Today, the Washington Post reported that President-elect Joe Biden will nominate North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Secretary Michael Regan for the position of EPA Administrator. If confirmed, Regan would become the first Black man to lead the agency charged with protecting human health and the environment.
In response to Michael Regan’s nomination for Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, Greenpeace Senior Climate Campaigner Lisa Ramsden said:
“We’re glad to see President-elect Biden listen to frontline communities and pass over California Air Resources Board Chair Mary Nichols, who was widely rumored to be considered for the top spot at the Environmental Protection Agency. In doing so, Biden gave himself the chance to choose an EPA Administrator who will prioritize justice for the communities most impacted by fossil-fueled pollution.
“In leading the EPA, Michael Regan must go well beyond simply reversing the Trump administration rollbacks. Climate destruction is only possible in a world in which racism is tolerated, and we need leaders in government who aren’t afraid to call out oil and gas corporations for the unjust impacts of their pollution. While leading the Department of Environmental Quality in North Carolina, Regan rightly pushed massive utility Duke Energy to clean up its toxic coal ash and fought Trump’s offshore oil drilling plans. But he has a mixed record on environmental justice issues in the state, failing to protect communities from the health impacts of living near hog farms and approving multiple permits for the carbon-intensive wood pellet industry. Going forward, Regan and the rest of the Biden-Harris administration need to pair their lofty rhetoric on environmental justice with consistent action.”
ENDS
Contact: Ryan Schleeter, Senior Communications Specialist, Greenpeace USA: +1 (415) 342-2386, [email protected]
