United States Environmental Protection Agency Issue No. 24 April 4, 1983 Page 91 VP EFA TIMES A Publication for EPA Employees Verstandig Serves as EPA Head Pending Confirmation of Ruckelshaus Lee Verstandig Lee M. Thomas EPA Employees Cheer Return of Ruckelshaus Lee Verstandig has been named by President Reagan as Acting Administrator of EPA, pending confirmation by the U.S. Senate of William D. Ruckelshaus, who has been designated by the President to serve as the Agency's leader. Verstandig, former Department of Transpor- tation Assistant Secretary for Governmental Affairs, was selected by the President as EPA's Assistant Administrator for Govern- mental Affairs on Feb. 24. Chosen by the President to serve as EPA's Acting Deputy Administrator was Lee M. Thomas, who since Feb. 24 has been acting as the Agency's Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Elnergency Response. In the Deputy Administrator post, Thomas succeeds Dr. John W. Hernandez, Jr., who has resigned. Other high-ranking officials at EPA who have resigned recently include Dr. John A. Todhunter, Assistant Administrator for Pesticides and Toxic Substances; Robert 1 M. Perry, Associate Administrator and General Counsel; and Paul C. Cahill, Director of the Office of Federal Activities. John E. Daniel, tormerly Chief ot Staff in the Office of the Administrator, has been continued to back page Ruckelshaus Responds to Crowd William D. Ruckelshaus returned to EPA headquarters recently to tell a large and cheering group of EPA employees what he believes must be done to carry out the Agency's environmental mission and to perserve the public's trust. Ruckelshaus, who served as EPA's first Administrator from 1970 to 1973, has been nominated by President Reagan to again assume leadership of the Agency. "Public trust will only ccme if the people believe we are trying our very best to do our job and that we are trying to serve the public interest," he told employees the day after his nomination. "That trust is sacred between us and the public and it must never be broken." "This Agency," he said, "has always oper- ated openly with Congress, with the general public, with the environmentalists and with continued to back page ------- 92 EPA Research Prizes Announced Science prize winners are (standing) Carol Pesch and A. Russell Malcolm and (seated) Gerald Pesch. Three scientists, a husband, wife and a col- league, all stationed at EPA's Environmental Research Laboratory in Narragansett, R.I., have been awarded first prize in the Agency's Scientific and Technological Awards Achieve- ment program for 1982. Members of the winning team are Carol and Gerald Pesch, research aquatic biologists, who each received $2,000, and A. Russell Malcolm, a research chemist, who won $1,000. The title of their paper is "Neanthes aren- aceodentata, a Cytogenetic Model for Ma> ine Genetic Toxicology." It involves research on a method to use certain marine worms to test whether toxic wastes can cause genetic damage to these and other creatures living in coastal, oceanic and estuarine environments. The importance of genetic damage from marine pollution has been recognized by the Inter- national Council for the Exploration of the Seas, which has recommended increased re- search in this area. At present no genetic tests are included in permit programs governing waste disposal in coastal and ocean waters. Other winners in the program include: Second Prize awards— John A. Couch, Lee A. Courtney, and Steven S. Foss, of EPA's Environmental Research Laboratory at Gulf Breeze, Fla., who shared a $2,500 prize for a report on "Laboratory Evaluation of Marine Fishes as Carcinogen Assay Subjects." Vernon A. Benignus and David A. Otto of the Health Effects Research Laboratory at Triangle Park, N.C., who won a $2,500 award for a study on "Effects of Age and Body Lead Burden on CNS function in Young Children." Thomas G. Dzubay and Kenneth w. Clubb of the Environmental Research Laboratory at Re- search Triangle Park, N.C., received $1,250 in recognition of their report on "Comparison of Telephotometer Measurements of Extinction Coefficients with Scattering and Absorption Coefficients." Leon W. Betowski and Andrew D. Sauter of the Environmental Monitoring Services Lab- oratory in Las Vegas, Nev., who won $1,250 for a paper on "Fused Silica Capillary Column GC MS for the Analysis of Priority Pollutants. D.J. Hansen and M.E. Tagatz of the Envi- ronmental Research Laboratory in Gulf Breeze, Fla., who won $1,250 for a report entitled "A Laboratory Test for Assessing Impacts of^ Substances on Developing Communities of Benthic Estuarine Organisms." Teams and individuals who won $500 third place awards are: A.G. Stead, Victor Hasselblad, J.P. Creason, and Larry Claxton of the Health Effects Research Laboratory at Research Triangle Park, N.C., for their re- port on "Modeling the Ames Test." G.E. Hatch, Ralph Slade, F.J. Miller, and D.E. Gardner of the Health Effects Research Laboratory at Research Triangle Park, N.C., for a paper on "Correlation of Effects on In- haled Versus Intratracheally Injected Metals on Susceptibility to Respiratory Infections of Mice." W.T. Joines and C.F. Blackman of the Health Effects Research Laboratory at Research Tri- angle Park, N.C., for a report on "Power Density, Field Intensity, and Carrier Fre- quency Determinants of RF-Energy-Induced Calcium-ion Efflux Fran Brain Tissue." J.A. Graham, F.J. Miller, J.W. Illing, and D.E. Gardner of the Health Effects Re- search Laboratory at Research Triangle, N.C., for their report on "Influence of Ozone on a phenobarbital-induced Sleeping Time in The EPA Times is published every two weeks by EPA's Office of Public Affairs, A-107, Washington, D.C. 20460, to provide current information for all EPA employees. It is punched with three holes for binding for future reference. ------- 93 Mice, Rats and Hamsters." S.W Karickhoff of the Environmental Re- search Laboratory at Athens, Ga., for a re- port on "Semi-empirical Estimation of Sorption of Hydrophobic