Water Safety Tops EPA Chief's List

"I believe water, over the next decade and further, will be the environmental issue that we as a nation and, frankly, as a world will be facing," he said. Keeping the nation's water safe and secure is "an area of vulnerability for the United States and also an opportunity for us."

Johnson, the first scientist to head the Environmental Protection Agency, said in addition to helping the Department of Homeland Security protect the water supply, he wanted to find economically viable solutions for the 10% of Americans whose drinking water was not healthy. He also spoke of helping cities and municipalities improve aging water treatment facilities.

In his first interview with reporters since being confirmed by the Senate last month, Johnson, a 54-year-old biologist and career EPA official, talked about controversies that had plagued the agency.

Asked about charges this week by an unnamed EPA scientist that the Bush administration had watered down reports about global climate change, Johnson talked about the need for good communications -- and sound science.

"We have a number of people inside the agency and across administrations that look at the documents to try to make sure that we are staying true to the science and at the same time communicating effectively," he said.

"And on any particular issue, if the way it is said isn't your particular leaning or viewpoint, then you say, 'You've compromised the science,' or 'You haven't done a good job of communicating.' "

Johnson conceded the existence of climate change, but was not ready to predict its severity or its causes. "My focus is on advancing technologies and achieving real results," he said.

He praised a program he called Methane to Market, which captured methane gases for energy use.

"The answer is going to be the technologies," he said. "Why aren't we focusing on making that a reality rather than the rhetoric of global climate change?"

A native of Washington, Johnson said that after almost 25 years at the agency he was familiar with political rhetoric from the business and environmental communities, as well as from Congress, the public and the press.