Advocates Challenge Park Service on Deputy Director Appointment
From: Bloomberg “The Interior Department short-circuited the Senate’s role in confirming a key political leader at the National Park Service, according to an April 17 complaint from a good government group. The April 15 appointment of David Vela as the park service’s acting ...
Federal Appeals Board: Better Defunct or With Trump Appointees?
From: The Washington Post ““Given this administration’s track record on appointments in general, and on employee rights in particular, and general hostility to the civil service, we are very concerned about having a board with a majority of Trump administration appointees,” ...
Fish and Wildlife Service Sued for Failure to Disclose Use of Bee-Toxic Pesticides and GMO Crops in Wildlife Refuges
From: Beyond Pesticides “The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) announced on April 3 that it is suing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for its failure to release public records, despite multiple FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests, that would reveal on-the-ground ...
Senate Votes 56-41 to Confirm Swamp Creature David Bernhardt as Trump’s Interior Secretary
From: Red, Green and Blue “The Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) described Bernhardt as a “monumentally bad pick to lead Interior,” noting that the former gas and oil lobbyist sets a “new low bar for regulatory capture.” “The Senate has set a terrible ...
Does the Assange Indictment Endanger Press Freedom?
From: POGO ” Indeed, the Project On Government Oversight just released a new book, Caught Between Conscience and Career, in partnership with Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and the Government Accountability Project, that includes a chapter on digital best practices ...
Whistleblower Protections Still Incomplete, Groups Say
From: FedWeek “Three groups that advocate for whistleblowers say that further protections are needed including creating a right for federal employees to have jury trials in federal court when they claim they have been retaliated against for their disclosures. The groups—the Project ...
No Verdict in Sight on Safety of Crumb Rubber Fields, Prompting Angst All Around
From: Fair Warning “In December, a branch of the CDC called the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry asked for more time to collect additional data and samples. The agencies already have missed at least two target deadlines – one in 2016 and another in 2017 – to ...
Senators Under Pressure to Stop NOAA Nominee After Sexual Harassment Revelations
From: Think Progress “A government employee group is urging Senate leadership to halt the nomination of former AccuWeather CEO Barry Lee Myers to lead the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The call was prompted by the release of a federal investigation document ...
Group Says Vela’s Reassignment Illegal
From: Jackson Hole News & Guide “A federal government watchdog group is challenging the legality of David Vela’s reassignment to the National Park Service’s acting deputy director of operations role in Washington, D.C. Superintendent of Grand Teton National Park since 2014, ...
Wire the Tetons? Critics Say Pump the Brakes
From: Jackson Hole News & Guide “The park’s plan, which has been kicked around internally for six years, is not a done deal. An environmental assessment outlining the project, and its expected impacts, was published last month. Comments are still being accepted, though they’ ...
Civil Penalties for Polluters Dropped Dramatically in Trump’s First Two Years, Analysis Shows
From: Milbank Monitor “Government figures show the EPA has hit a 30-year low in the number of pollution cases referred for criminal prosecution. Justice Department data released Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2019, by the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility show the EPA referred 166 ...
Torpy at Large: Very Hot Indeed for CDC’s Former Climate Change Chief
From: Atlanta Journal-Constitution “Welcome to Dr. Luber’s Limbo, a forced exile from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where the epidemiologist who once ran the CDC’s Climate and Health Program is now persona non grata at the agency headquartered in Atlanta.He is, ...
Environmental Group Raises Concern About Increased Production of PFAs Chemicals
From: WCMU Public Radio Despite growing health concerns, the production of a family of fire retardant chemicals is increasing, according to an environmental group. Perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAs, are a family of chemical that have been found across the state and are linked to health ...
FWS Draft Plan: No Transfer to Tribes for Bison Range
From: The Missoulian The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s latest plans for the National Bison Range don’t involve transferring it to the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. But they do leave the door open to future joint management with that group. This stipulation was included in ...
Borough: No Response from Forest Service on Timber Sale Questions
From: KFSK “More than five months after it sent a letter seeking information on Tongass National Forest timber oversight the Petersburg borough has yet to receive a response. The borough assembly approved a letter November 6th asking for information on follow up action the agency has ...
Report: Despite Growing Contamination Crisis, PFAS Chemical Use in U.S. Swells
From: Environmental Working Group “Between 2012 and 2016, at least 30 new fluorinated chemicals, commonly called PFAS, were produced in significant volumes, according to Environmental Protection Agency data analyzed by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, or PEER. PEER ...
Halfway Through Trump’s Term, Key Public Lands Agencies Still Lack Leaders
From: Audubon “More than two years after his inauguration, President Donald Trump has yet to fill the top posts at a trio of federal agencies that together oversee more than 400 million acres of public land. Since Trump took office, interim appointees who have not been confirmed by the ...
Cleanup of PFAS Chemicals in Drinking Water Underway in Wells Near Fort Devens
From: Boston 25 News “The U.S. Army has committed to cleaning up PFAS chemicals in drinking water in wells near Fort Devens. An environmental group says it all started when a whistleblower sent them documents showing how serious the contamination was. The drinking water in Ayer is ...
CSKT Renews Proposal for Ownership of Bison Range
From: Flathead Beacon “The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes have renewed a proposal to return management of the 18,800-acre National Bison Range to tribal management under a federal trust ownership agreement, an historic change of course that tribal leaders believe is in the best ...
Tribes Continue Push for Trust Ownership of Bison Range
From: The Missoulian “A Wednesday press release announced that the tribes had notified Montana’s congressional delegation and the U.S. Department of the Interior that they would like to revisit a 2016 proposal to place the Bison Range in trust status. The tribes have long sought a ...
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