News Clips

From: The Hill “News of the probe comes as EPA’s Inspector General (IG) continues its own investigation into the agency’s enforcement figures and as the EPA is gearing up to release its 2018 enforcement numbers, which are expected to be even lower than the previous year. Data ...

From: Coeur d’Alene Press “But the 166 cases referred for prosecution in the last fiscal year is the lowest number since 1988, when Ronald Reagan was president and 151 cases were referred, according to Justice Department data obtained by the nonprofit Public Employees for ...

From: Tampa Bay Times “Other environmental advocates speculated about what DeSantis had in mind. Manley Fuller, president of the Florida Wildlife Federation for more than 30 years, said, “It may be to shift environmental pollution enforcement to DEP and have fish and wildlife ...

From: Politico “The Government Accountability Office already has an investigation underway into EPA’s enforcement numbers. A spokesman for GAO confirmed to ME the agency launched an investigation in October but added the “final scope of what we will cover and methodology to ...

From: Washington Post “There were 166 cases the agency referred for prosecution in the last fiscal year, the Associated Press reports based on administration data obtained and released by the nonprofit advocacy group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. That’s the lowest ...

From: Democracy Now “In environmental news, the Associated Press is reporting the Environmental Protection Agency referred just 166 pollution cases for prosecution in 2018, the lowest number in 30 years. The executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, the ...

From: National Parks Traveler “At Public Employees For Environmental Responsibility, which released the correspondence, Executive Director Jeff Ruch said that while federal lands are to be managed for all Americans, the administration of Gov. Mike Dunleavy, who took office in December ...

From: The Hill “Former members of the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division told the AP that the reason for the decreased caseload stemmed not from a lack of leads, but rather a lack of resources to pursue those leads. Michael Hubbard, a former agent with the enforcement division, said ...

From: Associated Press “You don’t get closer to the core of EPA’s mission than enforcing the law,” Jeff Ruch, PEER’s executive director, told The Associated Press. “We’re reaching levels where the enforcement program is lacking a pulse.” EPA efforts to prosecute polluters ...

From: La Grande Observer “In order to keep both elk hunters and ranchers happy, ODFW has shifted the blame for low elk numbers onto cougar predation rather than agency mismanagement. For those curious about what happens when university research finds and publishes information that ...

From: Governing “The environment became a central issue in the heated election after algae blooms covered most of the 730-square-mile lake and coincided with a red tide in the Gulf of Mexico this past summer, littering beaches with dead sea turtles, dolphins, manatees and other sea life ...

From: Trade Only Today “Two days after taking office, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has released a proposal to clean up Florida’s waters. The action items include more aggressive policies to address green algae in Lake Okeechobee and toxic spills into coastal waterways. DeSantis plans to ...

From: E&E News “Acting Interior Secretary David Bernhardt must soon decide whether to maintain eight temporary agency directors, as the Trump administration presses into its third year without appointees for a slew of top posts at the department. Environmental advocacy groups have ...

From: Huffington Post “Jeff Ruch, president of the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, told The Hill that the FWS decision appears to violate the terms of its own shutdown contingency plan, which allows emergency fund use only for safety and the protection of property. “ ...

From: Argus Media “A US government trust fund used to clean up oil spills is losing out on millions of dollars in revenue after lawmakers allowed a 9¢/bl excise tax on refiners, importers and producers to expire at the end of last year. The tax is the main source of revenue for the Oil ...

From: E&E News “Jeff Ruch, executive director of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, declared today that the FWS refuge reinforcements could compound risks for wildlife if hunting access increases even as Endangered Species Act consultations on incidental take of ...

From: WFAE 90.7 “Just days after announcing that some furloughed staff will be returning to clean up trash-riddled national parks during the government shutdown, the Trump administration is making a similar move at dozens of wildlife refuges around the country. The plans, which have not ...

From: Miami Herald “DeSantis also ordered environmental enforcement moved from the state’s wildlife agency to the DEP. Under Scott, enforcement plummeted to its lowest in three decades last year, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. Even before he was ...

From: The Hill “Jeff Ruch, president of the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, said the FWS announcement appears to violate the terms of its own shutdown contingency plan. The 2019 plan notes that the Anti-Deficiency Act stipulates emergency funds can be provided for ...

From: KTUU “Acting Department of Fish and Game Commissioner Doug Vincent-Lang in a 41-page memo says federal officials should stop ignoring state comments on managing wildlife on federal lands. He says the state had repeatedly sought resolutions without success on topics such endangered ...