The Virginian-Pilot reports today about “mounting” tensions between Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell and President Obama’s EPA over new regulations designed to “hasten the Chesapeake Bay cleanup.” It sounds very much like the conflict over global warming:

In an interview last week, McDonnell’s secretary of natural resources, Doug Domenech, said Virginia is pursuing a two-track policy: remaining committed to restoring the Bay, but also taking a hard line toward the science and computer modeling behind proposed rules aimed at cutting pollution from agriculture, new development and other sources.

Domenech said he and other administration officials “have not talked about walking” away from the six-state partnership, nor have they discussed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Still, Domenech said he would not be surprised if industry groups sue over the proposed regulations, which he described as based on “admittedly flawed computer models, whose numbers keep changing – and will continue to change even as we go forward.”

You know how those enviros like to keep moving the targets (using their lousy models)!

“The mitigating factor here is the economy,” Domenech said from his office in Richmond. “It’s such a bad time to impose all these new restrictions on farmers, foresters, land developers. It’s the worst time to be kicking these guys….”

McDonnell sent EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson a letter last month outlining his concerns in blunt fashion. He wrote about a perceived lack of transparency, ill-defined mandates and rushed deadlines.

“We believe the EPA’s time and energy would be better spent in Virginia educating farmers on best practices and positive actions… rather than expanding the scope of its regulatory authority through enforcement measures,” the governor wrote.

Only Pennsylvania farmers (under Democrat Gov. Ed Rendell) get the courtesy of those carrots. It’s sticks for those in Virginia. Elections have consequences!