President Obama nominated Gina McCarthy as the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday.

The nomination of McCarthy, who currently serves as assistant administrator of EPA's air and radiation office, to replace Lisa Jackson is a likely sign that the administration will seek to further the use of the EPA as a regulatory arm to administer policies to lower greenhouse gas emissions if legislative efforts continue to fail in Congress.

“The President’s nomination of Gina McCarthy as head of EPA reinforces his agenda to take climate change action ...