Thursday, December 29, 2011
Enviro DNR board member says Deal showed him the door
Posted by Thomas Wheatley @thomaswheatley on Thu, Dec 29, 2011 at 9:18 AM
Warren Budd, one of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' outgoing board members, says he's being nudged along for declining to kowtow to the state's pro-development agenda. Budd, an insurance agent from Newnan who was appointed to the 18-member board by former Gov. Sonny Perdue in 2005, tells Georgia Public Broadcasting:
Budd was in line to become DNR chairman when Deal informed him, he instead wouldn't be re-appointed for another term.Budd describes himself as some environmentalists do — a hunting and fishing "conservation conservative" who questioned some policies.
"I think the Governor is not interested in having people on that board with a strong conservation ethic," Budd says. "I was told by people on the inside that the reason I was not re-appointed was my opposition to building reservoirs north of Macon. If you're not going to have a board members speak out and try to be activist in managing our natural resources in Georgia, you might as well not have a board."
We'd been told a few weeks back while reporting on the Georgia Environmental Protection Division that the DNR board, which oversees the EPD in addition to setting the state's hunting rules and regulations, typically names chairpersons by "promoting" officers.
For example, the board secretary typically becomes vice chairman and the vice chairman moves up to the chairman position. That didn't happen this year.
When asked why, a DNR spokesperson told CL that "frequently there’s been a succession through officers, but not always... And there’s no requirement that that be done." (We contacted Philip Wilheit, the new board chairman, for comment. We never heard back.)
Jay Bookman, who on Wednesday first reported Budd's exit, says that:
According to Budd, the DNR board has been told it can no longer elect its own officers, and instead those officers will be named by the governor. Deal’s top spokesman, Brian Robinson, says that the board remains free to elect its own officers, but that “several board members have asked the governor for his opinion.” According to Robinson, the governor wants to appoint board members “who are excited team players ready to carry out his agenda for our state.”“Some are reappointments, some fill openings and some are replacements,” Robinson said. “It’s part of the process. It allows new blood, new ideas and new people a chance to serve the state on a volunteer basis. If anyone on any board considers himself indispensable, this is what educators call a ‘teachable moment.’ It takes an eyebrow-raising amount of self-regard for someone to suggest publicly that, out of 10 million Georgians, only he or she brings a diverse viewpoint to a board.”
Comments (12)
Showing 1-12 of 12
It's certainly the Governor's prerogative to make changes if he chooses, regardless whether we agree or not. It's no different than what every President does, President Obama being a prime example.
If a pro-development member were replaced by a tree-hugger, neither Jay Bookman or CL would have printed a word.
I suspect that the Governor is more interested in economic recovery than "conservation conservatives" with elevated self opinions.
like
dislikeEconomic recovery? That's a laugh. I don't see Georgia even catching up to most other states under this crooked farce of a governor.
@ MC W
I don't have much confidence in Gov. Deal either, but I had even less in his Democratic opponent. Let's hope that Gov. Deal performs better than we expect.
it's ok if the governor abuses checks and balances, because he's on my political team
real depth of analysis you have there
i also like your preemptive "it's ok for me to be partisan because you are probably partisan" approach
@ eric pfeifer
Please check your logic. If I say 1+1, the answer is 2; not 4, 6, 37, or whatever number suits your fancy.
"it's ok if the governor abuses checks and balances, because he's on my political team."
Exactly what checks and balances did the Governor abuse?
Where did I state that he's on my political team?
"i also like your preemptive "it's ok for me to be partisan because you are probably partisan" approach."
I am partisan, but wouldn't dream of presuming that you are.
Budd is opposed to building reservoirs north of Macon? No wonder Deal made the move. That's nuts. The need far outweighs the impact.
"Please check your logic. If I say 1+1, the answer is 2; not 4, 6, 37, or whatever number suits your fancy."
we're not talking about logic. we're talking about rhetoric. don't use words if you don't understand what they mean
"Exactly what checks and balances did the Governor abuse?
Where did I state that he's on my political team?"
you said this: "It's certainly the Governor's prerogative to make changes if he chooses, regardless whether we agree or not. It's no different than what every President does, President Obama being a prime example."
your statement 'governor's prerogative' indicates that you don't care that the governor might be stacking the DHR board with politically malleable appointees (which dilutes the intent of the DHR board, thus is an abuse of checks and balances)
your use of the terms Obama, tree-hugger, 'conservation conservative' indicates that you frame this issue in partisan terms
"I am partisan, but wouldn't dream of presuming that you are."
bullshit. you said this: "If a pro-development member were replaced by a tree-hugger, neither Jay Bookman or CL would have printed a word." you're deliberately saying that bookman and AJC are partisan, therefore your partisan attacks are justified
do you seriously not remember the words that you type or something? early onset alzheimers?
"Budd is opposed to building reservoirs north of Macon? No wonder Deal made the move. That's nuts. The need far outweighs the impact."
IMO we should improve water infrastructure efficiency first
http://www.metcalfinstitute.org/dl/whats_o…
atlanta's in a geologically poor position with regards to water supply. it would be better for us to invest in losing less water through inefficiencies rather than trying to increase the sheer amount of rain we can capture at once
@ eric pfeifer
I read the article and it states nothing new. The only specific mention of Atlanta (City) refers to wastewater, not water supply. I agree that repairing or replacing the water infrastructure (chiefly the City's ancient system that hasn't been properly maintained in years) will buy some time.
The population that the Chattahoochee can support will be increased if these reservoirs are added. However, continued population growth of the metro area will necessitate other sources, such as the Tennessee River.
@ eric pfeifer
1. I used the term "tree-hugger" to see if you would go off like a skyrocket, which you did.
2. Since when is "President Obama" a partisan term? It's a correct form of address.
3. Mr. Budd termed himself a "conservation conservative", so it's not partisan to repeat his own characterization of himself.
4. I might not agree with the Governor's appointments, but they are within his powers of office. Unless you can prove in court that they are not, or convince the Legislature to change some laws, you're wasting your time. All Governors and Presidents do the same. To the winner go the spoils.
5. No, I'm talking about logic. You are talking about rhetoric.
huh. never thought someone could be a pedant while simultaneously not knowing the definition of the term
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