EDGI EPA Oral History Interviews

Joseph Piotrowski worked across the EPA from the program's early stages in the 1970s to the 2000s in water policy, including regional and national positions. He discusses the NEPA program, the importance of the Clean Water Act, the coal industry's regulation risk regulation, the Chesapeake Bay Program, and the EPA's broader water governance structure.

Peter F. Infante worked in the NIOSH and OSHA from 1975 onward until the 2000s. He discusses different administrations' roles in toxic exposure regulation, legal actions, hazards, and U.S. government standards in vinyl chloride, formaldehyde, asbestos, and beryllium.

Celeste Monforton worked at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mine Safety Administration from 1990 to 2001. At OSHA, Monforton worked extensively on policy with the White House and Congress. She discusses the politics of rule-making, the power of the Office of Management and the Budget (OMB), and the influence of interest groups, especially business, on regulations.

Angela Nugent worked across the EPA in regional and national positions, including as a regulations writer in the Office of Toxic Substances starting in 1975, moved into the Pesticide program after 3 years, worked as a special assistant in the Office of Air and Radiation, the Office of Water, and in EPA regulations starting in 1985. She discusses chemicals in commerce, risk regulations, the Toxic Substances Control Act, the Pesticides Program, and the role of the Science Advisory Board.

Eric Schaeffer started working at EPA in 1990 at the Office of Policy Planning and Evaluation. He moved to the Enforcement Office, the Office of Compliance, and completed his service as Director of EPA's Office of Enforcement. He discusses pollution prevention, chemical reduction measures, enforcement initiatives, industry involvement, and the Trump administration's EPA changes.

George Wyeth worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 1989 to 2017. He discusses the General Counsel's office, the Office of Policy, National Center for Environmental Innovation, the role of regulation enforcement, legal interpretation, and the EPA's role to "drive the environmental goals."

James Michael Sickles worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for 13 years within the Superfund division in Region 9. He discusses Superfund management, technical implementation, the politics of clean up procedures, the bureaucracy of the EPA, and the transition from President Bush II's and President Obama's administration within the EPA.

Geoffrey Grubbs worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from its beginnings in 1972. Grubbs worked on rule-making, including on asbestos, metal smelting, pesticides, and more. He discusses the importance of people in the EPA, and the various Presidential transitions over his 30-year career at the agency.

Robert Wayland worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 1974 to 2003. At the EPA, Wayland worked in a variety of roles from the Congressional Affairs Office to the Office of Wetlands. He discusses the beginnings of the Clean Water Act, chemical regulations, environmental enforcement, and administration transitions within the EPA.

Mike Cox worked at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in different roles, on and off, from 1987 to 2017. He discusses the role of bureaucracy in managing EPA technicians and scientists, regional influences, on-the-ground climate change education, and the major shifts in the agency under Scott Pruitt.

William Drayton started at the EPA in the early 1970s. He discusses the Clean Air Act, emission regulations, the difficulties in the Carter transition, and the Reagan administration's move away from environmental issues.