There have been a lot of EPA-Congressional fireworks lately.  Today Lisa Jackson testified in front of Congress on the EPA’s budget.  The Republicans in our Congress are trying to diminish the role of the EPA in our government and take away their regulatory powers.  This would be an obvious disaster for the environment, and the health of all Americans, but more pollution is on the agenda of the Republicans for 2011.   (Did you really think they wanted to create jobs?).

Jackson’s 3-hour testimony today before the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee was about the EPA’s fiscal year (FY) 2012 budget.

From the EPA:  In February, President Obama proposed an FY 2012 budget of $8.973 billion for EPA. This proposal reflects President Obama’s commitment to ensuring the government lives within its means while ensuring that EPA can carry out its core mission: protecting public health and our environment while reducing air and water pollution in communities across America.

You can watch it on C-Span.org.

“The head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Lisa Jackson is testifying on the proposed 2012 budget at a House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Environment. The nearly $9 billion dollar budget is a 13%  percent decrease from the previous year.

House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers (R-KY) has recently said that he would seek to slash more than $1.6 billion the EPA budget request. Under his proposal, programs dealing with air pollution, drinking water, energy efficiency, renewable energy and Energy Star products would be affected.

Jackson is also answering questions on the Clean Air Act to regulate greenhouse gases and cut ozone pollution, which could save $2 trillion by 2020, and prevent about 230,000 deaths, according to an EPA report.” — C-Span.

Some politicians, mostly Republicans, think that we can somehow live without drinkable, clean water and clean breathable air.  They seem to feel that air and water aren’t important to health and life in the U.S.

Testifying today, Jackson said, “No one wants contaminated water.”  Is that really true?  It does seem like some members of Congress do want contaminated water, because they are busy trying to defund much of what the EPA does.  One congressman actually said that during meetings with business people, “Defund the EPA” is the only applause line they get.  How can that be true?

The battles between the EPA and Congress have been going on all week.  It seems to me that the EPA should not have to constantly explain the basics of what it does to Congress, but that’s what Lisa Jackson seems to be constantly called on to do.

Here is the March 2nd statement by EPA head Lisa Jackson for her testimony before Congress:

Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, Testimony Before the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works

. . . . . Thank you for inviting me to testify about President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2012 budget request for the Environmental Protection Agency.

Congress enacted the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, and America’s other bedrock environmental protection laws on [...]