JunkScience.com broke the story that the EPA has paid the American Lung Association $20 million over the past 10 years and, in turn, the ALA has agitated on behalf of the agency. Now, thanks to the Freedom of Information Act, the public can get a glimpse into their chummy, symbiotic relationship.
On February 8, 2011, the ALA is eager to please Master EPA by alerting EPA administrator Lisa Jackson to the public release of a letter to Congress supposedly signed by 1,882 health professionals against “any efforts” to limit EPA’s power under the Clean Air Act.
Then on March 8, 2011, the ALA issued a report entitled, “Toxic Air: The Case for Cleaning Up Coal-fired Power Plants.”
On March 10, EPA air chief e-mails (below) the ALA’s chief lobbyist, Paul Billings, and invites the ALA to “stand at the podium [with EPA] to reinforce the public health message… [as it]seems to be such great timing on the heels of [the ALA] report.
This public health charade was then concluded on March 16, 2011, when the EPA and ALA held a joint press conference to announce the utility toxics rule.
Q[uid pro quo]ED.
The thing is, this would be a perfect example of a public agency and private company working together to achieve a mutual goal. However, it gets complicated when the ALA repeatedly sues the EPA. Those lawsuits change this simple, symbiotic relationship into a nightmare that should probably lead to disbarrment of every lawyer on the case. The EPA has such a large conflict of interest here that they should not be allowed to defend any lawsuit brought by an agency that they fund.
And Obama thinks he is going to get growth and progress with the “Precautionary Principle” crowd at the EPA. He already said in his big job speach that he is sticking by the EPA proposed rules. Lets see how fast he can build anything with EIS required for nearly every big project. $450 billion on litigation to try to get something done.