DEP CHALLENGES

Managing an agency short on funds and long on pressure not to harm industry, Commissioner Dawn Gallagher had a difficult job at the Department of Environmental Protection. Her mishandling of water quality permits on the Androscoggin River and possible violations at major paper mills made the governor call into question her ability to safeguard the state’s environment.

That’s an untenable situation, as Gov. Baldacci rightly concluded in accepting Ms. Gallagher’s resignation Thursday. With her departure, the governor needs to ensure the department, which is pushed and pulled in many directions, returns to its core mission of protecting the state’s environment by ensuring laws are followed. This can only happen with a strong commissioner.

Under Ms. Gallagher, the DEP has moved the state forward in some important areas, notably with regard to energy. This week, Maine joined six other New England states in formalizing the country’s first regional greenhouse gas emission reduction pact.

But other recent events were troubling. One is the odd way water-quality permits on the Androscoggin River were developed. DEP officials met privately with two paper mills, NewPage Corp. in Rumford and International Paper in Jay, and apparently allowed them to initially draft the permits, which were part of an effort to bring the river up to federal clean water standards. An investigation by the Attorney General’s Office and the public outcry caused the department to stop the behind-the-scenes work and to re-start the process in the open.

“This does not reflect my administration’s priority to always work for Maine people in the most accessible, consistent and open way possible,” the governor said.

Also troubling is the possible quashing of an enforcement action against the IP mill in Jay, where Rep. Thomas Saviello, a member of the legislative committee that oversees DEP, is the environmental manager. The Lewiston Sun Journal reported Thursday that Rep. Saviello said Ms. Gallagher offered to drop penalties if he supported legislation on the Androscoggin. Ms. Gallagher disputed this.

In another instance, the department has known for more than a year that its hazardous waste bureau was running in the red. Rather than raise fees as staff suggested, the commissioner proposed to merge the hazardous waste unit with a pollution prevention program, a division that works with companies to educate and assist them in complying with state environmental laws. Eliminating enforcement jobs was part of the plan.

Documents obtained by the Natural Resources Council of Maine indicate the merger was favored by two lawmakers – Reps. Saviello, i-Wilton and Bob Daigle, R-Arundel – with histories of favoring collaboration with industry over detail-laden rules. Government agencies are frequently pressured by lobbyists and lawmakers. It is up to the department to decide which recommendations are worthy of further review and which are not.

The DEP’s role is to protect Maine’s environment through appropriate regulations, evenly enforced. Under new leadership, it needs to reinforce that mission.