WOC and EPA Question SF 147 Impacts on Wyoming

by Steff Kessler

One of the most controversial bills introduced in the 1999 session of the State Legislature was SF 147, "Brownfields — Corrective Action Requirements." Pushed by BP-Amoco, the bill was designed to relieve that company of its full responsibilities for cleaning up its polluted defunct refinery in downtown Casper. (For more information about brownfields programs and legislation, see the Winter 1999 issue of Frontline.)

SF 147 first surfaced at a Casper Chamber of Commerce luncheon, when area state legislators were asked to support the bill to help out the Amoco Reuse Joint Powers Board. The bill would allow contaminated properties to be zoned industrial or commercial, permit contaminants to be left in place in perpetuity and restrict the future use of the properties — forever. Around the WOC office, we reacted to this horrifying piece of legislation by dubbing SF 147 the "sacrifice zone creation act" and the "oncologist full employment act."

WOC filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and obtained in response a letter that EPA Region 8 Director Bill Yellowtail had written to Governor Geringer regarding the enormous problems with SF 147. In his four-page letter, Yellowtail outlined how the bill conflicted with several federal laws, including the hazardous waste law (RCRA), the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act.

In the strongest language we’ve ever seen come from EPA, Yellowtail indicated that SF 147 threatened the state’s ability to continue to administer these federal programs:

"My staff and I are very concerned about the effects of this bill on the State of Wyoming’s continued ability to implement key environmental programs, and have highlighted some of the more significant concerns in this letter. In order to retain primacy, state programs must be consistent with and equivalent to their counterpart Federal programs. This bill, as proposed, brings these requirements clearly into question."

Despite EPA’s warning, Governor Geringer allowed the bill to become law. In response, WOC filed objections with EPA during a public comment opportunity on a routine revision to the state’s hazardous waste program. Although there was nothing specific in the package of proposed revisions that the state submitted to EPA for approval in 1998, WOC believed that SF 147 had changed everything. We stated that, in light of the bill’s passage, the current revisions fail to provide complete and accurate information regarding Wyoming’s Hazardous Waste program, and that to approve program revisions now would mislead the public about the adequacy of the program.

Somewhat surprisingly, EPA agreed! The agency withdrew its routinely automatic approval of Wyoming’s revisions and reopened the public comment opportunity, stating that it will hold a public hearing if necessary.

WOC members can help us work with EPA to hold the state’s feet to the fire over problems with SF 147.
 

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