SOURCES: [1] Department of Homeland Security website. [2] NRDC letter,
Jul.
14, 2004, Defenders of Wildlife letter, Jul. 14, 2004.

Bush Plan Excludes Public From Environmental Review

A new directive proposed
by the Bush administration would grant broad environmental exemptions
to
numerous government agencies under the guise of national security. It
would
also exclude the American public from decisions that can have long-term
health and environmental consequences. Under directives for carrying
out the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), agencies such as the Coast
Guard,
Border Patrol, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and many
others
would be given "categorical exemptions" from following federal
environmental
regulations if they invoke reasons of national security. Such
exclusions
would enable agencies to conduct activities in secret that could have
serious implications for public safety - such as using or storing
hazardous
chemicals in close proximity to residential areas and schools without
letting citizens know about their risk of exposure. The directive would
also
allow the degradation of public resources-such as the building of new
roads
through national forests for use by the Border Patrol-with no input
from the
public whatsoever. While these agencies would still have to conduct
environmental reviews before taking action, those reviews would not be
subject to public scrutiny or public comment. [1] "This rule is just
one
example of how the Bush administration uses 9/11 and the threat of
terrorism
generally to instill fear and basically prevent the public from
learning
what it has a right to know," Brian Segee, associate counsel for
Defenders
of Wildlife, told BushGreenwatch. "There are legitimate reasons to keep
some
information secret," he said. "But these should be narrowly defined.
Does
the fact that Border Patrol is blazing a road through a national forest
need
to be kept secret? We don't think so." Segee submitted a nine-page
letter to
the Department of Homeland Security criticizing the proposed directive
on
behalf of Defenders of Wildlife, the Ocean Conservancy and the National
Audubon Society. The Natural Resources Defense Council also submitted
detailed comments, asking that certain exclusions-such as those related
to
the disposal of hazardous wastes-be deleted from the document. [2] The
period for submitting comments to the Department of Homeland Security
has
been extended until August 16.