Politics as usual

EPA used fraudulent data in sludge findings

A former government scientist accused the Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday of knowingly using unreliable data when it denied a petition to halt the use of sewage sludge for fertilizer.

The microbiologist, David Lewis, testified at a House subcommittee hearing that the EPA used data about sludge quality at two Georgia dairy farms that had already been rejected by Georgia state officials as "completely unreliable, possibly even fraudulent."  article

I don't know about you, but I've read enough about the EPA to be convinced that it's no more interested in our welfare than is the White House, so this is no surprise at all to me.

The EPA in December denied a petition from 73 labor, environment, and farm groups for an immediate moratorium on land-based uses for sewage sludge. Such a moratorium would affect more than 3 million tons of sludge used each year as fertilizer. In its decision, the EPA cited data showing levels of heavy metals in sludge at the dairy farms were within allowed limits.

In fact, Lewis said, studies by Georgia state agencies found the sludge was so corrosive that it dissolved fences and emitted toxic fumes that could sicken cows. Lewis said the faulty data was produced by local officials in Augusta, Georgia, several years ago and knowingly used by the EPA in December, in spite of an audit by Georgia officials that found it unreliable.

"Mr. Lewis is entitled to his opinion. We stand by our December 2003 decision," said EPA spokeswoman Cynthia Bergman, noting the agency is in the process of revising its approach to sludge.

Yeah, no doubt. Double-face is in the process of revising his approach to Iraq, too.

Here's some of Mr. Lewis' testimony about EPA's agenda from May 2001....

I have worked as a microbiologist for the US Environmental Protection Agency in Athens, Georgia for over thirty years. In one of my recent research projects, I, and other scientists working with me, discovered that microorganisms are affected by environmental changes in such a way as to dramatically affect the impact of pesticides and other environmental pollutants. Our report of the discovery was published in the British science journal Nature in October, 1999.

Because the research uncovered potentially serious flaws in some of EPA's regulations, managers at EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C. were not happy. Simply stated, the results of objective scientific research did not square with their political agenda.

...Actions taken against [Dr. Rosemarie Russo, for approving the article] by top EPA managers first began in 1996 when Nature published a commentary of mine questioning the impact of politics on science at EPA. Retaliations against me by Mr. Longest and Dr. Foley came fast and furious. It was alleged (falsely, I may add) that my writings were unethical and that my positive references to the opinions of Republican Congressmen constituted a criminal violation of the Hatch Act. Dr. Russo testified under oath that she was asked by Dr. Foley whether or not I have a "death wish." Other Athens managers testified that they were told to "put a muzzle" on me.

The Labor Department investigated and found that EPA managers had wrongly accused me of ethics and Hatch Act violations. EPA wrote a letter of apology, clearing me of the unwarranted charges; but, the pace of retaliation only intensified.

The Labor Department investigated yet again and found that EPA officials had denied me a promotion in a retaliatory and discriminatory manner. To settle the case, EPA offered me a four-year detail to the University of Georgia under the Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) and insisted that I resign my job at EPA by no later than May 28, 2003. It was clear that Mr. Longest and Dr. Foley were not going to allow me to continue doing scientific research that may not be supportive of EPA policies. I thought that, under the settlement, I could at least get in a few years of unhindered research at the university and be able to find other opportunities to pursue a career in science and support my wife and two children. How naive I was to think that my ordeal was over.

  full testimony