LOS ANGELES : Attorney Appointed Head of Division of the EPA

Mary Nichols, senior staff attorney and director of the Los Angeles office of the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, has been named by the Clinton Administration to head the Air and Radiation Division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Nichols, a pioneer in environmental law, was a member of the California Air Resources Board, which sets state air-quality and vehicle emissions rules, from 1975-78, then returned as chairwoman of the board and state secretary for environmental affairs from 1979 to 1982.

Nichols also previously served on the board of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power and as chief assistant city attorney in the civil branch for the city of Los Angeles.