Sunday, May 07, 2017

EPA fires members of science advisory board

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fired members of a scientific advisory board yesterday. The agency quietly forced out some members of the Board of Scientific Counselors just weeks after leaders told them their tenure would be renewed, said Robert Richardson, an ecological economist at Michigan State University and one of those dismissed. The board is tasked with reviewing the work of EPA scientists and provides feedback that can be a powerful voice in shaping the agency's future research. The cuts "just came out of nowhere," Richardson said. EPA did not immediately respond to a request for comment. There are two main science advisory boards at EPA, both of which can hold significant sway over policy and regulation. The Trump administration has proposed a major weakening of both. Earlier this year, the White House proposed slashing funding for the Science Advisory Board by 84 percent. Such a cut would essentially cripple the work of the 47-member board of outside scholars. House Republicans have passed legislation to reform the Science Advisory Board, a move critics say is designed to increase the voice of industry in rulemaking. That bill is still awaiting Senate approval. Richardson said about developments, "This is a significant step toward the erosion of science, and I think that it is happening subtly throughout the agency with this very large proposed budget cut to the Science Advisory Board."...more

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Thank god and greyhound they're gone!!!