SCHWARZENEGGER APPOINTS MARY NICHOLS TO AIR RESOURCES BOARD

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 3, 2007

Contacts:
Tom Graff, Environmental Defense: 510.593.3899
Jennifer Witherspoon, Environmental Defense: 415.216.9598
Virgil Welch, Environmental Defense: 916.261.4405

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Mary Nichols to chair the California Air Resources Board today following the recent departure of Robert Sawyer as chairman and Catherine Witherspoon as executive director. “We are pleased with this appointment,” said Tom Graff, California regional director of Environmental Defense. “Mary Nichols has the environmental experience and leadership necessary to guide the pioneering efforts of the Air Resources Board to implement solutions to fight catastrophic climate change and to clean our air.”

Environmental Defense was a co-sponsor of AB 32, the California Global Warming Solutions Act, and is working closely with the California Legislature, the Governor’s office and the California Air Resources Board to design and implement the landmark legislation that requires that global warming emissions be “capped” at 1990 levels by the year 2020 and to “cut” emissions from major emitting sources in California. This legislation will reduce “business as usual emissions” by 174 million metric tons or more than 25 percent by 2020.

“Implementing AB 32 is going to require every tool in the toolbox,” said Graff. “We need the right person at the helm of CARB to choose which tool to leverage and when. Mary will be able to strike the right balance between regulation and market-friendly solutions to serve both the environment and the economy. In the process CARB will be forging a path that other states and the nation can follow.”

CARB is the nation’s leading air quality regulatory agency and has a worldwide reputation.  It has enjoyed bi-partisan political and public support, led by board chairs who have demonstrated independent judgment and a firm commitment to improving California’s air quality, during both Republican and Democratic administrations. Because of California’s unique authority under the federal Clean Air Act, the policies adopted in California often set the pace for the nation.  The integrity and capability of the board have never been more important.

Background on Mary Nichols: Mary Nichols has a distinguished career as a public servant and excellent environmental credentials, including serving as a trustee of Environmental Defense (Environmental Defense Fund). She has previously served as the chair of the California Air Resources Board under Governor Jerry Brown and under her tenure the board required cars to have catalytic converters and banned lead in gasoline. After a brief stint on the DWP board under former Mayor Tom Bradley, Nichols went to Washington as assistant administrator for air quality issues at the Environmental Protection Agency during the first Clinton administration. Shortly after returning to California, Gray Davis tapped her to be state Resources Secretary. Nichols came back to L.A. to head up the UCLA Institute for the Environment and, then she returned to the DWP board. Prior to her EPA appointment, she served as a senior staff attorney and director of the Los Angeles office of the Natural Resources Defense Council. Governor Edmund G. Brown appointed her chair of the California Air Resources Board; and Mayor Tom Bradley, to the five-member board of commissions of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. Nichols has extensive experience in environmental law and in administration of public sector agencies responsible for civil litigation and environmental policy. She has written on and taught environmental and legal issues. A founding trustee of the California Environmental Trust, she was awarded a B.A. degree from Cornell University and a J.D. degree from Yale Law School.