Chemical, oil industry vets nab roles at EPA

Energy & Environment

The Big Story

Chemical, oil industry vets nab roles at EPA

A significant number of political appointees who have joined the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under President Trump used to work for or have lobbied on behalf of the chemical and fossil fuel industries.

The appointments come as the administration has made apparently competing promises about aggressively cutting regulations while also “Making America Healthy Again.”

Among the figures appointed to the agency is Nancy Beck, who used to work at the American Chemistry Council, a chemical industry trade and lobbying group, before serving in the EPA during Trump’s first term. Beck has faced controversy over her handling of chemical safety during her prior tenure in the administration.

Also joining the administration is Lynn Dekleva, who spent about 30 years at chemical giant DuPont, according to her LinkedIn page. DuPont is well known for, among other things, its relationship to “forever chemicals,” a toxic family of chemicals also known as PFAS that have been linked to several cancers and other health concerns and are the subject of EPA regulations, like many toxic substances.

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Topics

Trump packs EPA with chemical, oil industry alumni

A significant number of political appointees who have joined the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under President Trump used to work for or have lobbied on behalf of the chemical and fossil ...
The Hill - 2d
Trump Stocks E.P.A. With Oil, Gas and Chemical Lobbyists

Top political appointees are already at the E.P.A. preparing to erase the agency’s climate rules and pollution controls. Many of them have tried it before.
The New York Times - 4d
Two Industry Executives Join E.P.A. to Help Oversee Chemical Rules

Nancy Beck and Lynn Ann Dekleva worked in the first Trump administration, where they fought chemical restrictions.
The New York Times - Jan. 22
‘Big oil’s negligence’: LA residents call on fossil fuel industry to pay for wildfire damages

Experts say climate crisis was likely responsible for a quarter of the dryness that fueled the fires’ rapid spread. As Los Angeles’s deadly wildfires continue to burn, a group of survivors is ...
The Guardian - Jan. 17
‘I applaud the EPA’: agency launches formal review of five toxic chemicals

Review could lead to bans on plastic chemicals including vinyl chloride, compound at center of 2023 Ohio train wreck. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is launching a formal review of ...
The Guardian - Jan. 15
Why Oil Industry Jobs Are Down, Even With Production Up

The industry is pumping ever more oil and natural gas, but it is doing so with only about three-quarters as many workers as it employed a decade ago.
The New York Times - Jan. 14
Britain’s chemical industry dying out, says Jim Ratcliffe

Ineos owner hits out at high energy prices as petrochemicals group shuts down ethanol production at Grangemouth
Financial Times - Jan. 13
US and UK toughens sanctions on Russian oil industry

The actions are aimed at cutting off revenue Moscow is using to fund its war in Ukraine.
BBC News - Jan. 11
Crude prices jump as U.S. imposes sweeping sanctions against Russia oil industry

The U.S. Treasury Department is targeting more than 180 Russian tankers.
CNBC - Jan. 10

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