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S. HRG. 111–1190 

HEARING ON THE NOMINATIONS OF PETER SILVA, 

STEPHEN OWENS, AND JO-ELLEN DARCY 

HEARING 

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON 

ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

MAY 12, 2009 

Printed for the use of the Committee on Environment and Public Works 

( 

Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys 
(II) 

COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS 

ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS 

FIRST SESSION 

BARBARA BOXER, California, Chairman 

MAX BAUCUS, Montana 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

FRANK R. LAUTENBERG, New Jersey 

BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland 

BERNARD SANDERS, Vermont 

AMY KLOBUCHAR, Minnesota 

SHELDON WHITEHOUSE, Rhode Island 

TOM UDALL, New Mexico 

JEFF MERKLEY, Oregon 

KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND, New York 

ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania 

JAMES M. INHOFE, Oklahoma 

GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio 

DAVID VITTER, Louisiana 

JOHN BARRASSO, Wyoming 

MIKE CRAPO, Idaho 

CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri 

LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee 

BETTINA POIRIER, Staff Director 

RUTH VAN MARK, Minority Staff Director 
(III) 

C O N T E N T S 

Page 

MAY 12, 2009 

OPENING STATEMENTS 

Boxer, Hon. Barbara, U.S. Senator from the State of California ........................ 1 

Baucus, Hon. Max, U.S. Senator from the State of Montana .............................. 3 

Carper, Hon. Thomas R., U.S. Senator from the State of Delaware ................... 5 

Inhofe, Hon. James M., U.S. Senator from the State of Oklahoma .................... 46 

WITNESSES 

Darcy, Jo-Ellen, nominated to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil 

Works .................................................................................................................... 6 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 8 

Responses to additional questions from Senator Boxer ................................ 11 

Response to an additional question from Senator Lautenberg ..................... 13 

Responses to additional questions from: 

Senator Inhofe ........................................................................................... 14 

Senator Voinovich ..................................................................................... 19 

Silva, Peter S., nominated to be Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Water ....................................................... 21 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 23 

Responses to additional questions from Senator Boxer ................................ 26 

Response to an additional question from Senator Lautenberg ..................... 26 

Responses to additional questions from: 

Senator Inhofe ........................................................................................... 27 

Senator Voinovich ..................................................................................... 34 

Owens, Stephen A., nominated to be Assistant Administrator for the EPA 

Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances ..................................... 35 

Prepared statement .......................................................................................... 37 

Responses to additional questions from Senator Boxer ................................ 41 

Response to an additional question from Senator Lautenberg ..................... 42 

Responses to additional questions from Senator Inhofe ............................... 42 

Response to an additional question from Senator Voinovich ........................ 45 

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL 

May 5, 2009, letter from the Water Resources Coalition ..................................... 57 

May 11, 2009, letter from the Water Resources Coalition ................................... 58 

May 11, 2009, letter from the American Society of Civil Engineers ................... 60 

(1) 

HEARING ON THE NOMINATIONS OF PETER 

SILVA, STEPHEN OWENS, AND JO-ELLEN 

DARCY 

TUESDAY, MAY 12, 2009 

U.S. SENATE, 

COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS, 

Washington, DC. 

The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:35 p.m. in room 406, 

Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Barbara Boxer (chairman of 

the full committee) presiding. 

Present: Senators Boxer, Inhofe, Baucus, Udall, and Carper. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BARBARA BOXER, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA 

Senator BOXER. The meeting will come to order. I apologize for 

running 5 minutes behind schedule. 

We are here today to consider President Obama’s nominations for 

three very important leadership positions at the EPA and the Army 

Corps. 

I would like to start off by welcoming Jo-Ellen Darcy, who is 

nominated for Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. JoEllen has served as professional staff on this Committee with distinction and most recently served as an advisor to Senator Baucus 

on the Finance Committee. We are just thrilled to see you here. 

The Army Corps has a direct impact on jobs, lives and communities. As Hurricane Katrina made clear, people really depend on 

the Corps to safeguard their lives and their livelihoods. In my own 

State of California, the safety of thousands of Sacramento residents 

depends on a system of Corps flood control projects. They maintain 

harbors, such as San Francisco, Oakland and Long Beach, facilitating the flow of much of our Nation’s commerce. As a matter of 

fact, 40 percent of all our imports come through the Long BeachLos Angeles ports. And many of the Nation’s most ambitious efforts 

to restore degraded ecosystems such as the Everglades and the 

coasts of Louisiana are led by the Corps. 

In the last Congress, we passed the Water Resources Development Act which authorized many important new projects and 

brought about reforms in the way the Corps does business. I was 

very pleased with that. I think that is was 7 years that we had not 

had a water bill, so we got that done. We have a lot more work 

to do with the Corps and we are thrilled that you have nominated. 

I would also like to welcome Peter Silva who has been nominated 

to be Assistant Administrator for the EPA’s Office of Water. This 
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office works to ensure that families have safe drinking water and 

they also work to keep our Nation’s rivers and lakes clean. We remember the days, at least I do, when our lakes were on fire. We 

do not want to go backward. 

Mr. Silva comes from my home State where he was Senior Policy 

Advisor for the Metropolitan Water District which provides drinking water to, Senator Baucus, 19 million people. So, he comes to 

us with tremendous experience. Protecting our Nation’s waterways 

has been made much more challenging by Supreme Court cases 

that have undermined the historic scope and application of the 

Clean Water Act and I look forward to moving ahead with a legislative solution to the serious problem as quickly as possible. I know 

Senator Baucus, Senator Klobuchar, Senator Voinovich, a lot of 

them are working hard and we are talking with the CEQ to resolve 

this. But your expertise will be essential in implementing the innovative clean water and drinking water programs that this Committee will be voting on Thursday. 

It has been over 20 years since we have reauthorized the Clean 

Water Revolving Fund and more than 12 years since we reauthorized the Drinking Water Revolving Fund. I have great news from 

our Committee. The Big Four on this are myself, Senator Inhofe, 

Senator Crapo and Senator Cardin. We have reached an agreement 

to move a bipartisan bill through the Committee. So we are really 

thrilled. 

It is also critical that safe drinking water standards for contaminants for perchlorate are finally adopted so that drinking water 

and wastewater requirements are updated to reflect the latest 

science. 

And finally, last but certainly not least, I would like to welcome 

Stephen Owens, who is nominated to be Assistant Administrator 

for EPA’s Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances. 

That office helps prevent pollution before it is created, to promote 

safer chemicals, to provide leadership in the EPA’s scientific decisionmaking on chemical management issues. Mr. Owens brings his 

experience at the Environmental Council of the States and as Director of Arizona’s Department of Environmental Quality. 

I am pleased to see that Mr. Owens has a clear record of working 

to protect children from dangerous chemicals. He launched Arizona 

DEQ’s Children’s Environmental Health Project and he established 

an Office of Children’s Environmental Health. We have a duty to 

protect our children and when we do, we will protect the rest of us 

as well. I will be working with my colleague, Senator Lautenberg, 

and members of this Committee to update the toxic laws which do 

not reflect the most current science on these issues. 

