Legislative Connections
Republican control of the Legislature increases Gov. Thompson's personal
political power in Wisconsin. He would likely be grateful to donors
who helped his allies.
Between 1990 and 1997, the pulp and paper industry donated $107,210
to Republicans running for the state legislature, and $18,650 to Democrats.7
The paper industry favors Republicans over Democrats five to one, and this
difference in support tended to aid Republicans in their bid to maintain
majority control over both the Senate and Assembly in the Wisconsin Legislature.
Though some Republicans have good environmental records, the sum of
Republican votes appear to favor the paper industry. In a party line
vote in 1995, Republican legislators voted by a slim majority over Democrats
to give Thompson control over the DNR and to eliminate the public
intervenor.
Paper
Company Economics
With over $1 billion in potential clean-up costs at stake, Gov. Thompson and the polluting industries have argued that a too-aggressive cleanup could endanger economic health and jobs in the Fox River Valley by forcing the paper mills into bankruptcy. However, several factors need to be considered:
Wisconsin Tissue --- According to Standard & Poor's,
Chesapeake Corp. (parent of Wisconsin Tissue) has assets of $1.29
billion, and 1996 revenues of $1.15 billion. (Owned by a Virginia
corporation.)
NCR Corporation --- NCR's online Homepage shows their
total revenue for 1997 was $6.6 billion. (Owned by an Ohio
corporation.) NCR was purchased by AT&T in 1991. In February
1996, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service notified NCR that NCR would be
considered a 'Potentially Responsible Party' liable for Fox River cleanup.
On December 31, 1996, AT&T divested itself of all stock in NCR; therefore,
AT&T's liability for Fox River cleanup is unclear at this time.
P.H. Glatfelter Co. --- $60 million in net income in
1996. (Owned by a Pennsylvania corporation.)
Appleton Paper --- The 1998 Wards Business Directory, reports Appleton Papers had $1.2 billion in sales at its Appleton plant. (Owned by a large British and French holding company, Arjo Wiggens Teape Ltd.)
U.S. Paper Mills --- $58 million in sales at its Green Bay and Menasha mills. (Privately owned.)
Riverside Paper --- $115 million in sales at its Appleton
mill. (Privately owned.)
Industry Dominates Committees
When the Remedial Action Plan (RAP) process started in 1986, the goal
was to examine and pursue all implementation options which could achieve
cleanup, including enforcement actions. The RAP committees included
a wide range of interests and attempted to provide a balanced public forum
for discussion. Several public hearings and public comment sessions
were held.
Within a few years of Thompson's election, during the implementation
phase, the Remedial Action Plan process gradually shifted to include only
"voluntary, cooperative approaches." Participants were criticized
for "assigning blame" or "pointing fingers" if they called for the polluters
to pay for river cleanup or studies.
After five years of participation, in 1991, the only active Fox River
environmentalist involved (Rebecca Katers) was removed by the DNR from
the RAP policy committees. This left the RAP committees dominated by paper
industry, local business, local government and academics. In early
1992, the RAP committees wrote position papers supporting only voluntary
cleanup efforts and significant taxpayer funding of the cleanup, something
Katers would have aggressively opposed.
When the RAP failed to produce results, and the EPA began to pressure
the state to take action, DNR staff hired specialists to initiate a state
NRDA and spent three years, from 1989 to 1992 preparing for legal action.
DNR staff memos show that Gov. Thompson was consulted for approval
of the NRDA and other legal efforts. At the same time, DNR staff
met with Wisconsin Paper Council and other industry lobbyists. The
NRDA action was stopped cold in the winter of 1991-92. Instead, Thompson's
DNR created another "voluntary approach" in 1992, called the Fox River
Coalition (FRC), also dominated by the paper industry and which failed
to take action for another 6 years. Much of the FRC effort focussed
on lobbying for public taxpayer funding of the cleanup --- local, state
or federal.
The Remedial Action Plan committees continued to meet but most of their
energies were diverted to working on non-point pollution and children's
education efforts which were non-threatening to industry.
Systematic DNR and RAP education efforts during this period misled
the public, giving the impression that all point sources (such as paper
mills) are adequately controlled and the only important issue left to address
is non-point runoff from farmers' fields and urban areas.
During this period, Thompson's DNR was cordial to paper industry representatives
and openly hostile to local citizen observers at Fox River Coalition meetings.
The Coalition lacked even one environmentalist member. In 1994, shortly
after Public Intervenor Thomas Dawson questioned DNR staff about the political
imbalance of the Fox River Coalition, the DNR attempted to legitimize the
process by adding environmentalists. But the Coalition's pro-industry
stance was already set (and the FRC had promised a complete clean-up plan
in only two months); therefore, environmentalists refused to join.
Public Intervenor Eliminated
In 1994, Thomas Dawson, an attorney with the Wisconsin Public Intervenor
Office, began indepth research of the Fox River cleanup problem.
He began an "investigation file" and wrote memos to summarize his findings.
He also wrote several letters to agencies and political leaders in support
of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's NRDA, and asked difficult questions
about Fox River Coalition activities.
In April 1994, a law firm which frequently represents Fort Howard Corporation,
Michael Best & Friedrich, sent the Intervenor Office an open records
request for all Dawson's contact logs, correspondence and other information
regarding the NRDA.
In the spring of 1995, the Governor and Republicans in the state legislature
eliminated the Intervenor Office which prevented Dawson from further work
on the Fox River (or other issues). Citizens no longer had an unbiased
source of expert legal advice. Most law firms in Wisconsin have conflicts
of interest, because they do business with the paper industry.
DNR Report Sections:
Twelve
Years of Delay - A Fox River Clean-up Timeline
Deals,
Consultants, Paper Industry Allies, and Tourism
The
Health Risks of PCBs and Landfilling Contaminated Sludge
The
Fed's Step In
Conclusions
and Recommendations
The
Paper Money Trail - Political Campaign Contributions to the Governor
DNR
Report Study Methods
References
