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For Immediate Release: August 1, 2005
Contact: Chas Offutt (202) 265-7337

EPA SCIENTISTS CRITICAL OF LEADERSHIP — Agency Survey Shows Declining Trust and
Deteriorating Communication

Washington, DC — There is a growing disconnect between scientists and managers
within
the research arm of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, according to
internal
surveys released today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility
(PEER). Lack
of trust, communication and shared vision is beginning to threaten the nation's
largest
scientific organization dedicated to studying human health and the environment.

EPA's Office of Research and Development consists of three national
laboratories, four
national centers, and two offices located in 14 facilities around the country
employing
approximately 2,000 scientists. Internal surveys taken in 1999, 2001 and 2003
gauge
"organizational climate." The latest survey had a 66% response rate.

While overall morale remains high, survey results show increasing doubts about
the
"competence" and trustworthiness of ORD leadership. In the 2003 survey –

Scientists' trust in leadership declines markedly at each step higher up in the
chain-of-
command, with 38% of staff scientists reporting distrust of laboratory managers
versus
only 23% who expressed trust. The survey did not assess scientist attitudes
toward overall
EPA leadership;
Less than one in three respondents (30%) felt that lab managers "address
challenging
situations competently;" and
Barely half (56%) were optimistic about ORD's future.
In essays accompanying the survey, one scientist wrote "Despite email and the
like, there
is no real communication in the organization and no consistent mechanism to
share
knowledge." Another added, "A complete lack of communication exists leading to
the
strong distrust that is present today."

This past March, PEER filed suit under the Freedom of Information Act to obtain
the
surveys after EPA refused to release them. In July, EPA surrendered the surveys
and paid
PEER's attorneys fees and costs.

"These survey results are the early warning signs of a scientific organization
drifting
toward dysfunction," stated PEER Program Director Rebecca Roose, noting that
during the
Bush administration, EPA has been plagued by reports of political suppression of
scientific
results on issues ranging from global warming to asbestos to mercury regulation.
"Thus
far, ORD has chosen to mask problems by initiating an aggressive PR campaign."

The survey results also echo the findings from EPA's Science Advisory Board,
which warned
in a draft report this April that the agency is no longer funding a credible
public health
research program. For example, EPA is falling behind on emerging issues such as
intercontinental pollution transport and nanotechnology.

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Read the EPA Office of Research and Development 2003 Organizational Climate
Survey Preliminary Results Briefing
(Available upon request)

Look at selected essays from ORD scientists

See the recent draft paper on research shortfalls by EPA's Science Advisory
Board
(Available upon request)

PEER lawsuit to force disclosure of polls of agency scientists
For Immediate Release: March 31, 2005
Contact: Chas Offutt (202) 265-7337

EPA REFUSES TO RELEASE RESULTS OF SCIENTIST SURVEYS — Group Sues to Force
Disclosure of Polls of Agency Scientists

Washington, DC — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is illegally blocking
the
release of internal surveys of its own scientific staff, according to a federal
lawsuit filed
today by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).

PEER had requested copies of extensive employee surveys conducted in 1999, 2001
and
2003 within the EPA Office of Research and Development. ORD consists of a
network of
laboratories and research centers comprised of approximately 2000 scientists in
which
much of the agency's basic and applied science concerning pollution monitoring,
toxicological effects and other public health issues is conducted.

According to agency scientists, the surveys covered a range of topics concerning
how EPA
conducts its science, including questions on scientific integrity and quality,
the adequacy
of resources and the effects of management practices on employee morale. The
three sets
of surveys taken over six years would also allow comparison of scientist
perceptions
during both the Clinton and Bush Administrations.

The PEER suit, filed under the Freedom of Information Act, contends that EPA has
no legal
basis for withholding survey results. EPA is even refusing to disclose copies of
the
questions posed to agency scientists. The agency contends that the survey
materials are
predecisional and thus exempt from release.

"The agency claims that the surveys are part of EPA's `deliberative process'
without
offering any justification as to how or why," stated PEER General Counsel
Richard Condit,
who filed the suit in federal district court in Washington, D.C. "It is
difficult to imagine
what groundbreaking policies the agency might be contemplating based on
six-year-old
survey data."

During the Bush Administration, EPA has been plagued by reports of political
suppression
of scientific results on issues ranging from global warming and mercury
regulation to the
health effects of the toxic fallout from the September 11, 2001 attacks on the
World Trade
Center in New York City.

In February, the Union of Concerned Scientists and PEER released a survey the
two groups
conducted among scientists within the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. That survey
revealed
high reported levels of political intervention to change scientific conclusions
as well fear of
retaliation for expressing scientific concerns at variance with perceived agency
positions.

"These scientists work within an agency but they work for the public," commented
PEER
Program Director Rebecca Roose who filed the Freedom of Information Act requests
with
EPA. "The public has a right to know if public agency scientists are being
prevented from
doing their jobs by politics."

Next week, Senate confirmation hearings for Stephen Johnson are slated to begin.
President Bush nominated Johnson, a long-time agency official and currently the
Deputy
Administrator, to serve as EPA Administrator. If confirmed Johnson would be the
third EPA
Administrator in the Bush Administration, succeeding former Governors Christie
Whitman
and Mike Leavitt. Several senators have vowed to make political manipulation of
EPA
science an issue in Johnson's hearings.

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Learn about ORD's tax supported PR campaign