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Saturday, January 03, 2009

Environment - "Protect our environment, even in not-so-good times"

That is the headline of this editorial today in the Indianapolis Star. Some quotes:

One of the unfortunate victims of the national recession may be Indiana's environment. * * *

Today's leaders must understand they're guiding a state that has a long history of neglecting its natural resources. That fact makes not only environmental activists but also many other Hoosiers wary when programs are cut and policies altered.

The budget is undeniably tight. Tough decisions must be made. But the environment should be placed on the same plane as economic development and education when deciding what to protect.

This story from today's Evansville Courier & Press disucces how their area will operate now that:
The state canceled its contracts with the Evansville Environmental Protection Agency and other local air pollution control agencies for this year — leaving the agency without a 40 percent chunk of its annual funding.
This editorial today from the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette includes these quotes:
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management wants to use the economy as a pretext for reneging on recycling grants it promised to several communities and environmental agencies. Hard economic times certainly force people to set priorities, but this decision suggests that protecting the environment is not among Gov. Mitch Daniels’ priorities.

The agency announced this week it was suspending at least six state grants that help pay for recycling and pollution prevention programs for the next 18 to 30 months. Agency officials claim delaying the promised grants will save about $2 million and is a needed cost-saving measure.

The problem is these grants were already awarded, and the agencies that were supposed to receive the state dollars are depending on the money to run their programs. The decision means that about $3 million that was previously approved for recycling or pollution prevention programs by the state will not get to the intended groups. * * *

The need to re-examine state spending in light of the recession is wise. But the decision to delay recycling grant dollars could harm important programs – and is just the latest IDEM decision on a growing list that clearly demonstrates Daniels’ lack of support for environmental protection.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on January 3, 2009 08:12 AM
Posted to Environment