When Republicans take over.

[yallerdawg]

ADEM handed over emergency diesel spill response to EPA after budget cuts

ADEM is Alabama's EPA.

Due to budgetary constraints, the Alabama Department of Environmental Management was forced to turn to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for emergency response to a leak at a petroleum products pipeline in Birmingham earlier this year, ADEM Director Lance LeFleur said Friday.

"Since the Department did not have sufficient funds to address the emergency, ADEM deferred the emergency response to EPA," LeFleur said in his regular director's report to the Alabama Environmental Management Commission. "The responsible party was subsequently determined, and is now dealing directly with EPA rather than ADEM."

In fiscal year 2016, the department got just $280,000 in state funds and had to transfer $1.2 million to the general fund from permit fees the department collected. The $280,000 they did receive was all earmarked for the state's Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO) program, and does not cover the cost of that program.

In effect, the amount the department received from the state went from $6 million to negative $1 million in eight years.

[PJMcK]

1. Republicans no longer know how to govern (n/t)

[Person 2713]

2. Seems they know how to ask for federal money though . So it's OK some else picks up the tab