Pollutants on Natural Sediments and Soils." V.J. Bierman Jr. and D.M. Dolan of the En- vironmental Research Laboratory in Duluth, Minn., for a report on "Modeling of Phyto- plankton-nutrient Dynamics in Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron." F.M. Black and L.E. High, of the Environ- mental Sciences Research Laboratory at Re- search Triangle Park, N.C., for their report on "Composition of Automobile Evaporative and Tailpipe Hydrocarbon Emissions." J.A. Glaser, D.L. Foerst, G.D. McKee, S.A. Quave, and W.L. Budde of the Environmental Monitoring and Support Laboratory in Cinci- nnati for their report on "Trace Analyses for Wastewaters." C.W. Lewis of the Environmental Sciences Research Laboratory at Research Triangle Park, N.C., for a paper "On the Proportiona- lity of Fine Mass Concentration and Extin- ction Coefficient for Bimodal Size Distri- bution." R.R. Arnts and S.A. Meeks of the Environ- mental Sciences Research Laboratory at Re- search Triangle Park, N.C., for a report on "Biogenic Hydrocarbon Contribution to the Ambient Air of Selected Areas." H.H. Tabak, S.A. Quave, C.I. Mashni, and E.F. Barth of the Municipal Environment Re- search Laboratory-Environmental Monitoring and Support Laboratory in Cincinnati, for a report on "Biodegradability Studies with Organic Priority Pollutant Compounds." L.E. Sparks, G.H. Ramsey, and B.E. Daniel of the Industrial Environmental Research Laboratory in Research Triangle Park, N.C., for a paper on "Particle Collection by a Pilot Plant Venturi Scrubber Downstream from a Pilot Plant Electrostatic Precipitator." G.S. Logsdon, J.M. Symons and T.J. Sorg of the Municipal Environmental Research Lab- oratory in Cincinnati, for a report on "Moni- toring Water Filters for Asbestos Removal." A Early Water Pollution Fighters Leaders of EPA's predecessor agencies conferred at a recent reunion of present and retired EPA water pollution control officials at the Navy Yard in South- •east Washington. They are Joe Moore and James M. Quiqley (left and right), former Commissioners of the Federal Water Pollution Control Administration, and Gordon McCallum (center), former Assistant Surgeon General, The water pollution control responsibilities of the Federal Government were first vested in the Public Health Service, then moved to the Federal Water Pollution Control Admin- istration which later became the Federal Water Quality Administration. These pollu- tion control duties were taken over by EPA when it was formed in 1970. Approximately 200 persons attended the reunion luncheon at the Navy Yard Officers Club. ------- 94 RUCKELSHAUS (continued) those we regulate, and we will do so now." Ruckelshaus, who is awaiting confirmation by the U.S. Senate, told the employees gathered at the Agency's headquarters at Waterside Mall that "we will be adopting guidelines for how we ccnmunicate with the public, with those we regulate and with those who consider themselves constituents of this Agency. We must operate with all in the open so that trust is always part of our heritage." The former Administrator said that he also believes that EPA must do a better job of educating the public about its activities. "No one knows better than you the complex- ity of the problems you face, what levels of a given pollutant cause health or environ- mental effects, how to measure substances in the environment, what technologies are avail- able to abate pollution, how good they are, and how much they cost." Ruckelshaus also emphasized that EPA "needs to adhere to an iron integrity." He recalled that when he first arrived at the Agency 12 years ago that he used to tell his staff: "Picture what you are doing or saying as being on a billboard that you pass on the way to work. As you pass that billboard, if you look up and see what you are doing or saying and it embarrasses you, then don't do it or don't say it." He added that "we will follow that advice again." Ruckelshaus told the employees that "the issue today isn't whether we are going to clean up, but how. The how is where you and soon, hopefully, I ccme in. In discharging our responsibilities, we must never, never forget we are public servants. Our job is to serve the people. Not condemn, not bully than." He recalled that when he was first con- firmed Congressman Jamie L. Whitten of Mississippi, chairman of the House Appropri- ations Ccrmittee, commented that the EPA Ad- ministrator would have more power than a good man would want or a bad man ought to have. "Well, he's probably right," Ruckelshaus said, "and, therefore, we can afford to walk softly and fairly." The former Administrator, who estimated that it would take "at least four to five weeks" before he could complete conflict of interest forms, financial forms, FBI checks and obtain Senate confirmation, said that he had agreed to return to EPA's top leadership post because "The President has convinced me that he wants no abandonment of the goals of protection of the public health and of our natural environment. "He has asked me, with your help, and it can only be done with your help, to examine the means to achieve these goals. And where we find, or where we believe that better means can be used, then we should ask the Congress for the authority necessary to adopt those means. In the meantime, we will administer and enforce the laws as they are written by Congress." VERSTANDIG (continued) reassigned as a special assistant to the Administrator. He will serve Acting Administrator Verstandig and Administrator- designate Ruckelshaus in a transition role. Ms. Courtney Price, an Associate Adminis- trator of the Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administra- tion, has been named Acting General Counsel in place of Perry. Pasquale A. Alberico, a career EPA employee, has been named to replace Cahill on an acting basis as head of the Office of Federal Activiies. Don R. Clay, Director of the Office of Toxic Sub- stances, has been named Acting Assistant Administrator for Pesticides and Toxic Substances. ------- |