Good News for Humans Who Breathe Air
Comes news that Dr. Al Armendariz, an SMU prof in the the Lyle School of Engineering has been named the Environmental Protection Agency’s new regional administrator. Armendariz has been an outspoken critic of federal and state regulators for not doing enough to clean up North Texas’ air. Jim Schermbeck sends along the official statement from Downwinders at Risk, the group that has long battled the Midlothian cement plants:
Dr. Armendariz is exactly the kind of person you’d want to have this job, but seemingly never gets it. Because of what’s at stake and the fact that Texas is the belly of the polluter beast, this may be one of the most important, far-reaching appointments the Obama Administration makes. Downwinders at Risk is proud to have been the group that first utilized Dr. Armendariz’s expertise in 2005 for our cause of cleaning up the Midlothian cement kilns. That work led directly to his becoming the premier “citizen’s scientist” in Texas on air pollution, and paved the way for his much larger influence on the state scene. Congratulations to both Dr. Armendariz and the EPA.
Congrats, too, to SMU. Armendariz will keep his faculty appointment while serving at the EPA.
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While this is a nice coup for SMU, Tim, not all humans who breathe air think it’s the greatest appointment. Dr. Armendariz seems firmly committed to a government-always-knows-best approach to pollution matters. And, a question: How can someone with little administrative experience “keep his faculty appointment” while also overseeing a giant federal bureaucracy for the states of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico and Oklahoma?
@Glenn Hunter: Thank you for your steadfast dedication to the role you play on this blog.
@Tim Rogers: Didn’t want to let you down.
It’s the best kind of appointment for this kind of job.
1) He’s a scientist, not a political hack. For perhaps the first time, this job is going to someone who doesn’t have strong “Party” ties or deep pockets or a member of an influential law firm. It’s going to someone who already knows the issues and has used science to deal with them.
2) SMU is just keeping a job for him when he’s through at EPA. He obviously won’t be teaching and doing the RA job at the same time.
3) Far from a”government-knows-best” approach, Dr. Armendariz represents a “citizens-know-best” approach, having worked with countless neighborhood and community groups over the last five years or so. He’s used science to criticize government inaction and wrongful action at both the dederal and state level.
4) He very even-tempered, as befits a chemical engineer. He’s not into rhetorical flourishes, or empty gestures. He’s all about where ever the science leads him.
4) No previous RA has had much administrative experience – unless you count being a junior partner in a law firm or becoming the Mayor of Arlington. That part of the job is not the hard part. It’s the policy-making, leadership and the negotiating that’s difficult. Dr. Armendariz is very experienced in these kinds of situations.
Even those of us doing enviro work are completely amazed that someone of his caliber and background has been picked, instead of a John Hall-type Dem Party hack.
It’s a positive sign from this administration that they value a dedication to the issues over Dem Party contributors and lobbyists.
@Brown Bess
Ditto