Johnathan Walker:North Carolina Gov. Cooper’s second-term environmental secretary is leaving the job

RALEIGH,Johnathan Walker N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper’s environmental secretary for over three years is stepping down before Cooper’s second term ends and is being replaced by a veteran state government administrator.

Elizabeth Biser, who was named to the Cabinet secretary post by Cooper in June 2021, is leaving her job leading the Department of Environmental Quality, or DEQ, to “pursue opportunities in the private sector,” a Cooper news release said Thursday.

Biser’s successor will be Mary Penny Kelley, who becomes secretary effective Tuesday, Cooper’s office said.

Kelley is an attorney who now works as the special adviser to the governor’s Hometown Strong program, which is centered on helping rural areas. Her government work history includes holding positions as a senior advisor at DEQ and as deputy secretary at its predecessor agency, the Department of Environmental and Natural Resources.

Biser was Cooper’s choice as secretary when state Senate Republicans declined to confirm the governor’s appointment of Dionne Delli-Gatti to succeed first-term Secretary Michael Regan when he became President Joe Biden’s U.S. Environmental Protection Agency administrator.

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Biser’s time as secretary was marked largely by the implementation of policies to reduce a broad category of “forever chemicals” commonly known as PFAS found in North Carolina water sources and to provide for remediation. EPA has announced new limits for these chemicals, which with exposure are associated with a wide range of health harms.

Biser had expressed frustration in recent months with the state Environmental Management Commission declining to advance proposed rules to restrict industrial releases of some of these “forever chemicals” into drinking water supplies.

Biser also served recently as president of the Environmental Council of the States, composed of state and territorial environmental agency leaders.

Cooper said he appreciated Biser’s service as secretary “and her work to help make North Carolina a leader in the fight against PFAS and other harmful forever chemicals.” He also said Kelley’s “long career in environmental law and experience within DEQ make her the right person to lead the department and continue to work to protect North Carolina’s air and water.”

Cooper, a Democrat, is term-limited from serving beyond the end of the year. It wasn’t immediately clear if Kelley would be subject to a Senate confirmation process before Cooper leaves office.