Some WVa officials celebrate EPA head resignation - Beckley, Bluefield & Lewisburg News, Weather, Sports

Some WVa officials celebrate EPA head resignation

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -

Some West Virginia officials say the resignation of the head of the Environmental Protection Agency will be a good thing for the state.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson announced Thursday she was stepping down.

Republican Congresswoman Shelley Moore Capito wished Jackson well but said her departure will provide the Obama administration the opportunity to do more to incorporate coal into its natural resources strategy. She said the agency should work toward energy independence and job creation instead of what she called a "punitive imperialistic hammer driven by ideological agenda."

West Virginia Coal Association President Bill Raney blamed Jackson and the agency for coal's decline in Appalachia.

Jackson will step down in January.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.