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U.S.
Senator Member: Agriculture, Energy, Veterans' Affairs, Ethics and Aging Committees |
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For Immediate
Release May 16, 2006 |
CONTACT: Cody Wertz – Comm. Director 303-455-7600 Andrew Nannis – Press Secretary 202-224-5852 |
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a letter sent today, Senator Ken Salazar requested that the USDA’s Inspector General, Phyllis Fong, conduct an investigation to determine if political influence within the Department of Agriculture was improperly or illegally exerted in the permit review process of the U.S. Forest Service for the proposed Village at Wolf Creek. Senator Salazar also asked USDA Secretary Johanns to suspend further action on the application and review process until after the IG investigation is complete. Senator Salazar’s request for an investigation stems from the United States Forest Service’s (USFS) Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) which did not consider any of the environmental impacts of the development, itself, and focused only on the impacts of an existing right-of-way. It has been alleged that this limitation on the environmental review may have been the result of improper political pressure. In his letter to Inspector General Fong, Senator Salazar wrote, “No one, on either side of this controversial project, denies that the Village at Wolf Creek – should it go forward – will have a substantial impact on the people, communities and environment of southwestern Colorado. Because of the size and scope of the proposed project, it is incumbent upon government agencies and decision makers at all levels to conduct their reviews and base their findings and decisions on the best information and science available, in an open and fair process, free of political influence.” In his contemporaneous letter to USDA Secretary Johanns, Senator Salazar wrote, “I have requested an Inspector General investigation because the integrity of the review process has been called into question by individuals familiar with the facts, as outlined in the attached letter to Inspector General Fong. I believe that the USDA and USFS have an obligation to investigate those allegations thoroughly and completely, for the good of the Department of Agriculture, the Forest Service, the permit applicant and the public.” Copies of the letters requesting an investigation and suspension of review process of the Wolf Creek Development are available by clicking here.
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