"Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue's longtime donors and friends were beneficiaries of a new EPA policy declaring that burning biomass for energy doesn't increase heat-trapping carbon emissions.

Earl and Wanda Barrs, who own and operate a tree farm, organized a meet-and-greet last July for Perdue and EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, according to emails released to the Sierra Club. The meeting served as a prelude to a policy change by Pruitt's EPA last month that could pay off for the Barrs.

"Arrangements for the Administrator's trip are coming along nicely. We look forward to providing him and the Secretary an informative and educational trip as well as introducing him to some really great folks," Earl Barrs wrote in a June 28 email to EPA and the Department of Agriculture. "Wanda and I know a thing or two about providing 'Good ole Southern Hospitality' for our guests at Gully Branch.""

Zack Colman reports for Greenwire May 9, 2018. [2]