I look forward to hearing from the witnesses. But I know that 

Senator Baucus’ schedule is beyond explanation and I am thrilled 

that he is here and it is a real tribute to you, Jo-Ellen, because I 

know he very much wants to introduce you. So, Senator, if you 

would like to both make your statement and introduce Jo-Ellen, 

that would be fine. 
3 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. MAX BAUCUS, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF MONTANA 

Senator BAUCUS. Thank you, Madam Chairman, very, very, very 

much. That is very gracious of you and I do want to take the opportunity to introduce Jo-Ellen. 

Abraham Lincoln once said—— 

Senator BOXER. What an introduction. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator BAUCUS [continuing]. Character is like a tree, and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it. The 

tree is the real thing. 

Having known and worked with Jo-Ellen for at least 16 years, 

I can assure you that Jo-Ellen has an unprecedented knowledge of 

the Army Corps of Engineers and the highest character. She has 

earned her reputation. Jo-Ellen is the real thing. 

She joined the staff of this Committee in 1993 when I became 

Chairman. She worked on the Committee for more than a decade. 

She was responsible for, among other things, legislation relating to 

the Clean Water Act, Safe Drinking Water Act and Endangered 

Species Act. Perhaps her most important contribution in this area 

was her work on the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1996 which, in 

my mind, is a model environmental law. Why? Because it makes 

the law work more efficiently for cities and towns while at the 

same time it improves the protection of public health. 

Most relevant to the position to which she has been nominated, 

Jo-Ellen is also the principle staffer responsible for legislation relating to the Water Resources Development Act which we around 

here know as WRDA. And she became one of the Nation’s foremost 

authorities on that law. 

During her tenure, Jo-Ellen helped pass some of the Corps’ most 

sweeping initiatives, from restoring the Everglades to protecting 

New Orleans in the wake of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, to requiring independent peer review of Corps projects, something we 

all worked on quite aggressively. 

Jo-Ellen’s work has restored ecosystems, improved public safety, 

repaired our water infrastructure and made the Corps more transparent and accountable. If confirmed, I know she will continue to 

improve the work of the Army Corps of Engineers. 

In 2006, I was able to persuade Jo-Ellen to join the staff of the 

Senate Finance Committee where she has been instrumental in developing a series of tax incentives for environmental protection including those enacted as part of the Farm Bill. Jo-Ellen has a 

record of great accomplishments which is reflected in important environmental laws and in environmental restoration projects all 

across the Country. She knows the Civil Works Program of the 

Army Corps of Engineers as well as anyone. She knows the law. 

She knows Congress, in particular, the Senate and its committees. 

And she is uniformly respected for her effective, pragmatic, bipartisan approach to her work. 

On a personal note, I would like to add that Jo-Ellen has 

achieved all of these accomplishments not only because of brains 

and hard work, but also because of her values. Her father, Dick 

Darcy, was a detective on the Fitchburg, Massachusetts police 

force. He and his wife, Jean, raised Jo-Ellen to have strong values, 
4 

especially fairness and open-mindedness, qualities that will serve 

her well. 

I am sure that, although he has passed away, Dick Darcy would 

be very proud of his daughter today. I know that Jo-Ellen’s mom, 

who was not able to travel here today, and her sisters and brothers 

and cousins and nieces and nephews and believe me, I know a 

whole lot of them, could not be more pleased and proud for her 

nomination. 

Like each of us here, I believe that there are few higher callings 

than public service. Jo-Ellen Darcy is the epitome of someone who 

has devoted her professional career to service. And I could not be 

more proud that the President has nominated her to serve as Assistant Secretary for the Army Corps for Civil Works. Jo-Ellen is 

the real thing. 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

[The prepared statement of Senator Baucus follows:] 

STATEMENT OF HON. MAX BAUCUS, U.S. SENATOR

FROM THE STATE OF MONTANA

I want to spend a few minutes at the beginning of today’s hearing introducing a 

woman who needs no introduction to this Committee—Ms. Jo-Ellen Darcy, who has 

been nominated by the President to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil 

Works. 

Abraham Lincoln once said ‘‘character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.’’ 

Having known and worked with Jo-Ellen for the last 16 years, I can assure you 

that Jo-Ellen has an unprecedented knowledge of the Army Corps of Engineers and 

the highest character. She has earned her reputation. Jo-Ellen is the real thing. 

Jo-Ellen joined the staff of this Committee in 1993, when I became Chairman. She 

worked on the Committee for more than a decade. She was responsible for, among 

other things, legislation relating to the Clean Water Act, the Safe Drinking Water 

Act, and the Endangered Species Act. Perhaps her most important contribution, in 

this area, was her work on the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1996, which is, to my 

mind, a model environmental law because it makes the law work more efficiently 

for cities and towns at the same time that it improves the protection of public 

health. 

Most relevant to the position to which she has been nominated, Jo-Ellen also was 

the principal staffer responsible for legislation relating to the Water Resources Development Act, or WRDA, and she became one of the Nation’s foremost authorities 

on that law. 

During her tenure, Jo-Ellen helped pass some of the Corps’ most sweeping initiatives—from restoring the Everglades to better protecting New Orleans in the wake 

of Hurricanes Rita and Katrina to requiring independent peer review of Corps’ 

projects. 

Jo-Ellen’s work has restored ecosystems, improved public safety, repaired our 

water infrastructure, and made the Corps more transparent and accountable. And 

if confirmed, I’m sure she will continue to improve the work of the Army Corps of 

Engineers. 

In 2006, I was able to persuade Jo-Ellen to join the staff of the Senate Finance 

Committee, where she was instrumental in developing a series of tax incentives for 

environmental protection, including those that were enacted as part of the Farm 

Bill. 

Jo-Ellen Darcy has a record of great accomplishment, which is reflected in important environmental laws and in environmental restoration projects all across the 

country. She knows the civil works program of the Army Corps as well as anyone. 

She knows the law. She knows Congress, and, in particular, the Senate and its committees. And she is uniformly respected for her effective, pragmatic, and bipartisan 

approach to her work. 

On a personal note, I’d like to add that Jo-Ellen has achieved all of these accomplishments not only because of brains and hard work, but also because of her values. Her father, Dick Darcy, was a detective on the Fitchburg, Massachusetts, police 

force. He and his wife, Jean, raised Jo-Ellen to have strong values, especially fairness and open-mindedness, qualities that will serve her well. 
5 

I am sure that, although he has passed away, Dick Darcy would be proud of his 

daughter today. And I know that Jo-Ellen’s mom, who was not able to travel here 

today, and her sisters, brothers, cousins, nieces, and nephews, could not be more 

pleased and proud about this nomination. 

Like each of us here, I believe that there are few higher callings than public service. Jo-Ellen Darcy is the epitome of someone who has devoted her professional career to service, and I could not be more proud that the President has nominated 

her to serve as Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. Jo-Ellen is the real 

thing. 

