EPA nominee lauded by environmental groups. (Carol Browner)

Florida's Carol Browner gets mixed reviews from business, industry

St. Louis, Dec. 17 -- Carol Browner, selected by president-elect Bill Clinton to head the EPA, is largely an unknown quantity to the paint and coatings

manufacturing industry. But it appears that one assumption about Browner can be made: she is unlikely to take a softer line toward business and industry than her predecessor, William K. Reilly.

Browner, head of the state of Florida's environmental-protection agency, is headed for Washington with a solid pro-conservation track record and the strong endorsements of environmental groups. Her resume also includes a stint on the Senate staff of vice president-elect Al Gore, a major ally of environmental causes.

But paint-industry representatives contacted for observations on Browner's appointment either declined comment or described her as an unknown quantity. …