Rouge Project Comments: Reply from the Army Corps of Engineers

I've discovered "The Agency Tone" of written voice. Very polite! Possibly because I submitted comments over a month ago (several agencies dealing with the National Environmental Protection Act [NEPA] are obligated to give response within the month of communications from the public).  Having spoken to EPA employees, the EPA has legal obligation to respond to any citizen communications--probably within a month timeframe too.  

The Army Corps of Engineers  (ACE--what a fine acronym to have!) was supposed to respond with 30 days (I'm no longer sure, but I suspect it's a direct stipulation from NEPA), but I had to prod them earlier in December to see if there'd be any follow-up.

This is about as exciting as I'd imagine getting a personal letter from an elected official. For those who can't really see what's here--it's a personal letter from the DOD's Army Corps of Engineers in response to my questions--stamped and signed too! 

In reply to my procedural and project comments to the Army Corps of Engineers from November, Detroit district sent a personal letter with detailed replies to both comment sets I submitted.

One of my primary concerns involved the poor degree of outreach--had it not been for friends who major in environmental studies/science and work with the Friends of the Rouge, I might not have known about the proposal at all!

It turns out (as you'll see in their reply letter) the Army Corps of Engineers did what they could and needed to inform local governments and organizations. From what I read, the ACE's response to one of my questions (about watershed outreach plans) means that promotion/marketing/pr is more of an issue than having the right community stakeholders and closer coordination between federal and local government.

I suspect poor infrastructure for communication and outreach is an endemic issue for our beloved but under-budgeted/staffed local governments and not-for-profit organizations alike.

Also, I learned county government plays a more significant role in the project than previously thought.

I believe PR organizations/institutions and colleges (with education and marketing programs or willing interns from any discipline) can better help coordinate and promote the outreach in the future.

Page 1 (click the image[s] to read)
I'll let you decide what happened with
the date that they entered--by the looks of things
I submitted my comments in the future!
Also, I couldn't resist blacking out my address
on a government document,
it now looks even more official than the original.

Page 2

Page 3

Page 4  Hand signed with a real person's signature!

A random remark: this post has a lot of meta text--I wrote (and you read) about photos of writing--how odd!


And my follow-up e-mail (from Dec. 8th):
To whom it may concern,

I submitted a procedural recommendation on Monday Nov. 7th and (according to my e-mail) comments on Nov. 8th at 12:00 AM and would like to know about the status of the project. I did not receive any message of acknowledgement or reply within the 30 day timeframe and therefore am writing to request for follow up.

I hope the procedural recommendation merits a reply since it was submitted within the comment deadline.

Thank you...

November Events with the Dearborn Sustainability Coalition

On behalf of the Dearborn Sustainability Coalition and Student Environmental Association (SEA) at UM-Dearborn, thank you to all who presented or participated in the round table on earth, ethics, and religion!

Ian Tran and Sarai Richter greeting attendees of the Earth Ethics and Religion round table for sustainability.  Photo credit to Michelle Martinez.

Your attendance, insight, and the formative consensus that emerges from these events is an affirmation of our ability to make a difference in the world as engaged citizens.  The diversity of your perspectives and insight adds to the resilience of the greater Southeast Michigan community, and makes it a better place for all.  Approximately 40 people attended this round table, and we look forward to seeing all of you again.

Upcoming November events:

Nov. 15th,  4-5:30pm - Protecting our Health, Protecting the Clean Air Act at UM-Dearborn EIC

Nov 17th,  3:30-5pm -  Beans or Bypass Surgery?  A scientific discussion about food and well-being at HFCC
Nov. 17th,  7-9pm - Privatization of Public Services Roundtable - LWVDDH, Christ Episcopal Church

Nov. 22nd, 4:30-5:45 - Alberta Tar Sands and Keystone Pipeline Overview and Actions - UM-Dearborn

Below you'll find a brief recap of our October "Earth, Ethics, and Religion" round table, and more details of upcoming November events.

Closing notes from the EPA EJ Conference

More details later [this post will be expanded], brief recap from the EPA Environmental Justice conference's recap as of 27 August 2011:

The EPA conference has adjourned with discussion about the efficacy/inefficacy of human and civil rights legal entities--US, how its applicability is unclear for tribal nations, and recommendations to pursue international human rights jurisdiction as an alternative route since current US environmental health protections are insufficient.

The EPA is currently backlogged with 40 complaints

Title VI (on human/civil rights) has been deemed an outstanding potential resource, but is currently ineffective due to lack of enforcement/ enforcement capacity and conflicting systems between the US EPA and US Department of Justice.

Title VII (on civil rights to employment*) has also been deemed a potentially powerful tool--when afflicted communities contribute to becoming the leadership of major companies and organizations, it follows that closer consideration for human rights and sensitivity to environmental quality will be given (stated by Rhode Island environmental lawyer Stephen Fishbach).

Proof of direct causation for harm is a common legal misconception for those suffering health issues from environmental problems (response from the US Gulf of Mexico Enbridge/BP spill fund continue to use direct causation as a way to deny current claims.

Recap on the conference, and next step/future recommendations were also shared--neat idea from Brazillian delegate: Inform consumers about the products they use with an Environmental Justice label.

Potential locations for the next EPA EJ conference? Coal belt Appalachia, First Nations Territory(/ies), First Nation Territory in coal belt Appalachia, North Carolina. Satellite/web/television broadcasting

As an aside, pictures from Thursday's Science Cafe are coming soon too, thank you to everyone who supported the event in their presence or their works unseen!

*I'll have to look at my notes again from the rush transcript of the panel session for more details when I have freer time.

EPA et al. Public Meeting on Asian Carp this Wednesday

You can earn credit for ESCI 395 by attending:


Public meeting on Asian carp control efforts Feb. 17 in Ypsilanti, Mich.

Release date: 02/08/2010

Contact Information: (EPA) Phillippa Cannon, 312-353-6218, cannon.phillippa@epa.gov (EPA) Mick Hans, 312-353-5050, hans.mick@epa.gov (IJC) Frank Bevacqua, 202-412-1017, bevacquaf@washington.ijc.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
No. 10-OPA011

CHICAGO (Feb. 8, 2010) - The International Joint Commission, in cooperation with the participating agencies listed below, is hosting a public meeting in Ypsilanti, Mich., on Feb. 17 to discuss plans and get recommendations on Asian carp control efforts. This will be the second public meeting in the Great Lakes region.

Who: Senior representatives from

* International Joint Commission;
* U.S. Environmental Protection Agency;
* U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service;
* U.S. Army Corps of Engineers;
* U.S. Coast Guard;
* Great Lakes states, provinces, municipalities and tribes (invited);
* White House Council on Environmental Quality; and
* Scientific experts


When: 3:00 - 6:00 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 17

Where: Marriott Ann Arbor Ypsilanti at Eagle Crest
1275 S. Huron
Ypsilanti, MI 48197

The meeting also will be available via live web stream at: http://epa.gov/greatlakes/live
Those who cannot attend the meeting in person can submit questions on the Web site.

When available, the framework and a transcript of the meeting will be posted on http://www.asiancarp.org/regionalcoordination
Comments on the framework may also be submitted online at the above Web site.
# # #