Here's how those alleged "tough environmental laws" don't work

[SHRED]

I work for a City here in California.
My job is with the Storm Water Division.
My job is keeping the rain runoff flowing from the street drop inlets, the pipes, and all the way through the channels and natural creeks towards the ocean to prevent flooding.

We have classes on BMP "Best Management Practices" in accordance with NPDES "National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System" http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/.
It is stressed that there is to be "nothing but rain down the drain".
We use many safety precautions (BMP's) when working on or near these drainage/creek areas.

Here is what I just awoke to and I am sure that it is happening all over this country in most cities.

We have a "business park" like a lot of cities do and also areas of town where businesses are scattered. These businesses are required to maintain their properties in accordance with NPDES standards among other safety and environmental regulations.

The city periodically inspects these businesses for compliance via the fire departments safety services (building inspections, fire prevention, etc..) and our code compliance division for environmental compliance (runoff, trash, air pollution, etc...).

The Sick Game

The city finds areas that need to be corrected, including some gross violations, and gives the businesses a notice to change and come into compliance. The businesses then cry like little babies to the City Council, City Manager's Office, and I am sure the Chamber of Commerce, threatening to leave and do business elsewhere (more than likely a bluff...but who cares?).
The City Manager then, feeling the political pressure, makes the calls down to the Division inspectors, who are just doing their jobs, and gets them to "back off".

I am sure this is going on all over this country.
We may have "tough environmental laws" but who the hell is enforcing anything when this is going on?

You might ask, "well why don't you call a State or Federal Agency?"
Well, when fines are levied they are levied against the City and NOT the businesses. The taxpayers of the community foot the bill with no assurance that the city would try and recoup the fine from the guilty business. Remember, they do not want to offend business. They are afraid they will leave and take their tax revenue with them. Much easier to let the taxpayers absorb the cost. And, living in a very rightwing part of the State the local corporate media does not make big deals out of this kind of story so very few would know or even care. Our own Mayor is a developer, who years ago bulldozed some wetland habitat on some investment property he owned. He is still Mayor to this day with hardly a whimper.

This is what is happening folks.
Instead of the city government doing it's job and working for the citizens who pay their property tax here, it is now my understanding that they work for the corporations and larger businesses here. Even though that is ass-backwards and even though the tax payers of this community far out spend into the City coffers than these corporate/business scam artists. They even favor the larger corporations over the little shops. My friend owns and auto repair shop and they are all over him. The big boys they don't touch.

So the next time someone bitches about "tough environmental laws"...I gotta laugh to keep from crying.

[blueworld]

1. You are SOOOO right! Bravo, and my sympathies

When I was a reporter for a local/regional paper, I was covering a story about a heating oil distributor with illegal underground tanks that were leaking into area wells. Three people in the area had lymphoma. The business was illegal in the commercial zone, so the town council tried to amend the bloody zoning law because they were "a long-time business asset to the community". Insane. So one family filed suit against the town.

I called the NJDEP to educate myself about these leaking tanks, groundwater, parking lot runoff, spills etc. The guy called me a tree hugger & said my house could catch fire from solar panels on the roof. He said the state didn't have the money to enforce their own laws. He referred me back to the local government.

The Town Council lost their case in court after spending scads of taxpayer money. The business is still there, and there are 3 others with underground tank leaks. Thanks for trying to do your job & not going insane. :crazy:

[glowing]

2. I was watching a movie last night... It was Shooter... there was a

great line from the Senator on top of the mountain in one of the final scenes that really rings true accross this Amerika... and this is not verbatim because I can't remember the whole quote... but the character said "you don't get it, its not about the shia or sunni or this or that (he named a few other attrocities) its about the haves and the have nots... and let me tell you the have's always win".

Great movie, by the way.

[QueenOfCalifornia]

3. Another thing to piss me off...

So, the criminal law breakers are crying. My sentiments are: Boo fucking hoo. In that city, where you work, I'll just bet that if you are caught lighting up a fat one, you go directly to jail. That's because we have been fighting something called THE WAR ON DRUGS! and we all know how well that is going. What the dumb-ass city council is saying is: "We are going to allow you to strong-arm us and use illegal extortion to keep on keeping on here in our little town - The ass holes who are wrecking the environment are thumbing their greasy noses at the same city council and saying "You can kiss my hairy ass 'cause I am going to do what the hell I like and I like turning our oceans into sewage pits."

The official party line is one thing - in this case it's "We care about your beaches 'cause that's one of the reasons you live here..." but the truth is the opposite. It's the Bizarro World of Superman once again. Where have I seen this happen before?



Bizarro Superman

[hunter]

4. There you go. It's not about the environment, it's not about the people.

It's all about money and power.

:kick:

[Dogmudgeon]

5. It's like that in Pennsylvania, too

I've had friends and a one-time teacher in local gov. They all tell approximately the same story.

I also lived in Chico and Los Angeles in the mid-1980s. They didn't seem to be all that different from their counterparts in the East.

--p!

[ramapo]

6. SOP

Just look at the what happened with the clean air violations that the Clinton admin was trying to enforce against the coal industry. The cases dragged on and on, long enough to allow the industry to help Bush get elected. Then presto, no more cases, no more enforcement.

Another black mark against EPA ex-Admin Whitman.

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. This is probably the most important story about local corruption, that

I've seen in this newsgroup, in a long time.

Be careful.