EPA’s Pruitt backs federal funding for Great Lakes cleanup as budget cuts loom
"I understand the investment that's been made historically," said Pruitt, administrator of the
Pruitt's support follows a vote in the
Pruitt, the former
Pruitt's appointment prompted harsh criticism from environmental organizations because while in
But he's been lauded by conservatives and many business executives, who see the
In the interview Wednesday, Pruitt elaborated on that philosophy.
"At times regulatory actions at ... the federal level can be interpreted as regulatory power for the sake of regulatory power," he said. He said he's been struck by what he called "a lack of urgency" at the
"Forty percent is just not acceptable," he said, adding that he wants to establish goals and timelines to bring that number down.
At the same time, Pruitt said he wants the
As a case in point, he cited the agency's rewrite of a bitterly contested rule that defines bodies of water protected by the Clean Water Act and other federal pollution laws. In June he rescinded a proposed new definition, a product of years of negotiation and litigation, that asserted the
Environmental groups that supported the rule said that it was based in science and that recognizing such bodies as "Waters of
Pruitt, however, disagreed.
"Clearly those types of water bodies, if you can even call it that, were not intended to be a water of the
Meets with Dayton
Pruitt, who stopped in
He said he expects the
He also, for the first time, provided some clarity on why the
On Wednesday, Pruitt said the
"We can't sit back and ignore a body of data," he said.
Pruitt also said he wants to re-establish the relationship between states and the
"And that makes sense," he added. "Communities have different challenges."
After meeting with Pruitt later on Wednesday, Dayton concurred. He said he urged Pruitt to develop clearer standards for the "Waters of
"We have a great deal of confidence ... that
Staff writer
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