From Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)
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Contact: Chas Offutt (202) 265-7337

MINNESOTA PAYS SCIENTIST $325,000 TO RESIGN - Scotchgard Whistleblower
Agrees to Drop Free Speech Lawsuit

Washington, DC - The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency is paying one of its
own scientists $325,000 in return for her dropping free speech lawsuit and
whistleblower complaint against the agency and for resigning from the
agency, according to a legal settlement agreement released today by Public
Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

Scientist Fardin Oliaei was the coordinator for the MPCA program on emerging
contaminants. Her investigations into chemicals (known as perfluorochemical
compounds or PFCs, which do not break down in the environment and
bio-accumulate in living tissue) used in the manufacture of nationally
distributed products, such as Scotchgard, Teflon, Stainmaster and Gore-Tex
caused controversy because the chemicals were manufactured by 3M, the
largest employer in the state. Dr. Oliaei found -

Through 2002, 3M dumped as much as 50,000 pounds of the chemical per year
into the Mississippi River from its Cottage Grove wastewater treatment
plant;

Alarmingly high levels of PFCs in Minnesota fish in the Mississippi River
near that disposal site; and

Half of the fish examined from what are considered pristine waters of
Voyageurs National Park were contaminated with PFCs.

"It had become clear to me that I was no longer going to be able to conduct
scientific research in this agency," stated Dr. Oliaei, who, under the
agreement, is free to accept other state employment. "I am a scientist and I
want to go someplace where I can complete this important work."

Early last year when Dr. Oliaei's work first became public, MPCA
Commissioner Sheryl Corrigan, a former 3M executive, told Dr. Oliaei, who
had worked at MPCA since 1989, there was no room in the agency for
"scientific work." Other MPCA managers also threatened to eliminate her
program and reprimanded her for speaking to the media about her research. On
August 18, 2005, Dr. Oliaei filed federal civil rights suit, including
violation of her First Amendment free speech rights, against the MPCA,
Commissioner Corrigan and other top officials.

"This settlement, which allows Dr. Oliaei to leave the Agency at this time
with a measure of financial security, is in her best interest," stated
Rockford Chrastil of the Minneapolis firm of Chrastil and Steinberg who
negotiated the agreement with the Office of the Attorney General which
represented MPCA in the case. "After several years of battling with the MPCA
to receive support for her research and the opportunity to fully investigate
the potential risks of PFCs to the public, it became clear that it would be
very difficult for Dr. Oliaei to pursue her work as a research scientist
with the MPCA."

Classified as a toxic, PFCs have caused birth defects and deaths in animal
studies. While not yet categorized as a human carcinogen, the chemical has
been associated with increased risks of liver and bladder cancers. Once
consumed by humans its "elimination half-life" is slow, an estimated 8.67
years.

In a November 9, 2005 letter to PEER, the Minnesota Department of Health
indicated that it would not issue an advisory about fish caught near the 3M
site because the sample were from fish livers, not the fillets or flesh that
people eat. The Department of Health stated that "It is our understanding
that the MPCA plans to collect Mississippi River fish and analyze fillets
from these fish for PFC" but it is not clear whether this work will be done
in the absence of Dr. Oliaei.

"It is a sad commentary on the state of affairs in Minnesota when the state
government will shell out big money just to keep its scientists from doing
research," commented PEER General Counsel Richard Condit, whose organization
is also working with Dr. Oliaei to find other venues to continue her PFC
investigations. "The investigation into the extent of the contamination and
its public health implications for Minnesotans and others downstream will
continue, with or without the state's cooperation."

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