BLM whistleblower says he was fired over polluted Nevada mine

The Bureau of Land Management's former project manager for a contaminated mine site in Nevada says he was fired because he refused to stop speaking out about dangers posed there by radioactive and other toxic wastes.Earle Dixon of Carson City has filed a federal whistleblower complaint seeking more than one million-dollars in damages in a the dispute related to the polluted mine on the edge of Yerington.

Dixon claims BLM state Director Bob Abbey fired him last month in retaliation for his aggressive research and public comment on the health and safety risks to workers and the community near the former Anaconda copper mine.

A copy of the administrative complaint obtained by The Associated Press says Dixon refused to go along with repeated attempts by BLM management and the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection to downplay the issue.

BLM spokeswoman Jo Simpson says the agency was not surprised the complaint had been filed but had no direct response to the charges. She says they welcome the investigation.

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http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6460828/

Off to Guantanamo with Earle Dixon!

been "out with the boys" lately. :hi:

Perhaps "miniscule" is a more appropriate adjective.

was something about Bush's mysterious relationship with some politician from the South, but I've forgotten the particulars.

"Dixon claims BLM state Director Bob Abbey fired him last month in retaliation for his aggressive research and public comment on the health and safety risks to workers and the community near the former Anaconda copper mine."


"AGGRESSIVE RESEARCH?" "PUBLIC COMMENT?"


Fire the bastard. We really wouldn't want anyone in BLM engaging in such disgusting occupations...

And these mining companies rape it while paying virtually nothing back to the U.S. government or the local communities.

It is a travesty . . . but it has been going on for so long, it will likely never get changed.

More power to Earle Dixon. I hope he wins his lawsuit and I hope the light he shines on this will bring even more scrutiny to the situations on BLM lands.

all the other champions of truth.

When the fascists are kicked out we should carve their names into monuments after we remove the word Bush from any Public Bldg.

Fish & Wildlife Service Fires Panther Whistleblower
Agency Does Not Dispute Orders to Suppress Scientific Findings
By: Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER)
Published: Nov 9, 2004


The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service has decided to terminate the biologist who publicly challenged its reliance on flawed studies about the habitat and population of the endangered Florida panther, according to Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). The agency’s action comes ten weeks after a federal court found the agency guilty of scientific fraud on the same grounds raised by the now-former employee.

Andrew Eller, Jr., an 18-year FWS biologist, had spent the past ten years working in the Florida panther recovery program. This spring, he filed formal charges that studies relied upon by the Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) to make decisions about proposed development in Southwest Florida inflate panther population and inaccurately minimize habitat needs. One week after that filing, the agency proposed his termination. On Friday, November 5th, FWS finalized its termination of Eller.

“This case is about whether scientific dissent will be tolerated under the Bush Administration,” stated PEER General Counsel Richard Condit who will be leading Eller’s legal challenge of his firing. “A federal court found the agency knowingly used junk science to okay projects, but the official committing the fraud gets a commendation while the one who exposed it is fired.”

Contending that its actions were motivated solely by the timeliness of Eller’s work, FWS officials did not reply to Eller’s affidavit citing evidence of retaliation, including --

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http://www.yubanet.com/artman/publish/article_15103.shtml