Alvin L. Alm: Oral History Interview
Contents
Interview:
Generational differences with regard to environmental concern
Comparison of Train and Ruckelshaus
Expectations of EPA in mid-1970s
Management and budget organization
Significant issues at EPA in 1970s
DOE and Harvard energy security program
Reinvigorating enforcement activity
Business and environmental compliance
Reasons for not completely reorganizing agency in 1983
Thoughts on agency's organization structure
Congress, White House, Courts, Environmentalists and Industry
Achievements and lessons learned in the 1980s
EPA 202-K-94-005
January 1994
Interview conducted by Dr. Dennis Williams on April 12, 1993 and June 23, 1993 at SAIC, Inc., McLean, Virginia
full-text (73KB)
Foreword
This publication is the third in a series of oral history interviews with the Environmental Protection Agency's administrators and deputy administrators. The EPA History Program has undertaken this project in order to preserve, distill, and disseminate the main experiences and insights of the men and women who have led the agency. EPA decision-makers and staff, related government entities, the environmental community, scholars, and the general public, can all profit from these recollections. Separately, each of the interviews will describe the perspectives of particular leaders. Collectively, these reminiscences win illustrate the dynamic nature of EPA's historic mission; the personalities and institutions that have shaped its outlook; the context of the times in which it has operated; and some of the agency's principal achievements and shortcomings.
The techniques used to prepare the EPA oral history series conform to the practices commonly observed by professional historians. The questions, submitted in advance, are broad and open-ended, and the answers are preserved on audio tape. Once transcripts of the recordings are completed, the History Program staff edits the manuscripts for clarity, factual accuracy, and logical progression. The finished manuscripts are then returned to the interviewees, who may alter the text to eliminate errors made during transcription of the tapes, or during the editorial phase of preparation.
A collaborative work such as this incurs a number of debts. Kathy Petruccelli, Director of EPA's Management and Organization Division, sought support for transcription and printing costs. John C. Chamberlin, Director of the Office of Administration, provided the necessary funds. Connie Martin performed invaluable proofreading and logistical services. Finally, Alvin Alm himself must be acknowledged for his candid and insightful reflections on this formative period in EPA history.