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Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Environment - More on "Pollution partners not all paragons: State recognizes 22 firms it also has fined"

A Fort Wayne Journal Gazette editorial today headed "Poor partnership" references its Nov. 22nd story and opines:

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s Partners for Pollution Prevention is an extreme example of mission creep. The primary duty of the state agency is enforcement against environmental polluters, not serving as their public relations team.

There is nothing wrong with IDEM officials patting on the back those corporate citizens with exemplary environmental records for their environmental stewardship. Praising companies that successfully demonstrate an understanding that protecting Indiana’s environment protects the state’s economy is wise. But as the Sunday story by Dan Stockman showed, IDEM’s Partners for Pollution Prevention program recognized 22 businesses that it also has fined for environmental violations.

IDEM officials try to sell the program as a public-private partnership to prevent environmental pollution. But it’s clear the agency needs to be more selective about its partners.

The list of companies participating in the prevention program is rife with companies already cited for breaking state environmental laws. The list of 58 partners includes several of the state’s largest polluters. And those companies have accumulated more than $1 million in fines and costs to meet IDEM demands. * * *

For two years IDEM has been ridiculed for the leniency it showed the BP Whiting oil refinery. Officials in neighboring Illinois were outraged that Indiana regulators were going to permit the refinery to increase the pollution the refinery dumps into Lake Michigan, the source of Chicago’s drinking water. And recently, the EPA amended its citation against the BP refinery for clean air violations.

According to the IDEM, no partner has ever been removed from the program because of violations.

The agency needs to make enforcement against companies that pollute a greater priority. And save the feel-good partnership programs for companies that are demonstrating good environmental stewardship.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on November 25, 2009 08:33 AM
Posted to Environment