MorePresident Obama on Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2010, signed an
executive order setting up the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force to
continue the recovery after the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill. EPA
Administrator and Task Force Chair Lisa P. Jackson immediately started a series
of meetings in the region to focus on the next steps.
"The president has made clear that he wants restoration plans to come from the gulf coast, and not be imposed on the gulf residents by Washington. We're counting on the people who know these areas best – the people who call the gulf home – to shape our work," Jackson explained during her meetings on Tuesday.
The task force's mission will be to coordinate efforts to implement restoration programs and projects in the gulf coast region. It will have five state representatives, appointed by the president upon recommendation of the governors of each gulf state, along with one senior official each from many federal departments and agencies, including the departments of Defense, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, and Transportation. The task force may also include representatives from affected tribes.
The executive order follows the release last week of the long-term restoration proposal, written by Navy Secretary Ray Mabus – a plan that included a call for dedicated funds to support the gulf coast's environmental and economic recovery. Included in the Mabus report was a recommendation for Congress to authorize a Gulf Coast Recovery Council to manage the overall restoration efforts in the gulf coast. The president created the task force to enhance the coordination and implementation of important restoration efforts, even before Congress acts.
SOURCE: White House executive order
"The president has made clear that he wants restoration plans to come from the gulf coast, and not be imposed on the gulf residents by Washington. We're counting on the people who know these areas best – the people who call the gulf home – to shape our work," Jackson explained during her meetings on Tuesday.
The task force's mission will be to coordinate efforts to implement restoration programs and projects in the gulf coast region. It will have five state representatives, appointed by the president upon recommendation of the governors of each gulf state, along with one senior official each from many federal departments and agencies, including the departments of Defense, Justice, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, and Transportation. The task force may also include representatives from affected tribes.
The executive order follows the release last week of the long-term restoration proposal, written by Navy Secretary Ray Mabus – a plan that included a call for dedicated funds to support the gulf coast's environmental and economic recovery. Included in the Mabus report was a recommendation for Congress to authorize a Gulf Coast Recovery Council to manage the overall restoration efforts in the gulf coast. The president created the task force to enhance the coordination and implementation of important restoration efforts, even before Congress acts.
SOURCE: White House executive order
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