Senator BOXER. Well, I do not think you have to say anything for 

yourself when we get to you other than hi and I think you had us 

at hi. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator BOXER. Anyway, Senator Baucus, really, thank you so 

much for taking the time. I think, you know, there is something to 

be said about this that we know that our success depends on the 

people we have around us. There is no question. If we did not have 

loyal, dedicated staff, how could we possibly do it? There are hundreds of issues and we count on people like Jo-Ellen and a lot of 

them that are sitting behind me and behind Max and Tom right 

now. It is a real tribute, Senator Baucus, that you came over and 

made that eloquent introduction. And if you need to go, we totally 

understand. 

Senator BAUCUS. Thanks, Madam Chairman. One other point 

here. Jo-Ellen is one of those people who, if you ask to do something, you do not give it a second thought because you know it is 

done. She is one of those people who, if she says she is going to 

do something, you know it is going to be done. It is because she 

cares and she works so hard. They do not come much better than 

Jo-Ellen Darcy and we are very lucky to have her. 

Senator BOXER. But other than that, you do not have any good 

words about her? 

[Laughter.] 

Senator BAUCUS. Nothing at all. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you. Senator Udall. 

Senator UDALL. That was quite a resounding endorsement by 

Senator Baucus. 

I am going to hold my questions and hold my opening until we 

get to the questioning of the witnesses here. 

Thank you, Madam Chair. 

Senator BOXER. Senator Carper. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. THOMAS R. CARPER, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF DELAWARE 

Senator CARPER. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

I was wondering what I was going to say to Jo-Ellen Darcy but 

Senator Baucus mentioned it: if you want to get something done, 

Jo-Ellen is the person to get it done. If she says she will get it 

done. I would like to take about 5 minutes and talk about beach 

replenishment. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. In fact, those beaches on DelMarVa and 

throughout the—no, I am just kidding. 

I had the privilege of working with Jo-Ellen when she was here 

and on Finance and she is just a delight and every bit as good as 
6 

Senator Baucus has said. We welcome you. We welcome each our 

other witnesses. 

I was very pleased to spend some time with Mr. Silva the other 

day and I think the Administration has once again picked some 

terrific people to serve in the executive branch of the Government. 

At least in one respect that is our loss, in the legislative branch, 

but we look forward to working with each one of you and hope that 

you are confirmed and hope you are confirmed promptly. To the extent that we can be helpful in that process, and I think we can, 

we certainly want to be. Congratulations and good luck. 

Thank you. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you so much, Senator. 

So, since, Jo-Ellen, you were introduced specially by Senator 

Baucus, we are going to go this way down the row and ask of you 

to please, if you have any family or friends that you would like to 

introduce, feel free to so do. 

So, Jo-Ellen, the time is yours. 

STATEMENT OF JO-ELLEN DARCY, NOMINATED TO BE 

ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF THE ARMY FOR CIVIL WORKS 

Ms. DARCY. Chairman Boxer, Senator Inhofe, members of the 

Committee, I am honored and privileged to be here today as President Obama’s nominee to be Assistant Secretary of the Army for 

Civil Works. 

I also want to take a minute to thank Senator Baucus for the 

very kind and generous words that he had to say about me. 

I am here today because of my experience with the Corps and its 

mission, but I am also here because of the love and support of family and friends. As Senator Baucus said, most of my family could 

not make it to Washington today but are watching via your Committee website at home. One of my sisters was able to be here 

today and I would like to introduce her, Dr. Margaret Darcy. She 

is sitting here in the audience. 

Senator BOXER. Please stand if you would. 

[Laughter.] 

Ms. DARCY. I have several friends and colleagues, both current 

colleagues and former colleagues, who are here today and I would 

like to thank them for their support and guidance over the years. 

There is one very important person who is not here today and 

that is my dad. I know he is watching from on high and saying to 

me what he always said to us. My father taught us, ‘‘yes, we can’’ 

long before President Obama reminded us of that fact. He was the 

ultimate public servant, serving more than 25 years as a police officer and gave us every opportunity to succeed at whatever we tried. 

I have sat at this witness table many times, not as a Presidential 

nominee, but as a Committee staffer, ready to answer your questions on the legislation we were considering. I spent more than 13 

years sitting on the bench behind you during hearings and markups, even before there was a bench behind you. 

Regardless of where I sit, on the staff bench or at this witness 

table, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will 

always be where I came from and I am grateful for that. 
7 

I know that the position for which I have been nominated promises to be the greatest challenge of my career. I do not take this 

challenge lightly. I approach it with humility and dedication. 

My experience as a Senate staffer for the last 16 years and my 

time working on Great Lakes issues for Governor Jim Blanchard 

of Michigan, has given me the opportunity to work with the Corps 

of Engineers on project authorizations and policy development. 

There is not a more dedicated group of public servants than the 

men and women of the Corps. 

The Corps of Engineers has a great history. The Army established the Corps as a separate, permanent branch in 1802. Since 

then, the Corps has responded to changing defense requirements 

and played an integral part in the development of this Country. 

Throughout the 19th century, the Corps built coastal fortifications, 

eliminated navigational hazards, explored and mapped the Western 

frontier and constructed lighthouses, jetties and piers for harbors, 

and building and monuments right here in the Nation’s capital. 

In the 20th century, the Corps became the lead Federal flood 

control agency and significantly expanded its civil works activities 

becoming, among other things, a major provider of hydroelectric energy and the Country’s leading provider of recreation. In the late 

1960s, the Corps became a leading environmental and preservation 

agency. It now carries out natural and cultural resource management programs at its water resources projects and regulates activities in the Nation’s wetlands. 

As the Corps moves into the 21st century, I am confident that 

they will to rise to new challenges. Faced with a limited budget, 

tackling the job of refurbishing the Nation’s aging water infrastructure will require the ingenuity that the Corps has demonstrated 

throughout its history. Balancing the competing water resources 

needs throughout the Country will take a national vision while recognizing regional differences. Preserving and creating wetlands, affording recreational opportunities, and maintaining the world class 

navigation system that this Country enjoys is integral to that national vision. 

If confirmed, I look forward to navigating the Corps through the 

challenges ahead. 

I want to thank you for the opportunity to testify and will answer any questions. 

Thank you. 

[The prepared statement of Ms. Darcy follows:] 
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Senator BOXER. Thank you. 

Peter Silva, nominated for Assistant Administrator, EPA Office 

of Water. 

STATEMENT OF PETER S. SILVA, NOMINATED TO BE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY’S OFFICE OF WATER 

Mr. SILVA. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Please allow me to express my gratitude to you, Madam Chair, 

and Ranking Member Inhofe, for holding this hearing and to all of 

the Committee members for the environmental leadership that you 

provide. 

First of all, let me introduce my wife of 32 years, Ana Silva, and 

our son, Diego, who have come here from San Diego to be with us 

today. 

Senator BOXER. Welcome. 

