Jane Lubchenko Resigning As Head Of NOAA

NOAA Administrator Jane Lubchenco announced today that she will step down in February, ending a four-year tenure that saw the longtime academic juggle a slate of controversial issues, from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill to the skyrocketing cost of weather satellites.

In an email to employees this morning, Lubchenco wrote that she was leaving the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to return to her family and academic career in Oregon.

"As many of you know, my home and family are on the West Coast. I'm deeply grateful for the support and love of my family, but as wonderful as Skype is for staying in touch, it is not a viable long-term arrangement!" she wrote.

Lubchenco became the first woman to lead NOAA in 2009, after President Obama nominated her to much acclaim from environmental groups and oceans advocates. The confirmation of Lubchenco, a marine biologist, also represented a shift for an agency whose previous two leaders had backgrounds in oceanography.

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http://www.eenews.net/public/Greenwire/2012/12/12/1