EPA chief Lisa Jackson has announced that she will leave her cabinet position after President Obama's State of the Union address, planned for late January. An Associated Press article summarized Jackson's three-plus years in the role: "Jackson, the agency's first black administrator, constantly found herself caught between administration pledges to solve controversial environmental problems and steady resistance from Republicans and industrial groups who complained that the agency's rules destroyed jobs and made it harder for American companies to compete internationally."
In Jackson's statement to the press, she thanked President Obama for the opportunity and remembered her outlook when she first took the position."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.'
"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," she added.
Reuters writer Ayesha Rascoe speculated that the list of Jackson's potential replacements includes Bob Perciasepe, deputy EPA administrator, who will take over the agency on an interim basis; Kathleen McGinty, a former head of Pennsylvania's Department of Environmental Protection; Gina McCarthy, the EPA's assistant administrator for the Office of Air and Radiation; and Mary Nichols, chair of the California Air Resources Board. PD
—Compiled from various sources
