* from our friends at Moms Clean Air Force.

EPA Admistrator Lisa P. Jackson Recently Resigned.

I want to thank President Obama for the honor he bestowed on me and the confidence he placed in me four years ago this month when he announced my nomination as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. At the time I spoke about the need to address climate change, but also said: “There is much more on the agenda: air pollution, toxic chemicals and children’s health issues, redevelopment and waste-site cleanup issues, and justice for the communities who bear disproportionate risk.” As the President said earlier this year when he addressed EPA’s employees, “You help make sure the air we breathe, the water we drink, the food we eat are safe. You help protect the environment not just for our children but their children. And you keep us moving toward energy independence…We have made historic progress on all these fronts.” So, I will leave the EPA confident the ship is sailing in the right direction, and ready in my own life for new challenges, time with my family and new opportunities to make a difference.

~ Statement by Lisa P. Jackson

Here’s a Snapshot of the EPA during Administrator Jackson’s tenure: 2009 – 2012

> Addressing climate change by declaring that greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare and proposing to use the Clean Air Act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants.

> Making historic progress in fuel efficiency with the Department of Transportation (DOT) that will reduce the pollution and carbon footprint of passenger cars and trucks and save consumers billions of dollars while promoting our country’s energy independence.

> Preventing tens of thousands of illnesses and premature deaths and hundreds of thousands of asthma attacks by far-reaching reductions in mercury and other toxic air emissions from power plants, industrial boilers and cement kilns.

> Putting in place long-overdue health standards for pollutants including fine particles, soot and sulfur dioxide that include new targeted monitoring to protect children and other vulnerable people who live near highways or downwind of major sources of pollution.

> Making measurable progress in restoring iconic watersheds like the Chesapeake Bay, the Everglades and the Great Lakes and tackling the tough issues of nutrient pollution in states across our nation.

> Working with the Gulf states to forge a bipartisan, regional plan for restoration of the great Gulf of Mexico ecosystem.

> Reforming toxic chemical oversight by: taking action to address the risks of ten chemicals found in everyday products that have been linked to a range of health effects from reproductive and developmental problems to cancer; expanding chemical testing for endocrine disruption; and, removing confidentiality claims for more than 150 chemicals.

> Working with mayors and communities to unlock the potential of urban waters and working with other agencies to integrate water planning and expenditures as part of smart and sustainable growth strategies.

> Working with Tribes and native villagers across the continent to address a range of issues, from Superfund cleanups to water quality for salmon to sea level rise.

> Turning brownfields into green fields and energy fields, giving scores of communities new spaces for economic growth and recreation and finding innovations that support energy efficiency and recycling and create jobs in the process.

> Expanding the conversation on the environment to new groups through an expanded outreach and engagement program and working for environmental justice through Plan EJ 2014.

There has been no fiercer champion of our health and our environment than Lisa Jackson, and every American is better off today than when she took office nearly four years ago.

~ Frances Beinecke, president of the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Click here to Thank Administrator Jackson for championing efforts to protect children from air pollution.

 

Led by co-founder and senior director Dominique Browning, Moms Clean Air Force is a national movement of more than 100,000 moms — and dads too!—who are protecting our children’s right to clean air—just as our parents fought for us, forty years ago, when the Clean Air Act was first passed. Learn more today. Rallying that incredible force of moms and dads every day is our family of bloggers and grassroots field team, starting up state chapters to take our mission to local communities. And on the national stage, our leadership circle amplifies those grassroots voices to make sure Congress gets the message. We are here to tell Washington: Listen to your moms. We share the air—and we want it clean. Moms Clean Air Force is a special project of the Environmental Defense Fund, which provides funding.

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Ed: L.H.

Asst. Ed: Elysha Anderson

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