Kevin Bogardus, E&E reporter
U.S. EPA’s internal watchdog has cleared the agency of harboring any bias when conducting its controversial assessment of potential large-scale mining in Alaska’s Bristol Bay watershed.
The report, approved by EPA Inspector General Arthur Elkins and released today, said the agency went by the book, following the appropriate policies and procedures when crafting the assessment.
In addition, the report said EPA met the requirements for peer review, involved the public in the process, and reviewed and verified information in the assessment before finalizing it.
“Based on available information, we found no evidence of bias in how the EPA conducted its assessment of the Bristol Bay watershed, or that the EPA predetermined the assessment outcome,” said the IG.
CREDIT: EENews.net