{"id":3895,"date":"2024-12-04T10:26:37","date_gmt":"2024-12-04T10:26:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lawtondailynews.com\/?p=3895"},"modified":"2024-12-04T10:26:37","modified_gmt":"2024-12-04T10:26:37","slug":"oklahoma-governor-fires-energy-secretary-over-court-appearance-in-poultry-pollution-lawsuit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/04\/oklahoma-governor-fires-energy-secretary-over-court-appearance-in-poultry-pollution-lawsuit\/","title":{"rendered":"Oklahoma Governor Fires Energy Secretary Over Court Appearance in Poultry Pollution Lawsuit"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col flex-grow\">\n<div class=\"min-h-8 text-message flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 whitespace-normal break-words [.text-message+&amp;]:mt-5\" dir=\"auto\" data-message-author-role=\"assistant\" data-message-id=\"44e97320-addb-4278-8d06-c2d09a445426\" data-message-model-slug=\"gpt-4o-mini\">\n<div class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden first:pt-[3px]\">\n<div class=\"markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light\">\n<p>Lawton, OK &#8211; Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has dismissed his energy and environment secretary, Ken McQueen, after McQueen appeared in court as a plaintiff in a long-standing lawsuit accusing poultry companies of polluting Oklahoma waters. The governor made the announcement Tuesday, stating that McQueen\u2019s participation in the case went against the interests of local farmers and landowners.<\/p>\n<p>McQueen, who had served as secretary since 2022, attended a federal court hearing in Tulsa on Tuesday where the lawsuit is being heard. The case, filed in 2005 by former Attorney General Drew Edmondson, targets 13 large poultry companies, including Tyson Foods, for their role in polluting the Illinois River Watershed with phosphorus from waste generated by chicken farms in eastern Oklahoma. McQueen, in his capacity as the state\u2019s environment secretary, had been a plaintiff in the case by virtue of his office\u2019s role in the lawsuit.<\/p>\n<p>Stitt expressed disappointment over McQueen&#8217;s actions, stating that his appearance in court aligned him with Attorney General Gentner Drummond and environmentalists, putting him at odds with Oklahoma\u2019s agricultural interests. \u201cThis lawsuit is a radical left attempt at backdoor regulation through litigation,\u201d Stitt said in a statement.<\/p>\n<p>However, critics of the governor\u2019s decision argue that McQueen was simply fulfilling his official duties. Edmondson, who initiated the lawsuit nearly two decades ago, called Stitt\u2019s decision to fire McQueen \u201cjust plain stupid.\u201d He emphasized that the role of environment secretary has always included participation as a plaintiff in the lawsuit, regardless of the secretary\u2019s personal views on the case. &#8220;Showing up in a court appearance where he was obligated to be and firing him over that is just crazy,&#8221; Edmondson said.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit itself claims that the large poultry companies should be held accountable for the environmental damage caused by their waste, which has led to the contamination of local waters and a harmful buildup of algae. Edmondson and others have maintained that the lawsuit is aimed at holding corporations accountable, not local farmers.<\/p>\n<p>While Stitt has been a vocal critic of the lawsuit, Drummond, who took office as attorney general in 2023, has defended the case, calling a recent federal court ruling in favor of the plaintiffs a \u201cgreat and historic day for Oklahoma.\u201d Drummond\u2019s office noted that while the poultry industry has made improvements in waste disposal, the attorney general is committed to seeking a fair resolution that protects both the environment and the state\u2019s agricultural industry.<\/p>\n<p>In response to McQueen\u2019s dismissal, Stitt appointed Jeff Starling as the new energy and environment secretary. Starling, a former assistant general counsel for Devon Energy and current chief legal and administrative officer for Lagoon Water Midstream, brings extensive experience in both the public and private sectors. Stitt praised Starling\u2019s qualifications, stating that his background would help guide Oklahoma\u2019s energy strategy and ensure the state remains a leader in energy innovation.<\/p>\n<p>Starling expressed enthusiasm about his new role, saying he was \u201cthrilled to serve Oklahoma in this new capacity.\u201d His appointment will now place him in charge of overseeing energy and environmental policies in the state, a position that includes responsibility for 36 state agencies, boards, and commissions, as well as federal Clean Water Act funding.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lawton, OK &#8211; Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has dismissed his energy and environment secretary, Ken McQueen, after McQueen appeared in court as a plaintiff in a long-standing lawsuit accusing poultry companies of polluting Oklahoma waters. The governor made the announcement Tuesday, stating that McQueen\u2019s participation in the case went against the interests of local farmers [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3896,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-3895","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-uncategorized"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v24.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Oklahoma Governor Fires Energy Secretary Over Court Appearance in Poultry Pollution Lawsuit - Enid Post<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/enidpost.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/04\/oklahoma-governor-fires-energy-secretary-over-court-appearance-in-poultry-pollution-lawsuit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Oklahoma Governor Fires Energy Secretary Over Court Appearance in Poultry Pollution Lawsuit - Enid Post\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Lawton, OK &#8211; Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt has dismissed his energy and environment secretary, Ken McQueen, after McQueen appeared in court as a plaintiff in a long-standing lawsuit accusing poultry companies of polluting Oklahoma waters. 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