Mr. SILVA. My mom wanted to be here today but she is 90 now 

and it is hard for her to travel. But she is here in thought with 

us. 

I am humbled that President Obama has nominated me for the 

position of Assistant Administrator for Water at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. I am also honored that EPA Administrator Jackson has expressed her confidence in my ability to work 

as part of her team. 

I have worked all my professional career of nearly 32 years in 

the water and wastewater fields. Since graduating from Cal-Poly 

Pomona with a degree in Civil Engineering, I have held a number 

of positions in the public sector related to both the provision of 

drinking water and the management of wastewater. I have served 

agencies at the local, city, State, Federal and international levels. 

In serving for those agencies, I have been both a regulator and 

someone who has been regulated. I believe this experience gives me 

a unique perspective on what it takes to bring divergent views on 

an issue together to try to find the common ground. 

Within my career, I have seen how effective the Clean Water Act, 

the Safe Drinking Water Act, and other laws have been in protecting and enhancing the water resources of this Nation. We have 

made great progress in addressing point source pollution and in establishing key regulations to make our drinking water safe and reliable. A key component of that success has been the Federal funding made available to States and communities to build needed 

water and wastewater infrastructure. 

However, despite the considerable progress we have made in the 

last three decades, we now see additional challenges have arisen in 

the areas of non-point source pollution and in new emerging pollutants of concern. Some of our great water bodies are now threatened 

and the health risks of these new pollutants need to be better understood and addressed. 

The challenges we face now are similar in scope to those we confronted in the late 1960s and early 1970s. We need to confront 

them with a similar national leadership. We will need new models 

of collaboration, especially since some of these major challenges impact multiple States, tribes and jurisdictions. Additionally, we must 

analyze when and how regulatory frameworks can be used to ac-
22 

complish the most efficient results. Finally, we need to carefully 

consider how to ensure that our water, wastewater, and storm 

water infrastructure can be better financed and managed 

sustainably. 

As we move forward to address these pressing challenges to our 

Nation’s waterways, I believe we have a unique opportunity to 

work with stakeholders at all levels of government, as well as nongovernmental organizations, in crafting new solutions for this new 

generation of issues. 

I am really excited about the opportunity to serve EPA and our 

Country at this time in our history. I pledge to work with this 

Committee, Congress and the Administration in protecting America’s waters so that they can be used and enjoyed by all citizens. 

Again, thank you for this opportunity. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Silva follows:] 
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Senator BOXER. Thank you, sir. 

And now, last but not least again, Stephen Owens, nominee for 

Assistant Administrator, EPA Office of Prevention, Pesticides and 

Toxic Substances. 

STATEMENT OF STEPHEN A. OWENS, NOMINATED TO BE ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE EPA OFFICE OF PREVENTION, PESTICIDES AND TOXIC SUBSTANCES 

Mr. OWENS. Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

First of all, please let me thank you and Ranking Member Inhofe 

for holding this hearing and giving me the opportunity to be here. 

I also want to thank Senator Inhofe, Senator Udall and other members of this Committee and their staff for taking the time to meet 

with me during this past week. I appreciated that very much. 

Also, Madam Chairman, if I may, I would like to introduce my 

wife, Karen Owens, who is here with me today. She is sitting behind me. 

Senator BOXER. Welcome, Karen. 

Mr. OWENS. Karen and I have two terrific teenage boys, John 

and Ben, who are back home in school today but are very much 

with us in spirit. 

I am extremely honored to have been nominated by President 

Obama to be the Assistant Administrator for the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances at the Environmental Protection Agency. The President and Administrator Lisa Jackson have 

made addressing toxic chemicals a top priority for EPA. 

I grew up in a poor family. We lived in public housing for a time 

when I was young and I had part-time jobs while growing up to 

help make ends meet. 

I worked my way through college and law school with the help 

of work-study jobs and student loans. I was fortunate to be admitted to Brown University, where I graduated with honors, and 

thereafter to attend Vanderbilt Law School, where I was Editor in 

Chief of the Law Review. 

I have always had a deep commitment to public service. For the 

last 6 years, as you indicated, Madam Chairman, from January 

2003 until January of this year, I served as Director of the Arizona 

Department of Environmental Quality under Governor Janet 

Napolitano, making me the longest serving Director in ADEQ’s history. As Arizona’s environmental protection agency, ADEQ is responsible at the State level for many of the programs overseen by 

OPPTS. 

As the father of a son with asthma, I made protecting children’s 

health and reducing children’s exposure to toxic pollutants a top 

priority at ADEQ. In early 2003, I launched the Children’s Environmental Health Project and I later established an Office of Children’s Environmental Health at the Department. Among our many 

efforts, we worked with schools to protect children from exposure 

to lead in drinking water, reduced mercury-containing equipment 

in schools and minimized the use of pesticides on school properties 

through integrated pest management. We promoted environmentally healthy schools and ‘‘green’’ schools, and we required facilities with permits or approvals from ADEQ to ensure that their 
36 

activities do not present environmental health risks to our children. 

In pollution prevention, we launched initiatives to remove mercury switches in old motor vehicles, help businesses implement environmental management systems, promote the construction of 

‘‘green’’ buildings and assist facilities seeking LEED design and 

certification. We also worked closely with Indian nations in Arizona 

to reduce toxic pollution on tribal lands. 

We established an aggressive outreach effort to help local businesses and communities reduce exposure to asbestos hazards in 

aging buildings, especially in rural communities like those along 

Old Route 66 in Northern Arizona, where many historic old buildings have asbestos. 

Prior to becoming ADEQ Director, I was privileged to serve as 

a member of the Joint Public Advisory Committee of the North 

American Commission on the Environmental Cooperation where we 

addressed issues such as persistent organic pollutants, agricultural 

biotechnology, lead contamination and the development of regional 

action plans for toxic substances, among many other matters. 

I began my Government service years ago in the early 1980s on 

the staff of the U.S. House Committee on Science and Technology. 

There I learned about a wide array of programs and activities, as 

well as emerging issues and technologies which are now within the 

purview of OPPTS. 

My experiences with the Science and Technology Committee and 

elsewhere have led me to the strong belief that science must be the 

basis for what EPA does, as Administrator Jackson said in her testimony before this Committee in January. I strongly agree with Administrator Jackson that EPA’s scientific decisions should reflect 

the expert judgment of the Agency’s career scientists and independent advisors, and I pledge that if I am confirmed as Assistant 

Administrator, the actions of OPPTS will be based on science and 

the rule of law. 

Madam Chairman, thank you again for the opportunity to be 

here today and I look forward to answering any questions that you 

may have. 

[The prepared statement of Mr. Owens follows:] 
37 
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40 
41 
42 
43 
44 
45 
46 

Senator BOXER. Thank you so much. 

Senator Inhofe. 

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES M. INHOFE, 

U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA 

Senator INHOFE. Thank you, Madam Chairman. I will be very 

brief. 

