Current DOE System Prevents Citizens from AccessingPertinent Information for Timely & Informed Comments
CERTIFIED MAIL/RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
June 15, 2011
DEPARTMENT OF ECOLOGY
ATTENTION:
Ted Sturdevant, Director
Post Office Box 47600
Olympia, WA 98504-7600
SUBJECT:
Simpson Timber Company
Olympic Panel Company
Dear Mr. Sturdevant:
On May 26, 2011, a public notice was published by the Simpson Timber Company in the Shelton-Mason County Journal. On June 2, 2011, a public notice was published by Olympic Panel Company. A copy of both notices are enclosed for your information. Both public notices were woefully inadequate in terms of informing the public, each containing at a minimum, the following deficiencies:
- The notices contained no information concerning the entity on whose behalf the notice was published. This resulted in many citizens, myself included, believing that the notice had been published by the Department of Ecology since we were instructed to make public comment to the Department of Ecology.
- The notices contained no permit number, or other identifying information, which would have assisted the citizen in requesting and obtaining underlying documents in a timely fashion.
- The notices lacked specificity in connection with what Ecology had previously required of Simpson and/or Solomon, which is something they have clearly not done, and therefore said notices did not give the citizen a clue as to what to comment on.
The comment period for the public notice published by Simpson Timber Company expires on July 2, 2011, (30 days from the second publication). The comment period for the public notice published by Olympic Panel Company expires on July 9, 2011 (again, 30 days from the second publication).
In an effort to obtain information concerning these notices, I left numerous messages for numerous employees of Ecology over a two week period. I finally got a call, on June 15, 2011, from the Industrial Stormwater Facilitator for Ecology, who knows as little on this date about what the underlying issues are as I do.
On June 14, 2011, I did receive from Ecology a link to what appear to be the underlying documents. I have not been able to open all of the documents yet, but it appears that they will exceed 1,000 pages when I print them.
Receiving 1,000 pages of documents with approximately two weeks to digest and comment intelligently and timely on them is entirely inadequate. In my opinion, the system as it exists is designed to prevent the citizen from accessing the pertinent information in a manner that allows intelligent and timely comment.
THEREFORE, I respectfully request that you, as the Director of Ecology, engage with citizens and industry to put in place a system which serves BOTH industry and the citizens. Such a system must include, at the least:
- Identification of the publishing party in the public notice.
- Permit numbers or other identifying information which would lead the citizen to the pertinent documents in the fastest way possible.
- A greater period of time within which to comment. Thirty days notice, when one spends the first two weeks trying to track down pertinent documents, and another week waiting for receipt of those documents, is insufficient.
Please acknowledge receipt of this letter and let me know if you would be willing to meet with a group of citizens from Shelton/Mason County who would like to see the system work as well for the citizen as it does for industry.
Very truly yours,
Katherine Austin Price
Shelton, WA
/kap
Enclosures
Katherine, I agree a hundred percent. Perhaps we need to start an online petition. And write our legislature on the sorry state of affairs at our "public" institutions. Evidently the only public involved is when we pay our taxes. It then becomes a business led organization to further the interests of industry. It is poor government indeed, when the public has to write multiple letters, call multiple authorities, and take valuale time to ask what the details are to be able to comment intelligently in a timely manner. Then to be told they don't know the answer, they can't find the answer, and they will look, but they can't get the answer to you before the comment period is up. This is unacceptable. What ever happened to government by the people, for the people, etc.? Was it all a dream?
ReplyDeleteOur government has been hijacked. If it ever was for the people, it is clearly not so now. But there are things we can do to try to restore the balance between the citizen and industry.
ReplyDeleteThe first step is to contact this man, Ted Sturdevant. He is the director; if any changes occur in Ecology's processes, those changes are going to start with him.
He needs to hear from citizens in written form, and he needs to receive many letters. I recommend sending them certified mail so you have a record that he received your letter. And we need him to receive many phone calls! I do not have a direct number for him, but the receptionist for Ecology can be reached at 360-407-6000.
I hope that as many air-breathers as possible will both CALL and WRITE.
We need to change this broken system that presently works very well for industry, but that works poorly for the citizens. I hope that you will both write and call and ask your friends and family to do the same.
Our little community has learned that the squeaky wheel gets oiled, and that public pressure is a force for change.
Thanks for your comments. If you start an online petition in regard to this, that would be good too! Let me know when and where so I can sign on.