John Skvarla
John Skvarla is the former North Carolina Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources. He served in this position from his appointment in 2013 until he left office in January 2015.[1]
Biography
Prior to being named Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources, Skvarla served as chief operating officer for Restoration Systems, an environmental mitigation firm. He has also been chief operating officer for The Aviation Group, Inc., managing director of investment banking office in Raleigh and owner of a Sandhills golf course community.
An attorney by trade, Skvarla founded the firm of Skvarla, Wyrick and Robbins in 1978, where he served as senior partner.[2]
Education
- B.A. in economics from Manhattan College in New York
- Juris Doctorate degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law
Political career
Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources (2013-2015)
Skvarla served as North Carolina Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources from January 5, 2013, to January 2015. He was appointed to this position by Gov. Pat McCrory (R).[1]
Issues
Skvarla provided his stances on several environmental issues in an interview with WRAL-TV's Laura Leslie.[3]
Fracking
"Clearly the resources are going to be protected. We are not going to go backward in air and water quality protection," Skvarla said. His agency, he said, will work with the Mining and Energy Commission to develop the rules needed to ensure drilling can be done safely. "The good news is they are not re-inventing the wheel. This is something that has existed historically."[3]
Renewable Energy
"Renewable energy, number one, is not cost effective right now. It requires subsidy," Skvarla said. "At some point in time the trade off has to be protection of the environment, and the ability to create jobs and to take care of the here and now. Do you invest $1 billion for something that's 20 years from now versus cleaning up dirty water right now that somebody's drinking?"[3]
Climate Change
"I think climate change is a science and I think science is constantly in need of scrutiny," Skvarla said. He said there is still "a great divergence of opinion on the science of climate" and that more dialog is needed.[3]
Appointments
2012
Skvarla was appointed as North Carolina Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources by Gov. Pat McCrory (R) on December 2012.[1]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "John + Skvarla + North + Carolina + Resources"
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Star News Online, "Skvarla taking the helm of gutted state environmental agency," December 30, 2012
- ↑ Department of Environment and Natural Resources, "John. E. Skvarla, III," accessed February 20, 2013
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 WRAL, DENR Sec. Skvarla on fracking, climate change and working with business, January 4, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dee Freeman |
North Carolina Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources 2013–2015 |
Succeeded by Donald van der Vaart |
| ||||||||||||||