First of all, I was glad to be able to meet with Mr. Owens and 

Mr. Silva in my office and, of course, everyone knows Jo-Ellen 

Darcy and why in the world you are willing to do this, I do not 

know, but I am glad you are. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator INHOFE. It is a tough job, and after all of the water bills 

that we have been through, and now you are going to be on the 

other side of this thing. So, it really will be helpful for us to know 

that we are dealing with someone who has been there, has done 

that, and recognizes the problems and the needs that are really 

critical. 

I think, Mr. Silva, as I told you in my office, the water situation 

in my State of Oklahoma, is one of the big issues. You and I talked 

about some of the ways we are going to approach that. And the 

same thing I would say for Mr. Owens who has a very similar 

background in his State of Arizona that we have and some of the 

same problems that we have in Oklahoma. We think, and we dealt 

with this, we are dealing with chemicals for several years on this 

Committee and we have got to keep in mind that we want to protect the public but we need the chemicals. It is a balance and I 

think it is one that you are uniquely qualified to handle. 

So, I am looking forward to supporting the nomination of all 

three of you, then working with you. 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

[The prepared statement of Senator Inhofe follows:] 

STATEMENT OF HON. JAMES M. INHOFE, U.S. SENATOR

FROM THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA

Madam Chairman, I am delighted to welcome our nominees today. 

I have met with Peter Silva and Stephen Owens, and I know Jo-Ellen Darcy, so 

I have been able to determine to some degree their perspectives on issues. I do, however, have a few questions I would like to ask today. 

Water issues are vitally important to my State of Oklahoma. It is encouraging 

that Mr. Silva comes from the west. It means he has seen firsthand the challenges 

that face those of us who live in areas where the cost and availability of water are 

significant factors. I trust Mr. Silva will handle water issues at the Environmental 

Protection Agency with a great deal of sensitivity to the needs of States like mine 

that face significant water problems. I want to discuss with him how we can do a 

better job of helping small communities that can’t afford to meet Washington’s unfunded water treatment mandates. 

As for Mr. Owens, his responsibilities will include overseeing the handling of 

chemicals that are essential to our safety, quality of life and economic well-being. 

There are issues involving the registration and use of chemicals that we need to address so that we can protect the public while maintaining the Nation’s economic vitality. I want to explore how we will find the right balance. 

Those of us who have been Members of EPW for a while have seen Jo-Ellen Darcy 

sitting at that witness table many times as a staffer answering questions about various pieces of legislation. Today she sits there as President Obama’s nominee to be 

the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works. I’m not convinced that she’s 

not simply jumping from the frying pan into the fire, but I offer my sincere congratulations nonetheless. Jo-Ellen appeared before the Armed Services Committee 

2 weeks ago, but I’d like to reiterate in this hearing room how pleased I was to hear 
47 

of her nomination. Her intelligence, honesty and ability to work with people advocating a wide range of policy positions made her instrumental to the development 

of the past several Water Resources Development Acts, including WRDA 2007. I believe these traits will also serve her well as the next ASA, and I look forward to 

working with her in that capacity. 

I want to ask each nominee one question right at the top, and that is whether 

each of you will agree to answer the questions and correspondence from the minority members of this committee as quickly as possible, and with the same diligence 

as you would with communications from the majority members? 

Thank you, Madam Chairman. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you so much, Senator. 

Now, a lot of us will put questions into the record and how many 

days would we ask them to respond? If you could respond by close 

of business on Thursday because we are very anxious to vote you 

out of Committee. We are very pleased that Senator Inhofe is supporting all three of you. This is very good for us. 

Let me ask my first question to Jo-Ellen Darcy, and it has to do 

with Sacramento flood control. I think you are aware of the pressing need for adequate flood protection in the Sacramento region. In 

terms of the people who are at risk, it just dwarfs anything else 

you can imagine. There is a lot that has to be done. So this is, basically, I am asking you to make a commitment to me to provide this 

Committee with an update on the Corps’ progress toward meeting 

Sacramento’s remaining flood control needs and to work with this 

Committee to ensure that these projects proceed in an expedited 

manner. 

Ms. DARCY. If confirmed, I absolutely will. 

Senator BOXER. All right. And I have some other questions to follow up but I will not do them now. I will do them in writing. 

In terms of Corps reform, many reforms were included in the 

2007 WRDA Bill. I know you were very aware of these. One of 

them is an independent peer review of Corps projects and updating 

the Corps planning guidelines. If confirmed, will you make it a priority to ensure that these provisions of WRDA 2007 are being 

quickly implemented in accordance with congressional intent and 

to give us an update on the status of the implementation as soon 

as you can? 

Ms. DARCY. If confirmed, I will, Senator. 

Senator BOXER. Very good. And on the stimulus, we wanted to 

make sure that you would commit to regularly report to this Committee on the expenditure of Recovery Act funding that goes 

through the Corps, to do everything in your power to ensure that 

these funds are spent quickly and efficiently. 

Ms. DARCY. Yes, I will. 

Senator BOXER. That is excellent. So we really will be calling on 

you. 

Mr. Silva, I am very proud to have a hometown guy here for me 

and I compliment you on your great work at home because most 

people do not look at water districts the way we do at home. You 

know, there was a whole movie made about water in California. It 

was called Chinatown. And, if you remember, the whole theme of 

it is getting water into the southern part of the State was the biggest issue. 

Water is probably one of our top issues because we have 

droughts, I will not mention global warming but for some reason 

they are increasing, we have problems and we are going to have, 
48 

it looks like because of the excellent bipartisan work of Senator 

Inhofe, Senator Carper and Senator Crapo, it looks really good that 

we are going to have this revolving fund for both clean water and 

drinking water coming before us. 

Do you commit to work with this Committee to ensure that we 

are adequately investing in the Nation’s wastewater and drinking 

water infrastructure? 

Mr. SILVA. Yes, Madam Chair, I do. 

Senator BOXER. Good. And will you also give us updated reports 

on how the stimulus funding is going as it goes through your area 

of expertise? 

Mr. SILVA. Yes, if confirmed I surely will, Madam Chair. 

Senator BOXER. Excellent. And, I am worried about perchlorate 

in water. We know we have seen many investigative reports that 

it shows up in mother’s milk. We know that it is all over the Country, almost in every State, not quite. If confirmed, do you commit 

to assess whether EPA has sufficient data to regulate perchlorate 

in drinking water and to issue an opinion within the next 3 months 

of your tenure? 

Mr. SILVA. Yes, if confirmed, I will certainly try to do that. 

Senator BOXER. All right. You will try to do that. If you cannot 

do that in 3 months, I expect to know why because this has gone 

on and one. So we are going to hold you to a report and hope that 

we do not have to have an argument about it here. 

The other issue is pharmaceuticals in water. EPA is part of an 

interagency group examining the scientific and regulatory nature of 

this issue. If confirmed, will you commit to make the record of your 

office’s participation in this group public and to step up EPA’s 

water quality monitoring efforts for pharmaceuticals? 

Mr. SILVA. Yes, I will. 

