In another installment of "The North Carolina GOP will stop at nothing to obstruct Roy Cooper," the state's lead environmental official demoted himself over the holidays to a staff post at the agency, which will insulate him from removal by the incoming Democratic governor. Samantha Page writes:
Donald van der Vaart, former Secretary of the North Carolina State Department of Environmental Quality, will be an environmental program manager, the News and Record (Greensboro, NC) reported, a position that enjoys normal employee protections and is not subject to gubernatorial appointment. [...]
It should come as no surprise that Governor-Elect Cooper did not plan to keep Van der Vaart at the helm of the DEQ.
Under Van der Vaart and (outgoing Gov. Pat) McCrory, the agency has been criticized for protecting Duke Energy, the state’s largest utility, where McCrory spent decades of his career. Duke has numerous environmental violation for its storage of coal ash, including ongoing leaks, a massive 2014 spill, and drinking water contamination.
The News and Record noted that Van der Vaart had been informed he would not be kept in his position. A DEQ spokeswoman said the former agency head would now be in charge of the air quality division. That should be great, right where he can continue being a shill for polluters.
Van der Vaart last year criticized then-Attorney General Roy Cooper for opting against joining a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's final rules limiting greenhouse gas emissions. Van der Vaart and McCrory's DEQ joined two dozen other states suing to block the EPA's Clean Power Plan as federal overreach.