Political Football with the Environment (just in time for the Super Bowl)
Two big stories this week about the clash between politics and environmental protection.
One is a story about Georgia's planned expansion of the Port of Savannah. Because it impacts South Carolina waters, Georgia needed a dredging permit from S.C. The DHEC staff - i.e., the engineers, scientists, and other experts - had recommended denying the permit. Gov Haley asked the DHEC Board - composed entirely of her political appointees - to hear an appeal, and shortly after this request, the permit was granted. A political tempest was raised, and, in a rare show of bi-partisan agreement, the S.C. House, in unanimous vote, passed a resolution to, in essence, rescind the permit. See more details here: SC House approves bill to undo dredging permit
The second story involves the selection of DHEC's new director. DHEC has been without a director since Earl Hunter retired last year. After DHEC completed interviews, Haley apparently requested that the interview process be reopened, and Catherine Templeton, the current director of LLR (whom Haley had hand-picked to lead that agency) applied for and has now received the Board's recommendation for the job (it requires Senate approval). This has engendered no small amount of criticism (see some links below), as Templeton's background is in labor & employment issues, and she admits she has no experience in the environmental field.
http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/25/2127293/dhec-director-needs-some-expertise.html
http://www.fitsnews.com/2012/01/25/haley-warned-regarding-templeton-appointment/
Perhaps this situation, coming so close on the heels of the Port of Savannah issue, has emboldened some to be more vocal in their criticism, but there can really be no dispute that having experience in the environmental field would be helpful in directing the state's "health and environmental" agency. I am a colleague of Ms. Templeton and respect her and her legal abilities. I hope that she is able to find the proper balance necessary at such a crucial agency, and that her decisions are guided by scientific reality, not political expediency.
One is a story about Georgia's planned expansion of the Port of Savannah. Because it impacts South Carolina waters, Georgia needed a dredging permit from S.C. The DHEC staff - i.e., the engineers, scientists, and other experts - had recommended denying the permit. Gov Haley asked the DHEC Board - composed entirely of her political appointees - to hear an appeal, and shortly after this request, the permit was granted. A political tempest was raised, and, in a rare show of bi-partisan agreement, the S.C. House, in unanimous vote, passed a resolution to, in essence, rescind the permit. See more details here: SC House approves bill to undo dredging permit
The second story involves the selection of DHEC's new director. DHEC has been without a director since Earl Hunter retired last year. After DHEC completed interviews, Haley apparently requested that the interview process be reopened, and Catherine Templeton, the current director of LLR (whom Haley had hand-picked to lead that agency) applied for and has now received the Board's recommendation for the job (it requires Senate approval). This has engendered no small amount of criticism (see some links below), as Templeton's background is in labor & employment issues, and she admits she has no experience in the environmental field.
http://www.thestate.com/2012/01/25/2127293/dhec-director-needs-some-expertise.html
http://www.fitsnews.com/2012/01/25/haley-warned-regarding-templeton-appointment/
Perhaps this situation, coming so close on the heels of the Port of Savannah issue, has emboldened some to be more vocal in their criticism, but there can really be no dispute that having experience in the environmental field would be helpful in directing the state's "health and environmental" agency. I am a colleague of Ms. Templeton and respect her and her legal abilities. I hope that she is able to find the proper balance necessary at such a crucial agency, and that her decisions are guided by scientific reality, not political expediency.
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