EPA CLOSING ITS LIBRARIES

The Union of Concerned Scientists is pressuring the Environmental Protection Agency to stop the current trend of either destroying or with holding its 'science' data from Citizens or other scientific operations. The EPA is not complying.

"EPA Press ReleaseUCS is asking activists to call Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Stephen Johnson and urge him to halt the dismantling of the library system. Several libraries have already been closed, with their contents either destroyed or shipped to repositories where they are uncataloged and inaccessible.

Pressure from UCS staff and activists, as well as other organizations, has driven media coverage of the problem. The EPA has responded with a press release and press conference, both of which failed to address many of the central problems with the EPA's decision to close its libraries. There are even factual errors in the press release; the American Library Association has not provided guidance or criteria to the EPA and continues to raise significant concerns about the EPA's actions.

The EPA tells us that some UCS activists' phone and email messages to specific EPA public affairs staff have been brought to EPA senior management. As a result, EPA has asked to meet with UCS over the next few days. Calls are still needed, however, to let the EPA know that citizens and scientists are still concerned about this problem and are watching the EPA's actions. Also, if you are a researcher whose work has been or would be impacted by library closure and/or delayed access to documents, we would like to share your story with the EPA; please confidentially email UCS Analyst Tim Donaghy or call him at (202) 331-6944."

http://www.ucsusa.org/scientific_integrity/restoring/scientific-integrity-update-01-2007.html