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Tuesday, September 02, 2003 A novel interpretation The Bush administration has ended a 25-year-old ban on the sale of land polluted with PCBs. The ban was intended to prevent hundreds of polluted sites from being redeveloped in ways that spread the toxin or raise public health risks. The Environmental Protection Agency decided the ban was "an unnecessary barrier to redevelopment (and) may actually delay the clean-up of contaminated properties," according to an internal memo issued last month to advise agency staff of the change. The decision, already in effect, has not been made public. It is being treated as a "new interpretation" of existing law, according to the memo, which was obtained by USA TODAY. As such, no public comment was required. PCBs are an oily compound that Congress banned in 1978 becuase they were considered a probable cause of cancer. They accumulate in fish and animals that feed in contaminated areas and are passed on to people by eating the animals. The Bush administration has used their "new interpretations" a number of times in the past to get around laws or regulations they don't like. By not actually creating a new law, they don't have to solicit public comments or even notify Congress. They just reinterpret the law, send a memo through the agency and then they get their way. Sneaky, underhanded stuff. posted by chris at 2:46 PM   ------------------

    

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