Posted: Friday, December 19, 2008 12:00 am
Selection of Lubchenco signals a new direction on global warming
By KYLE ODEGARD
Gazette-Times reporter
and the Washington Post
Jane Lubchenco, an Oregon State University faculty member for 30 years, has been asked by President-elect Barack Obama to lead the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, university officials said.
Lubchenco, one of the world's leading marine biologists and distinguished professor of zoology at OSU, is well known for championing ocean reserves and for commenting on the potentially catastrophic impacts of climate change on ecosystems.
In the new position, besides giving direction to the agency, she would serve as a key scientific adviser on marine and climate issues to the secretary of commerce.
"She'll do a great job," said John Byrne, a former president of OSU. Byrne was NOAA's administrator from July 1981 to November 1984.
"Jane has experience operating at this level nationally and internationally. She'll have no problem with it," Byrne said.
The appointment, which must be confirmed by the Senate, is important because it will enhance the prestige of OSU, Byrne said.
Dan Edge, head of the department of fisheries and wildlife at OSU, agreed that Lubchenco is a good choice. "It's an interesting appointment. Certainly, she has national visibility on marine issues," Edge said.
He added that the nomination of Lubchenco makes sense from a scientific credibility standpoint.
The Bush administration has sparked controversy over the past several years as political appointees have edited government documents to delete scientific findings and block scientists' recommendations.
The appointments of Lubchenco and another prominent scientific advocate as presidential science adviser, Harvard University physicist John Holdren, send a signal that president-elect Obama will reverse Bush administration policies on energy and global warming, according to several sources.
The scientists have repeatedly argued for a mandatory limit on greenhouse gas emissions to avert climate change. Lubchenco has said government has immense power to curb the problem.
"If society wants to avoid future disasters, it should do two things - prevent even greater disruption to the climate system and prepare for the climate changes already set in motion," Lubchenco said in an OSU news release from 2006.
Lubchenco also has criticized the United States' policies regarding its territorial waters as outdated and lagging far behind scientific research.
She has consistently called for conservation measures to safeguard ocean ecosystems. NOAA has traditionally favored commercial fishing interests in policy disputes, ignoring scientific considerations, according to some researchers.
The nominations have dismayed conservatives but heartened environmentalists and scientists.
"I do think that there will be a sea change in the Obama administration with the respect shown for the findings of science as well as the process of science," said Nobel laureate David Baltimore, president emeritus of Cal-Tech.
Lubchenco has served on the National Science Board and is heavily involved in scientific organizations, having served as the president of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the International Council for Science.
She already often testifies or provides advice to agencies and politicians in Washington, D.C., as well as to the United Nations.
Gov. Ted Kulongoski selected Lubchenco as co-chairwoman of Oregon's advisory group on global warming, which recommended several steps the state should take to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.
Having been a staunch critic of past U.S. policies regarding territorial waters, Lubchenco will now help oversee those marine issues.
Kyle Odegard can be contacted at kyle.odegard@lee.net or 758-9523.