|
PENNDOT Should Be Taken off I-99 Clean Up Project;
Corman Urges DEP Secretary to Take Over Effort
HARRISBURG -- Citing
the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation's (PENNDOT) repeated failure to
clean-up environmental hazards created during the construction of Interstate 99,
Senator Jake Corman (R-Centre) urged the Rendell Administration to put the state
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in charge of the project and end
PENNDOT's involvement.
"There's widespread concern,
frustration and anger that PENNDOT is incapable of handling this very serious
problem," Corman said today during Senate budget hearings held at the State
Capitol. "For almost three years, this clean-up fiasco has been like the movie
Groundhog Day. PENNDOT has us believe we are making progress and moving
forward, then we wake up and we haven taken two steps backward. In the
meantime, clean-up is delayed and this important road project is put on hold."
Corman criticized PENNDOT
Secretary Allen Biehler's remarks today in a press release that halted its plan
to move millions of tons of acid-bearing rock unearthed at the Skytop Mountain
site in Centre County to an abandoned mine in Indiana County. Secretary Biehler
said he has "directed a halt to any of those plans while we begin an immediate
evaluation of all options for disposal of this material."
"Secretary Biehler and
PENNDOT should have evaluated all of its options before choosing the Robindale
site," Corman said. "Why did PENNDOT cause a panic in Indiana County if all of
the other options hadn't been explored? How can the public trust that PENNDOT
knows what it is doing?"
"Not only is PENNDOT
unprepared to deal with the environmental hazards posed by this clean-up, but
the department has failed to communicate or work with the public, community
leaders and those affected by the hazards posed," Corman said. "This
miscommunication has resulted in a lack of trust and confidence in PENNDOT's
decision-making, and a feeling that the department is not putting environmental
and public safety interests first."
During today's hearing on
the Department of Environmental Protection's proposed budget, Corman urged
Governor Rendell and DEP Secretary Katie McGinty to take over the project and to
end PENNDOT's involvement in the attempted clean-up.
"It is my belief that
PENNDOT is and has been incapable of handling this situation and public trust is
waning quickly. They clearly don't' know what they are doing, and I think your
Agency needs to take charge," Corman said to McGinty. "This is not a highway or
transportation issue, this is an environmental issue. I urge you and I will
urge the Governor in writing to take on this project, because there is no faith
in PENNDOT."
Noting that construction
work on Interstate 99 has been held up for more than three years, Corman urged
the Rendell Administration not to "compound a major construction mistake with an
even more dangerous clean-up mistake."
"Enough is enough -- PENNDOT
doesn't have the expertise to deal with this situation, cannot find a solution
and has no idea what to do next," Corman said. "It's time to take this out of
their hands and give it to a department that can find an environmentally safe
way to clean up the acid rock and get this project back on track."
|