Senator BOXER. OK. Very good. We have so many things going 

on here for all of you. 

In 2008, EPA issued a Clean Water Act rule that regulated 

CAFOs, the Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations. If confirmed, do you commit to update Committee staff within 30 days 

of your confirmation on EPA’s enforcement effort under the rule? 

Mr. SILVA. If confirmed, yes, I will. 

Senator BOXER. OK. And we have some other questions for you 

but my time is running out so I am going to turn to Stephen here. 

Let us see, where are Stephen’s questions? I think they are right 

here. 

Chemical regulations. By the way, I was touched by your saying 

you have a child with asthma because Senator Lautenberg is always reminding us that he has a grandson with it and you know, 

people think that because there is so much asthma maybe it is not 

serious. It is very, very, very scary for a parent or a grandparent 

to see a child gasping for breath. And so, I think, frankly, the fact 

that you have lived with this, we do not ever have to say to you, 

you know, do you care about kids here because I know you know 

that kids are not little adults, they are different from us, and they 

need attention. 

If confirmed, do you commit to provide technical advice and other 

assistance to my staff who are working with Senator Lautenberg’s 
49 

staff to modernize our Country’s system for regulating toxic chemicals? 

Mr. OWENS. Yes, Senator, if confirmed I pledge to work with you 

on that. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you. EPA is currently considering how to 

regulate coal ash. We all know of that disaster that happened in 

Tennessee in their Kingston plant. However EPA decides to proceed, and I asked Lisa Jackson about it this morning, there is a 

need for EPA to investigate the potential for coal ash to leech toxic 

metals and to prevent such pollution. If confirmed, do you commit 

to help try to find ways to reduce pollution problems caused by 

heavy metals in coal combustion waste? 

Mr. OWENS. Yes, Senator, if confirmed, I look forward to working 

with you on that and with the offices at EPA that are looking at 

that issue to address that problem. 

Senator BOXER. I also have additional questions for all of you but 

right now, Senator Inhofe, do you have any questions in addition 

to your opening statement? Do you have any questions in addition 

to the opening statement? 

Senator INHOFE. Yes, just a couple of questions. 

Senator BOXER. Go ahead. 

Senator INHOFE. Mr. Silva, first I would say, do you believe the 

Federal jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act should extend beyond 

navigable waters? 

Mr. SILVA. Senator, on that point, I would like to let you know 

that when I was on the State water board, we had the first 

SWANCC decision come down which created quite a bit of confusion in terms of jurisdiction and I understand that the Rapanos 

case has made that murkier. But I do believe that for EPA it is 

very critical that we have a better definition of navigable waters. 

Senator INHOFE. I think you are right and I would only ask that 

as you are progressing along these lines that you and I can talk 

about it. We have problems. I suspect they are not unique to Oklahoma. But I do know that we have problems with waters in ditches 

and things that we have to be able to use some logic on. 

What role do you believe States should play in setting water 

quality standards? 

Mr. SILVA. Well, Senator, I think the States have a very critical 

role in that area in terms of some of their own State regulations 

where Federal regulations do not apply, but also just in terms or 

providing input to the Federal Government on how to set those 

standards. 

Senator INHOFE. Yes. Yes. It is very difficult for me to go back 

to my State of Oklahoma when something that they have had very 

strong feelings about and are doing very well is in jeopardy because 

of some Federal regulation. So again, this is another thing where 

I think you, being a very reasonable person, we will be able to talk 

about these things. 

And the same with you Mr. Owens. Let me ask you a question. 

What is your philosophy on how best to assess the risks of chemicals? 

Mr. OWENS. I am sorry, I did not hear the last word after risk. 
50 

Senator INHOFE. Assessing the risk of chemicals, how to best do 

it. What is your philosophy? What do you keep in mind when 

you’re trying to assess those risks? 

Mr. OWENS. Well, Senator, I think the primary consideration 

that has to weigh not only on that issue but on any issue in front 

of the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances is what 

does the science say? We really do need to be governed by the 

science as well as the rule of laws as indicated in my statement 

and my responsibility as the Assistant Administrator, if I am confirmed, is to provide vision and direction to the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances so that the science can come 

forward and we can make decisions based on that. That is the commitment I make to you here today. 

Senator INHOFE. That is what I appreciate very much. 

And Ms. Darcy. I guess it is not Jo-Ellen anymore. We have a 

problem in Oklahoma that a few other States have, and that is 

that even when there is available municipal water supply storage 

at the existing reservoirs, which we have more than most other 

States do in the State of Oklahoma, and the price of that water 

supply storage makes it prohibitively expenses. Do you know how 

long it has been since this policy has been reevaluated? Has anyone 

looked into it recently? 

Ms. DARCY. Senator, I do not know how long it has been since 

it has been looked like but I know—— 

Senator INHOFE. Do you think it is a good idea to look into it 

again? 

Ms. DARCY. I do. It seems as though every water bill someone 

has an issue with pricing for water storage so it is probably something that we do need to take a look at. 

Senator INHOFE. And you have been here and we have talked 

about what was, it is not now, but what was the most serious 

Superfund site called Tar Creek in the State of Oklahoma. We have 

done a great job, everyone has pulled together and we finally got 

even the Department of the Interior and all of the lawyers to talk 

to each other and so we are doing really great. Is there a lot left 

to be done that would affect the Corps of Engineers in terms of the 

land that is left there? We are pretty much OK on the relocations 

and some of those things, but the Corps will be involved and I 

would hope that you would be very sensitive to finishing up what 

we have started and working with me together on that as one of 

your priorities. 

Ms. DARCY. I look forward to it. 

Senator INHOFE. We have one question we ask everyone and I 

would like to have all three of you verbally respond, if you would. 

I am going to ask each nominee one question right at the top, and 

that is whether each of you will agree to answer the questions and 

correspondence from the minority members of this Committee as 

quickly as possible and with the same diligence as you would with 

communications from the majority members. 

[Witnesses respond in the affirmative.] 

Senator INHOFE. Thank you very much. Thank you, Madam 

Chairman. 
51 

Senator BOXER. Thank you very much. And since Senator Inhofe 

has his questions, I have three questions that I have to ask you 

and so we will just go right through the line. 

Do you agree if confirmed to appear before this Committee or 

designated members of this Committee and other appropriate committees of the Congress and provide information subject to appropriate and necessary security protection with respect to your responsibilities? 

[Witnesses respond in the affirmative.] 

Senator BOXER. OK. And second, do you agree to ensure that testimony, briefings, documents and electronic and other forms of 

communication of information are provided to this Committee and 

its staff and other appropriate committees in a timely manner? 

[Witnesses respond in the affirmative.] 

Senator BOXER. And last, do you know of any matters which you 

may or may not have disclosed that might place you in any conflict 

of interest if you are confirmed? 

[Witnesses respond in the negative.] 

Senator BOXER. Thank you so much. And now we will call on 

Senator Udall. 

Senator UDALL. Thank you, Madam Chair. 

