Confidential Interim Report on Chemical Plant Safety Stirs Little Reaction in Congress
Jul 8, 2002 by Guest Blogger
In 1999, President Clinton signed the Chemical Safety Information, Site Security and Fuels Regulatory Relief Act (P.L. 106-40), and also directed the Justice Department (DOJ) to conduct a study of site security at chemical plants. An interim report on the study was due August 5, 2000, and the final report was to be completed by August of 2002. DOJ missed the first deadline, offering a lack of funding as the excuse for not getting the interim report out on time.
read in fullBattle of the Bills
Jun 24, 2002 by Guest Blogger
The Senate is currently considering two chemical security bills that seem just about as diametrically opposed to each other as two bills could be.
read in fullEPA Likely to Require "Terror Checks" at Chemical Plants
Jun 10, 2002 by Guest Blogger
According to Associated Press reports last week, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) may finally begin to require chemical plants to assess their vulnerabilities to a terrorist attack, and then take measures to reduce those risks.
read in fullEPA Turns Over Documents on Information Removal, Yet Questions Remain
May 15, 2002 by Guest Blogger
Soon after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, EPA began combing its web site for any information that could potentially be used to stage another attack, according to internal agency documents and emails obtained by OMB Watch through a Freedom of Information Act request -- and almost immediately, information began coming down on a scale much larger than previously reported, as this inventory shows.
read in fullOMB Watch Freedom of Information Act Request to EPA
May 15, 2002 by Guest Blogger
On December 20, 2001, OMB Watch submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) -- as well as several other federal agencies -- for information removed from its web site post September 11th, and any guidance or criteria used for the removal. The following is a copy of the letter sent to EPA.
read in fullResults of OMB Watch FOIA Request on Information Withheld
May 14, 2002 by Guest Blogger
OMB Watch submitted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to a number of federal agencies asking for a list of any information removed from agency web sites in response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, and any criteria used in making decisions to remove such information. The following inventory is based on responses we have received thus far, giving particular attention to EPA; it will be updated as we receive more information from those agencies that have not yet responded. Previously, OMB Watch has maintained an inventory based on removals reported to us or written about in the press.
read in fullSecrecy at the EPA
May 13, 2002 by Guest Blogger
On May 6, 2002, President Bush granted Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Christine Todd Whitman the authority to classify information as "Secret." This order was published in the May 9, 2002, Federal Register. The delegation of this authority is provided in accordance with Executive Order 12958 of April 17, 1995, entitled ''Classified National Security Information.''
read in fullPublic Still At Risk of Chemical Plant Attack
Mar 18, 2002 by Guest Blogger
The Washington Post reported last week that a previously undisclosed study by the Army surgeon general concludes that as many as 2.4 million people are at risk of being killed or injured in a terrorist attack against a U.S. toxic chemical plant in a densely populated area. This shocking number is twice as high as previous government estimates of possible casualties of a worst-case scenario involving terrorist attacks on chemical plants.
read in fullEPA Announces Plans to Restrict Access to Envirofacts
Mar 18, 2002 by Guest Blogger
On March 14, 2002 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emailed an announcement to Envirofacts users explaining that it will no longer allow direct access to the Envirofacts databases. In the email to Direct Connect Users, EPA stated that, "As part of our continuing efforts to respond to Homeland Security issues . . . starting April 1, 2002, Direct Connect access will no longer be available to the general public. Direct Connect access to Envirofacts will only be available to U.S. EPA employees, U.S. EPA Contractors, the Military, Federal Government, and State Agency employees."
read in fullLetter From Congressman Doolittle
Mar 6, 2002 by Guest Blogger
Rep. John T. Doolittle (R-CA) mailed a letter asking for suggestions for steps that "a new president can enact immediately upon taking office to go on the offensive against the extreme environmentalists." According to the letter, Doolittle's goal is not only to fight environmental and protections, but to "force [those who support human health and environmental protections] to spend money and resources, weakening their influence."
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