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Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Environment - Still more on: Gary Post-Tribune examines IDEM calls to BP

In this ILB entry from June 18, Gitte Laasby of the Gary Post-Tribune reported:

The Indiana Department of Environmental Management has released more itemized phone records for its managers. But the agency still refuses to reveal whom its top air quality boss called for five days around a public hearing on BP Whiting's air permit in Hammond on March 14.

The Post-Tribune requested itemized phone records for IDEM's Assistant Commissioner of the Office of Air Quality, Dan Murray, from Feb. 1 through March 20. IDEM previously claimed not to possess itemized cell phone records for Murray for the month around the hearing although IDEM did have records up to Feb. 21. * * *

The newly released records cover Feb. 21 through March 12 and March 19 through 20 -- nearly the full month for which IDEM previously said it did not have records. But the agency has still not released records for March 13 through March 18 -- the day before the hearing through two work days after. Some of the released records appear to have been redacted. * * *

Environmentalists have speculated that the extensive correspondence between IDEM and BP shows the two collaborated to stack the hearing with supporters of the permit.

Today Laasby reports that:
After a three-month tug-of-war, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management finally released itemized phone records Monday for its top air quality manager for a period covering a hearing on an air permit for BP Whiting.

The agency said it did not release the information earlier due to a copying error. * * *

IDEM Assistant Commissioner of the Office of Legal Counsel and Enforcement, Robert Keene, provided the missing page Monday in a letter to the Post-Tribune and Indiana Public Access Counselor Heather Neal. He apologized, saying IDEM did not withhold it on purpose.

"With respect to Mr. Murray's cell phone records, IDEM staff made a copying error when preparing the newly discovered records for transmittal," Keene said. "However, with the exception of that clerical error which has now been corrected, IDEM has not denied access to records that it possessed or that it knew to exist." * * *

Neal issued her opinion on the complaint Tuesday. She said IDEM had a duty to produce the phone records once it knew they existed because they are public information. But she concluded IDEM did not violate the Indiana Access to Public Records Act.

"It is my opinion that if the omission was inadvertent, IDEM did not violate the APRA so long as the mistake was corrected once the omission was discovered," Neal wrote. "I understand IDEM has now sent you the missing page."

Tuesday's PAC opinion is not yet available on the Public Access Counselor's website. At some point it should appear there at the end of this list.

Meanwhile, the ILB has sent an e-mail to the PAC asking to post a copy of Tuesday's opinion -- access it here.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on June 25, 2008 09:19 AM
Posted to Environment