Wisconsin citizens face
several major environmental impacts without the advice and assistance of
the Public Intervenors Office. Corporations and special interests
have the lawyers, experts, secretarial support, public relations staff
and budgets to launch promotional campaigns for their projects. Citizens
have few resources to protect themselves. Here are a few examples:
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Rio Algom Mine --- Just prior to the elimination of the Public Intervenors
in 1995, the Attorney General had appointed an extra half-time attorney
to serve as a short-term special Intervenor on this Rio
Algom mine permit due to the massive size of the project and the precedent
it would set for the rest of Wisconsin’s mineral deposits.
In addition, the Public Intervenor Office retained three scientists
who were world-class experts in sulfide rock mining and the potential for
toxic impacts on groundwater and surface waters such as the Wolf River.
Together, this team would have given Wisconsin citizens a valuable independent
evaluation of legal and technical arguments made by the DNR and the mining
company.
The Intervenor would have represented public rights at the DNR’s Master
Hearing on the issue --- a technical legal hearing conducted similar to
a courtroom trial. Now, this public service will not be provided,
but the mining company will be well represented.
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Fox River PCBs --- Just prior to the elimination of the Public Intervenors
Office, the Intervenors had begun investigations and were considering intervening
on behalf of public rights to enforce a cleanup of the PCB and mercury
contaminated sediments of the Fox River and Green Bay in Northeast Wisconsin.
Widespread contamination had closed commercial fisheries and resulted
in warnings against consumption of fish and ducks regionally. In
addition, swimmers are at risk, harbors and marinas face huge expenses
disposing of contaminated sediments they dredge, and communities are unable
to use the Fox River or lower Green Bay as drinking water supplies.
The DNR had known about the PCB contamination nearly 25 years at that point,
and negotiated with the PCB polluting paper companies for more than 9 years
without results.
In the year 2000 thousands of people are still threatened with poisoning,
but the DNR still lacks a cleanup plan, and citizens have no Intervenors
to draw on for advice and assistance. The six major paper companies
have hired multiple law firms, lobbyists, scientists and public relations
firms to campaign against the cleanup.
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Highway Expansions --- Just prior to the elimination of the Public
Intervenors Office, the Intervenors had won a major case against the Wisconsin
Dept. of Transportation (DOT) requiring that agency to comply with the
Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act which required Environmental Impact
Statements on its plans and major projects.
The DOT budget had more than doubled and the agency was launching
massive new highway expansion projects statewide, converting many state
highways from 2 to 4 lanes at enormous economic and environmental expense.
The Intervenors were needed to watchdog the DOT and at least moderate the
environmental damages caused by these projects, but public rights have
gone largely unrepresented. The Wisconsin roadbuilder’s lobby is
too powerful.
-
Perrier Groundwater Withdrawal --- This issue
would have been a natural priority for investigation and work by the Wisconsin
Public Intervenors Office, because of their special focus on public rights
in waters of Wisconsin. At issue is whether Wisconsin will regulate
high capacity groundwater pumping wells which can dry up neighbors’ wells,
or valuable streams, lakes and wetlands nearby.
Wisconsin’s laws are weak and we need a strong champion in Madison
fighting for common sense and public rights. Perrier and its parent
company Nestle have major financial resources to lobby for their private
business interests.
-
Powerline Right-of-Way --- This is another issue where ordinary
citizens, homeowners, businesses and farmers could have benefited from
advice and assistance of the Public Intervenors Office. The
proposed 250 mile long transmission line between Duluth and Wausau
will cut an 150 ft. wide swath through properties owned by thousands of
people and businesses. The line will also destroy thousands of acres
of sensitive wildlife habitat and human recreation areas. Two major
utility corporations and the state government are aggressively promoting
this line. Public rights are not adequately defended.
-
Factory Farms --- The rapid spread of factory
farms is clearly an issue which would have involved the Public Intervenors
Office as hundreds of Wisconsin citizens are suddenly facing the imposition
of huge industrial sites mascarading as “farms” right across the road from
them. An example proposal in Hilbert involves 3,000 dairy cows in
one place. Neighbors are impacted by frequent trucks hauling milk,
feed and manure, by powerful odors, dust and noise, by the potential contamination
of drinking water wells by excessive manure, etc.
These oversized corporate farms also threaten the economics of Wisconsin’s
traditional family farms. The Public Intervenors are needed to advise
citizens impacted by these proposals and to help develop rational state
rules to address the pattern of factory farm problems.
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the Public Intervenor -
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