First of all, just listening to all of you, I think it is a wonderful 

thing to see folks in public service like you that are willing to continue it and I really look forward to working with you. You all have 

very distinguished careers at this point and I think are going to 

move down the line to add to your resumes and experience and I 

look forward to supporting you for your nominations on the Senate 

Floor. 

Steve, it is also good to see you here. A cowboy boot-wearing 

Westerner at the table. I hope maybe Senator Inhofe notices that 

he is wearing those cowboy boots. 

Senator INHOFE. Yes, he is already an honorary member of the 

boot caucus. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator UDALL. Good, that is good. 

One of the things that you mentioned, Mr. Owens, was the fact 

of working with the Indian tribes in your State. I know in the 

neighboring State of Arizona that you have had great experience 

there. It has been something that you have built a reputation on 

and so I hope that you take that attitude to the Agency and spread 

it throughout the Agency because EPA and the tribes very much 

have to work with each other. 

One of the things that I noticed that you did at your office was 

called pollution prevention function. You got it in the office that 

you held in Arizona. You got out in front of the problems. Could 

you talk just a little bit about that? Because I think that it is something that could work really well at the Federal level. 

Mr. OWENS. Thank you, Senator Udall. You and I have known 

each other for a long time and I am looking forward to having the 

opportunity to work with you if I am confirmed. 

The office of OPPTS is the Office of Prevention, Pesticides and 

Toxic Substances and sometimes the prevention piece does get 

overlooked in the work the office does. But I believe that is one of 

the more important things that we can be doing at EPA is to work 
52 

on pollution prevention issues, to work with businesses and small 

communities and individuals as well as Indian tribes to reduce pollution and exposure to toxic substances in the first place. We did 

a lot of that at DEQ as I mentioned in my opening statement and 

I look forward to continuing to work on that if I am confirmed at 

EPA. 

Senator UDALL. Great. Thank you very much. 

Ms. Darcy, it was a pleasure visiting with you at the office yesterday and great to hear how strongly Senator Baucus weighs in 

on your behalf which I think will serve you very well in your future 

career here. I would like to take this opportunity to continue to 

draw your attention to the Army Corps projects in New Mexico. We 

have a couple of levees in New Mexico that have been inspected recently and will require major repairs in the Albuquerque area. We 

will pursue a project authorization in the next Water Resources Development Act and would appreciate your cooperation on that. 

In addition, we have been disappointed that the Southwest Valley Flood Control Project in New Mexico has not been included in 

the President’s budget in the past years, along with several other 

New Mexico flood control and environmental projects and, if you 

are confirmed, I hope that we can work with you and you will work 

with a New Mexico delegation on these issues. Would you commit 

to do that? 

Ms. DARCY. I certainly will, Senator. 

Senator UDALL. Thank you very much. 

Mr. Silva, I am going to just go ahead and submit to you questions for the record. But, you know, as you are very aware being 

from California and the west, these water infrastructure projects 

are so important to smaller communities and rural areas and I 

think it is important to bring that balance when you come to the 

Environmental Protection Agency, that you are serving all of the 

Country and making sure that the water resource programs that 

you have serve the rural areas and the urban areas. 

So thank you all for your testimony. It is great to have you all 

here today and I look forward to supporting you as soon as we can 

get you to the Floor. 

Thank you. 

Senator BOXER. Absolutely. Absolutely. 

Senator Carper, the floor is yours. 

Senator CARPER. Madam Chair, thanks so much. And again, to 

our witnesses, thank you for your willingness to serve, to continue 

to serve our Country in these new roles. And to your parents, special thanks for the way they raised you and the kind of values that 

they instilled in you. And to your families, some of them are here 

and some of them are not, but thanks to them for their willingness 

to share you with the people of our Nation. 

My first question is to Mr. Owens. I do not believe I had a chance 

to meet you when you were making your rounds but I was glad we 

had a chance to say hello today. I do not know if you have ever 

been to Delaware. I have been to Arizona many times, as guest of 

Janet Napolitano, as it turns out. So, it is nice to be able to meet 

you. 

The Port of Wilmington in my State ranks as the Nation’s leading gateway for the import of fresh fruit and if I could offer the 
53 

people in this room a banana, or a grapefruit or grapes, there is 

a pretty good chance that it came through the Port of Wilmington. 

We call ourselves the top banana port on the East Coast and we 

are very proud of it. 

But we have, in our State, I think we have 600 or 700 direct and 

indirect jobs that flow out from the import of all of that fruit during the course of the year and several million dollars in tax revenues that inure to our State and to our region. 

I mention this because the Port of Wilmington uses methyl bromide to fumigate incoming commodities, such as Chilean fruit, to 

prevent foreign pests from entering into this Country. We have 

abided by the regulations that are set by the Department of Agriculture for over, I think, 30 years, and there has not been, to my 

knowledge, a case reported by the Department of Agriculture of bystander exposure to methyl bromide. 

I believe that the division of the EPA that I think you may end 

up leading has proposed changes to the regulations for methyl bromide particles in the air, provisions that would impact all ports, 

not just the Port of Wilmington but all ports using this substance. 

I have been told that these changes could have serious negative impacts on the Port of Wilmington’s ability to cost effectively handle 

fresh commodities coming through the port. This could make the 

importation of Chilean grapes cost prohibitive to the point where 

Delaware would lose its Chilean fruit trade, which could be devastating to our local economy and to our labor forces. 

I just want to be clear. I share EPA’s mission to develop clean 

air standards that protect the public health. I think we all do. With 

that having been said, I want to be sure to work with you on this 

issue, you and your colleagues, not just when you are nominated 

into this position, but once you are confirmed. Do you have any 

thoughts on this? 

Mr. OWENS. Senator, if I may, I would like to say I have seen 

your correspondence with EPA on that and the letter from Jim 

Jones, who is the Acting Assistant Administrator for OPPTS, and 

I am generally aware of your concerns. If I am confirmed, I very 

much look forward to sitting down and talking with you further 

about that and learning more about that issue and working with 

you on it. 

Senator CARPER. All right. Is that all you want to say? 

[Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. That is fine. You can hold it at that. 

A question, if I could, for Mr. Silva. This is regarding CAFO permits. As we were discussing in our meeting last week, I said I 

wanted to work with you on the issue of Concentrated Animal Feed 

Operations or CAFO permits for the EPA’s clarification on the definition of a discharge last year. Delaware had 17 CAFOs. We have 

a lot of chickens in my State. We do not have cattle; we have some, 

but not many. We have pigs, but not a lot. We have a whole lot 

of chickens. For every person who lives in my State, 300 chickens. 

And for anybody out there who is thinking about having chicken 

for dinner, go for it. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. What is the Chick Fil A commercial? Eat chicken? Anyway, eat chicken. 
54 

Anyway, now that EPA is enforcing the rule that any animal 

feeding operation that might pollute surface water must apply for 

a permit under the Clean Water Act, Delaware’s farming community is facing a drastic change in terms of regulatory requirements. 

