By Dave Lucas
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wamc/local-wamc-580048.mp3
Albany, NY – A government watchdog group has released a report accusing the state of administering an illegal water pollution permit that has left New York's waterways vulnerable to contamination.
Environmental Advocates of New York issued the 11-page report, "Muddying the Waters: The Unknown Consequences of New York's Failed Water Pollution Permit Program."
Starting in 1992 the DEC began to prioritize which permits it would and would not look at. The agency then made a decision to not review the permits and performance of facilities that were in the bottom 90 percent of those prioritized. The findings in the report are alarming: more than 11-hundred facilities around the state --- the largest and most significant pollution sources in New York--- have not undergone the required technical review of their pollution discharges for more than a decade, in clear violation of the federal Clean Water Act. In some cases, the water pollution permits have not been reviewed in close to two decades.
Capital District Bureau Chief Dave Lucas reports.