MEET THE GULF COAST ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION TASK FORCE

EPA Administrator to Lead First Public Meeting of Gulf Ecosystem Restoration Task Force

On Monday, November 8, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa P. Jackson will convene the first official meeting of the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force in Pensacola, Fla. She will be joined by Council on Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley, along with representatives from other federal agencies, and gulf coast state and local officials.  The public meeting will focus on challenges in the gulf, staffing and logistics, and task force objectives.Members of the task force will be introduced during the meeting.

Administrator Jackson will hold a press availability at 2:15 p.m. with other members of the task force.

President Obama issued an executive order in October to create the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force, continuing the administration's ongoing commitment to the gulf region. The task force works to integrate federal restoration efforts with those of local stakeholders and state and tribal governments, and to facilitate accountability and support throughout the restoration process. View the President's executive order: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2010/10/05/executive-order-gulf-coast-ecosystem-restoration-task-force .

To RSVP for this meeting, please visit: http://yosemite.epa.gov/r1/videolen.nsf/GulfCoastTaskForce .

WHO:               EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson

CEQ Chair Nancy Sutley

Representatives from:

                                    U.S. Department of Agriculture

                                    U.S. Department of Defense

                                    U.S. Department of the Interior

                                    U.S. Department of Justice

                                    U.S. Department of Transportation

                                    Domestic Policy Council

                                    National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

                                    Office of Management and Budget

                                    Office of Science and Technology Policy

                                    U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

State and local leaders

WHAT:             Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force Meeting                                                                                            

WHEN:             November 8, 2010 at 11:30 a.m.

                        Press Availability at 2:15 p.m.

WHERE:           Pensacola Civic Center, 201 E. Gregory Street, Pensacola, Fla.

More information on the task force:  http://www.restorethegulf.gov