drive urging Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson not to resign in the wake of the White House scuttling her plans to toughen Bush-era smog standards.
The Earth Day Network created the website americaneedslisajackson.com this week. It calls her the “environmental conscience” of the Obama administration.
The website cites speculation among “chattering classes” — including a Politico story this week — that President Obama’s decision to scrap the ozone rule last Friday will prompt Jackson to begin planning her exit.
“We have no inside information. We know nothing about Ms. Jackson’s actual state of mind,” the website states. “But we do know Lisa Jackson’s departure would be a genuine tragedy for the health and well-being of all Americans.”
The website is another sign of the left’s disappointment with Obama’s decision to override the EPA on ozone. The White House said the EPA would revisit the 2008 ozone standard in 2013. The 2008 standard set under then-President George W. Bush was weaker than the EPA’s formal science advisers had recommended.
The website takes shots at the White House, noting that of late Jackson has found herself with “less than full-throated support.”
“Political operatives have been resurrecting that old canard that a healthy environment destroys jobs,” according to the site.
The first paragraph of the online petition reads:
We, the undersigned concerned Americans, urge you to continue your strong and unwavering leadership of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and we stand by your side. We know that the Administration’s decision to kill the ozone standard was the wrong one, and we need you to stand your ground and move America forward. Your unblemished record of putting science and the law first, acting with transparency, and protecting the health and welfare of all of the American people — demonstrate a commitment to the values that define what our nation needs in its leaders today.
A separate group, the Union of Concerned Scientists, is leading an effort to use the White House Facebook page to criticize the ozone retreat.
It has organized activists to post a large number of messages on the White House page calling on the White House not to let “politics trump science” again.
The messages urge the White House not to scuttle upcoming Clean Air Act rules on power plant mercury emissions and greenhouse gases.
This post was updated at 12:59 p.m.
