Obama nominees: EPA insider, MIT scientist
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WASHINGTON -- President Obama last week chose his nominees to lead agencies that regulate auto emissions and handle alternative energy programs.
He selected air quality expert Gina McCarthy, 57, to replace Lisa Jackson as administrator of the EPA, which sets clean-air rules.
Ernest Moniz, 68, a scientist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was nominated to take over for Steven Chu as Energy secretary.
McCarthy, assistant administrator for the EPA's Office of Air and Radiation, has worked for Demo-crats and Republicans, including Obama's 2012 presidential opponent, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
"Gina has focused on practical, cost-effective ways to keep our air clean and our economy growing," Obama said at the White House.
Moniz, meanwhile, would become the go-to person for Obama's goal of reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil and establishing America as a leader in clean energy technology.
Moniz is director of MIT's Energy Initiative, a research group that gets funding from industry heavyweights including BP, Chevron, and Saudi Aramco for academic work on projects aimed at reducing greenhouse gases.
-- Reuters
