EPA Employee Press Release 2011
A recent report of an investigation of the EPA OCR by the Deloitte Consulting Firm was returned to the EPA on March 21, 2011 and released with redaction "to protect privacy concerns" by Lisa Jackson on April 1, 2011.
The report gives us a glimpse into the alarming problems existing in the OCR and others such as some Title VI complaints (environmental justice allegations) are backlogged to 2001.
The report lists statistics that are frighteningly low for resolving these types of issues--"Only 6% of 247 complaints have been accepted or dismissed within the agency's 20 day time limit."
We cannot think of any acceptable reason for these dismal numbers that passes muster and would like to urge Ms. Jackson to immediately address these concerns without further delay. Many communities all across America are living with toxic neighbors who flaunt compliance and regulations in pursuit of higher profits. More often than not, a large percentage of these communities are minority and economically disadvantaged.
There is no help coming to them if not from the EPA.
There is no help coming to them if not from the EPA.
But if the very agency who can help is ineffective in instituting a solid OCR that functions as Ms. Jackson has been promising she wanted it to, then what? How much longer do communities in real trouble have to wait?
And why should they?
There's more to this story that has potentially chilling effects for a large number of Americans. What's happening in the OCR serves the corporate polluters agenda and leaves the public on the wrong end of a lopsided scale of injustice.
A March press release by the group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) blasts the exodus of Criminal Investigation Division (CID) agents, who are charged with prosecuting corporate pollution crimes, from the EPA:
EPA CRIMINAL INVESTIGATORS MAKE FOR THE EXITS — High Number of Special Agents Transfer Out of Troubled Criminal Program in 2010
Washington, DC —Turmoil engulfing the criminal enforcement program of the Environmental Protection Agency this past year occasioned a record exodus of special agents, according to official figures released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).
In 2010 for the first time, more special agents voluntarily transferred away from the EPA Criminal Investigation Division (CID) than took mandatory retirement.
CID agents conduct investigations into corporate environmental crimes. An internal review in 2010 found that “personnel abuse” and “unreasonable management behavior” within CID had caused a “significant loss of talented staff.” Turnover numbers obtained by PEER under the Freedom of Information Act bear out this conclusion.
In 2010, ten special agents transferred to work in other federal programs and another resigned – a departure of agents significantly higher than in any other recent year.
Agent dissatisfaction with program management is still smoldering, according to anecdotal reports from agents received by PEER.
Director Jeff Ruch makes a sobering point with the following words:
“There is no shortage of political opponents who want to hamstring EPA so it is surprising that EPA's management is often its own worst enemy," Ruch added. "How can EPA speak with any credibility on topics such as environmental justice when it cannot address gross injustice inside its own hallways?"
Environmental justice has suffered yet another setback despite the promise of "hope and change" from the Obama Administration, because as we all know too well, change in the government is a slow moving behemoth.
And there are communities in America that have already run out of time--Mossville, La., Emelle, Alabama, Libby, Montana and the area near the Monsanto/Solutia PCB plant in Anniston, Alabama just to name a few.
We hope that the EPA remembers that there are real lives at stake here, and despite the aggressive moves by the republican congress to cut their funding and gut the agency, the EPA has a duty and mandated responsibility to the public at large to protect them.
Another decade of ineffectiveness is simply not acceptable.
So, we have much more to be concerned with in the EPA than their amenability to the big energy lobbyists?
ReplyDeleteI had heard about this a couple of days ago, but had not seen the letter until now. Oh boy. That's a big problem.
Whistle-blowers have long been the bane of the EPA and government in general, the club does not like it when their house rules are exposed.
I am giving O points for this today:
ReplyDelete"....to have arguments about the Environmental Protection Agency, to try to use this budget negotiation as a vehicle for every ideological or political difference between the two parties. That’s what the legislature is for, to have those arguments, but not stuff it all into one budget bill.”
But the allegations by the female EPA employees deserve swift investigation and serious consideration from congress and O.
Completely UNACCEPTABLE!!!!
Very disturbing allegations....
ReplyDeleteMs. Jackson hails DeLeon as a positive and professes her "complete faith" in his abilities to be an asset to the EPA with these kind of long-standing allegations on the table?
ReplyDeleteI don't understand.
Good question, what is going on with this agency?
The last thing this agency needs right now is to give any ammunition to its detractors. I fear they are doing just that with DeLeon.
ReplyDeleteReplace him Ms. Jackson and stem the tide of employees leaving the CID. Nothing positive in losing seasoned employees willing to actually do their job rather than just sit around like detached lumps and collect a government paycheck.