Sierra Club Statement On Governor Christine Whitman As Environmental
Protection Agency Administrator


From Sierra Club
Wednesday, December 20, 2000

Statement of Carl Pope, Sierra Club Executive Director:
Governor Christie Whitman has a mixed record on the environment, but on
balance we believe the Sierra Club could work with her if she is appointed
EPA Administrator. We applaud the leadership she demonstrated to protect
New Jersey's open space and to strengthen our nation's clean-air standards.
Unfortunately, Governor Whitman also oversaw severe cuts to her state's
environmental law enforcement efforts, which cause us deep concern.

Protecting a quarter-million acres of New Jersey's open space, Governor
Whitman worked to safeguard the Sterling Forest and other unspoiled
treasures from developers, curbing sprawl and conserving the state's
heritage for future generations to enjoy. In addition, Governor Whitman
stood at the forefront of the clean air fight when she pushed the nation's
governors to support efforts to reduce soot and smog air pollution.

The EPA Administrator's primary responsibility is to enforce the nation's
environmental standards, but by cutting New Jersey's environmental budget,
Governor Whitman hampered her state's efforts. As EPA Administrator, Gov.
Whitman would have a duty to fight for funding to effectively enforce the
standards that protect our families from pollution. For that reason, we
hope the Senate will press her about the need to enforce strong, mandatory
environmental standards.

Governor Whitman shows far more promise than many of the other names
floated for this position. Whomever the choice, one of the first
challenges the next EPA Administrator will face is holding General Electric
responsible for cleaning up the PCBs they dumped in the Hudson River. From
forcing corporate polluters to clean up their messes to advocating
smart-growth solutions to suburban sprawl, we need an EPA Administrator and
White House committed to protecting America's environment for our families
and for our future.

# # #

For more information, contact:
Allen Mattison
Sierra Club
202-675-7903

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