EPA Boss Quit Over Keystone XL

Lisa Jackson left post because Obama is changing his position: insider
By Liam Carnahan,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 2, 2013 7:44 AM CST
EPA Boss Quit Over Keystone XL
Former EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson speaks during a ceremony in Washington.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Here's the latest on the eco-drama going on in DC: Lisa Jackson, who last week left her post as the head of the EPA, apparently stepped down because President Obama is now planning to change course and throw his support behind the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, reports the New York Post. It talks to an insider who says she originally planned to stay on through the majority of 2013, but decided she "will not be the EPA head when Obama supports" the pipeline—which Jackson reportedly told sources could happen as soon as March.

Foes of the pipeline maintain that the process of extracting oil from Canada's tar sands will generate more greenhouse gas emissions than the production of conventional oil does. Jackson herself didn't give a political reason for resigning, and her rep continues to insist Jackson is just seeking new opportunities and more family time: "The idea that her decision was made based on anything else is entirely false." (More Lisa Jackson stories.)

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