I just want to ask you to commit to making a visit to Delaware, 

come to those beaches that Ms. Darcy is going to help us to replenish and keep strong and beautiful. I wanted just to ask you to come 

to our State. I have been to San Diego any number of times and 

when we visit, in fact my family was back there in back in January, it is a lovely State. I was stationed in the Navy there for a 

while. 

But I want you to come over to Delaware and maybe bring along 

with you the EPA Region III Administrator, who I think I rode 

down with the on train today as it turns out, to meet with our 

Delaware Department of Agriculture, with the folks from the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, the 

Delaware Farm Bureau and poultry companies. We have got four 

major ones, too. See first-hand what we have done and what we 

have been doing for years in our State. I would just ask that you 

have this meeting before any further EPA inspections or actions in 

Delaware. Would you be willing to take a trip? It is about a 2-hour 

trip over to Delaware. 

Mr. SILVA. Sure, Senator, it would be a pleasure to visit your 

State, sir. 

Senator CARPER. I think you will like it. 

Finally, for Ms. Darcy, on beach replenishment. A lot of people 

come to Delaware and they come for a variety of reasons. Some 

people from Washington actually go there to go to our beaches from 

Fenwick Island on up to Cape Henlopen State Park. Hopefully, in 

about 2 or 3 years we are going to have the Nation’s first windmill 

farm about 12 miles off the coast of Rehoboth Beach, another thing 

for us to really be proud of, I think. 

But restoring Delaware’s beaches to their congressionally authorized size is one of my State’s top priorities. Beach replenishment 

is critical to protecting our communities against natural disasters, 

hurricanes and nor’easters, and in maintaining and remaining an 

important tourist destination. With the summer season almost now 

in full swing, the health of our beaches is firmly tied to the recovery of Delaware’s economy. 

I was surprised to learn, when I was Governor, that the No. 3 

industry in my State is tourism. We have been big in cars for a 

long time, chemicals and agriculture and so forth, but the No. 3 industry is tourism. But I was disappointed that the Administration, 

the current Administration, did not utilize funds provided by Congress in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for beach 

nourishment and replenishment. A 2002 OMB study estimated 

that each replenishment project creates some 2,000, that is 2,000 

full-time jobs and generates about $88 million in economic activity. 

Going forward, I just want to know if, under your leadership, if 

beach protection and really the protection of our shore communities, our beach communities, will be a priority for the Army 

Corps of Engineers. 

Ms. DARCY. I think it is an issue that this Committee has dealt 

with time and time again, re-nourishment of beach projects. If con-
55 

firmed, I am going to look very seriously at how we can establish 

a consistent policy for beach re-nourishment. I think that, in this 

President’s budget, there was some budgeting for beach projects 

this year. I think it was $45 million which has not happened in 

many past budgets. But I am not sure what the breakdown is, 

whether any of that money is for re-nourishment or just for 

projects. 

Senator CARPER. We are encouraged by that. I spoke with the 

CBO Director, Peter Orszag, and expressed my thanks for that. In 

any number of administrations, Democratic or Republican, they always single out in their budgets money for the protection of our 

beach communities. I was encouraged to see that there is some obligation, some recognition, that we share that responsibility. 

We used to compromise. A dozen or so years ago, Federal Government and the State governments would actually be partners. I 

think that the deal we finally worked out was that the Federal 

Government provides about 65 percent of funding and the States 

and local communities provide about 35 percent of that funding. It 

took us a long time to get to that place but that is where we are 

today and I think it makes a lot of sense and my hope is that we 

can continue under your guidance and your stewardship to work in 

the same vein of partnership. 

Ms. DARCY. I look forward to it. 

Senator BOXER. Thank you, Senator. Senator, I would like to—— 

Senator CARPER. Madam Chair, based on the testimony we heard 

I am going to release my holds. 

Senator BOXER. Good. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. All three witnesses—— 

Senator BOXER. Actually, I heard that Ms. Darcy actually has a 

couple of pounds of sand that she brought to show her commitment 

to beach replenishment. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. As a quick aside, I do not know if any of you 

have been to the Delaware beaches but when Justice John Roberts, 

when he was coming through confirmation, he visited you, I am 

sure, and he visited most of the Senators in trying to get confirmed 

to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and he said to me, during 

a conversation, I said have you ever been to Delaware? And he 

said, why yes I have. In fact, he said, I met my wife there. I said 

you are kidding. And he said no, I met my wife. And I said where? 

And he said Dewey Beach. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator CARPER. I said, no kidding. Yes, he said, we were in one 

of those beach houses in Dewey Beach and we met and fell in love 

and ended up getting married. And I said I never knew there were 

people who met in those beach houses and ended up getting married and then go on to become Chief Justice of the United States. 

What a great success story. 

[Laughter.] 

Senator BOXER. Great story. Well, now you have to hope there 

is a beach replenishment case that he takes on as a—— 

Senator CARPER. We are going to name one of the beaches after 

him or her, I am not sure who. 
56 

Senator BOXER. Well, whatever it takes. 

Well, here is the thing. I do want to second what Senator Carper 

said. Coming from California, and I know Mr. Silva and his family 

would agree, that our beaches, our ocean, that is what we are 

about. And it is a very important economic issue. It is not only the 

replenishment that creates the jobs but in my case tourism is one 

or two. It is billions of dollars. We have a coastal economy across 

this Country that is just enormous. And I know that President 

Obama understands this. And I think Tom Carper really did take 

time to talk about the fact that the States think it is so important, 

even in these tough times, that they are willing to put up matching 

funds. So, I will work with him on this. 

I was just a little worried when he started singing the praises 

of San Diego and California that we would lose the Silvas right 

then and there, that they would walk out and say we are going 

home. Because it is so beautiful there. 

But, seriously, I would add my voice to all that has been said 

about your sacrifice to do this. Some of you are moving from far 

away, beautiful places. And some of you are really taking on new 

responsibilities. I can see from Jo-Ellen’s standpoint where she is 

going to take on the voice of the Administration now. She is going 

to have to have all of us saying why are you not getting this done? 

It is not easy. None of it is easy. The important thing is why you 

do what you do, and that is to make this Country the best it can 

be. Each of us plays a role to the extent that we can. And we are 

so pleased. 

I am really hopeful that we can move your nominations very, 

very quickly. So, what we want to do is make sure that you get 

these answers done even if you have to burn the midnight oil to 

get them done. Then we will get them out of the Committee and 

start hot-lining them. 

I am a little concerned with Gina McCarthy’s nomination which 

Senator Barrasso was very up front about putting a hold on. It is 

not a secret. He is upset more about the issues than he is with her. 

He likes her. But this is, to me, not constructive. So, I am hopeful 

we can work it through and if we have to file cloture, we will. 

But just so all three of you and your family and friends know, 

we appreciate your being willing to do this and the support of your 

families. And we stand adjourned and wish you the best of luck. 

[Whereupon, at 3:30 p.m., the committee was adjourned.] 

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