Stephen Johnson
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Stephen Johnson defends Bush as ‘pro-environmental’
“The president is really a very pro-environmental person. When we first talked, he used the phrase which is precisely, philosophically, where I’ve always been at EPA. He said, ‘Steve, I want you to accelerate the pace of environmental protection while maintaining our nation’s economic competitiveness.'” — Stephen Johnson, EPA administrator
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We can haz everee-thing!
Coal lobby billboard: "Clean coal means our next President won’t have to choose between a clean environment and our economy." EPA head Stephen Johnson: "Americans should not have to choose between clean coal or effective environmental protection; we can achieve both."
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Biofuels reps ask EPA to exclude greenhouse gas emissions considerations from rulemaking
The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to release new rules soon regarding the Renewable Fuel Standard established last year under the Energy Independence and Security Act. The legislation required the EPA take into account the life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions from the production of various biofuels, including indirect emissions from things like land use changes. On […]
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Groups warn of possible EPA moves to weaken standards for radioactive releases
A group of 60 environmental and public health organizations sent a letter [PDF] to Environmental Protection Agency administrator Stephen Johnson expressing concern that the agency “is considering a series of actions aimed at dismantling and dramatically weakening decades of EPA policies for protection of the public from ionizing radiation” in the remaining weeks of the […]
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McCain adviser challenges idea of regulating CO2 under the Clean Air Act
McCain senior policy adviser Douglas Holtz-Eakin was on CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday talking about the need for the next president to enact “comprehensive policies” to create jobs as well as a “real energy policy.” He also took on the recent assertion from Obama’s advisers that their candidate would regulate carbon dioxide as a […]
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Oversight chair warns Bush administration against attempting to weaken the Clean Air Act
House Oversight Committee Chair Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) issued a warning [PDF] on Tuesday to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson, apparently trying to head off at the pass any further attempts to weaken the Clean Air Act. There’s talk of yet another new rule soon to come from the Bush administration that would undermine the new-source review […]
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Energy adviser says Obama would regulate emissions under the Clean Air Act
In an interview with Bloomberg, Obama energy adviser Jason Grumet said that Obama would regulate carbon dioxide as a pollutant under the Clean Air Act. Grumet said Obama “would initiate those rulemakings,” authorizing the Environmental Protection Agency to use the Clean Air Act to limit greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and manufacturers. This would, […]
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Despite industry lobbying, EPA toughens lead pollution limits
Federal regulators announced Thursday a sharp reduction in legal levels of lead emissions, rejecting pleas by industrial battery recyclers who told White House officials earlier this month that they could be put out of business by tough new limits. “Our nation’s air is cleaner today than just a generation ago, and last night I built […]
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Oversight Committee says White House overstepped its bounds
Back in June, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee was ready to vote on whether to hold U.S. EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson and Office of Management and Budget’s Susan Dudley in contempt of Congress for failing to turn over documents related to the controversial decisions on smog and California’s request for an emissions waiver. […]