Former EPA Leader Judith Enck Addresses the Impact of Plastic Pollution for Earthweek at Williams College

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass., April 16, 2021—In honor of Earthweek at Williams College, Judith Enck, former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regional administrator and visiting professor at Bennington College, will give a talk, titled “Moving Beyond Plastic: The Environmental Justice, Climate Change and Health Issue of Our Time.” The online event, which is free and open to the public, will be held on Thursday, April 22, at 7 p.m.

To attend, use the following Zoom link:

https://williams.zoom.us/j/91207165218?pwd=TFB0RTdUd2FpdlRwcWxNVWQ3dHFIUT09

Passcode: 252168

In her talk, sponsored by the Center for Environmental Studies at Williams College, Enck will shine light on the enormous environmental and health implications associated with the production, use, and disposal of plastics. In addition to its impact on animals and wildlife, she will delve into how plastic production has become the fossil fuel industry’s “Plan B,” what plastic pollution is doing to rivers and oceans, its health implications, and the export of the United States’ and Europe’s plastic waste to Asia and Africa.

Enck founded Beyond Plastics (www.beyondplastics.org) in 2019 to end plastic pollution through education, advocacy, and institutional change. Passionate about protecting public health and the environment, she teaches classes on plastic pollution as a senior fellow and visiting faculty member at Bennington College, and was recently a visiting scholar at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University.

She has held top influential positions in state and federal government. Appointed by President Obama, she served as the regional administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency. In this role, she oversaw environmental protections in N.Y., N.J., eight Indian Nations, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, managing a staff of 800 and a $700M budget.

Previously, she served as deputy secretary for the environment in the New York Governor’s Office and policy advisor to the New York State Attorney General. She was a senior environmental associate with the New York Public Interest Research Group, served as executive director for Environmental Advocates of New York and the Non-Profit Resource Center, and is a past president of Hudson River Sloop Clearwater.

Enck appears on WAMC’s weekly public affairs show, the Roundtable.

Published April 16, 2021