Washington, D.C. — Georgia U.S. Senators Reverend Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff today released the following statements after President Joe Biden’s appointment of Daniel Blackman to serve as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Administrator for Region 4.

The Region 4 Administrator, based in Atlanta, oversees Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and six tribes for the EPA.

“The U.S. Environmental Protect Agency is tasked with protecting the health of our environment and our communities, and I am thrilled to see Daniel Blackman nominated for this critical leadership position within the agency,” said Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock. “As climate change presents a real and urgent threat to our country, Daniel has been a steadfast champion for environmental stewardship and creating opportunities for underserved communities across Georgia. EPA’s Southeast region will benefit from his leadership, and I thank President Biden for heeding the advice of Senator Ossoff and I in making this appointment.”

“Pleased that President Biden accepted my recommendation to appoint Daniel Blackman as Region 4 Administrator for the EPA,” Senator Jon Ossoff said. “I am confident and expect that he will bring vision and focus to environmental protection in Southeast region.”

“I appreciate the service and leadership Senators Ossoff and Warnock bring our country, and grateful to President Biden for this opportunity to join EPA and serve the people of Region 4,” Blackman said. “I’ve spent my entire career working to protect the environment and our communities from the effects of climate change, especially those marginalized and left behind. I look forward to hitting the ground running to support Administrator Regan in advancing the Biden Administration’s commitment to working with our state, local, and Tribal partners to secure clean air, safe food, and clean drinking water throughout the region.”

Blackman has spent over a decade advising policymakers at the Georgia state capitol and advocating on behalf of Georgia ratepayers and small businesses in energy-related matters before the state’s Public Service Commission. He served as chairman of the Georgia Chapter of the Sierra Club and board member for the ACLU. 

Blackman has worked throughout EPA Region 4 to secure environmental, health and economic justice and to convene stakeholders with federal agencies. His work in addressing groundwater contamination at nuclear plants and its impact on public health and safety has given him the opportunity to testify numerous times before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and his commitment to working throughout the Southeastern United States to push for legislation that addresses toxic ash left behind from burning coal has given him the opportunity to play a key role in the transitioning from coal to clean energy in the United States.

Blackman is the son of immigrants from Barbados and is an alumnus of Clark Atlanta University. He and his wife Jeanelle are the proud parents of four children, and the family resides in Forsyth County, Georgia.

# # #