Time To Work Together To Fix Cda River Basin’S Problems

Sat., Aug. 5, 2000

Dick Panabaker Special To Handle Extra

When Gov. Phil Batt formed the Coeur d’Alene Basin Commission and I was chosen to be chairman, I asked the Environmental Protection Agency if we really had an opportunity to influence the formation of a plan for the basin. I was assured that our input would be taken seriously. Ha!

After more than two years, I do not believe they have listened to us at all, or even cared what we have to say. They have never shared all of the facts we needed to form our total maximum daily load; in fact, they were working on their own without our knowledge. I believe the EPA had its own agenda from the beginning and I still believe that.

Anyone who has lived here for the last 30 years would know that great progress has been made by the state, the mining companies and the people who live in this area. Yes, we need federal money (our money) to effect a cleanup in areas that we know need it. We could paper the walls with the studies that have been done. It’s time we quit paying attorneys to argue and to use the information we have to work together in a cost-effective manner to fix the problem areas we know to exist to make a Superfund out of the entire basin. It is nothing but job security for the EPA and control by the federal government.

It’s our money, it’s our county, and it’s our home, and we need a strong voice in how we handle the cleanup.

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