World Water Crisis (LIFE)

[funmaxus]

House committee moves to force EPA disclosure of water pollution documents
Also approved was a bill to name a federal building after three civil rights activists
By Patrick Tutwiler for GovTrack Insider

Jan. 29, 2010
The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted Wednesday to approve a raft of resolutions, including a formal re­quest that the EPA hand over all data in its possession re­gard­ing nutrient management in the Illinois River watershed areas of Oklahoma and Arkansas, and a resolution to rename a federal building in Mississippi after three civil rights era activists.

The Committee unanimously approved the watershed resolution, H. Res. 995,

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=hr111-995


and recommended it to the full House without comment. Rep. John Boozman (R-AR3) introduced the resolution in December of last year as part of a long running feud between the states of Arkansas and Oklahoma over acceptable levels of phosphorus in the Illinois River watershed.

Since the late 1980s, Arkansas has attempted to allow certain of its wastewater treatment plants to discharge more phosphorous into the watershed than is permitted by Oklahoma law and the Clean Water Act. Oklahoma, in response, sought to prevent Arkansas from doing so and the matter was taken all the way to the Supreme Court in 1992. The Supreme Court sided with Oklahoma and the two states eventually signed a memorandum of understanding about which treatment plants could discharge what.

Nonetheless, in 2008, Arkansas yet again attempted to permit a treatment facility, this time in Benton County, to discharge higher than permissible levels of phosphorous. Both the EPA and the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality protested the move and the EPA suggested that the proposed facility could be built as long as it operated under stricter phosphorous discharge regulations.

Benton County is in Boozman’s district and he requested the EPA documents, he says, in order to get a full and accurate understanding of the scientific rationale for the EPA’s position. The EPA was apparently less than forthcoming with the information earlier, but has since agreed to brief Boozman on the data at his convenience.

Committee Chairman James Oberstar (MN8) and ranking Republican member John Mica (FL7) were united in supporting Boozman’s request. And Mica even praised the effort as an example of bipartisanship that the rest of the Congress might learn from.

Source: http://www.govtrackinsider.com/articles/2010-01-29/water