http://www.greenpeace.org/~intlaw/gap.html (Einblicke ins Internet, 10/1995)
The Government Accountability Project (G.A.P.) - the nation's premier whistleblower protection organization - today filed suit against the Department of Transportation in federal court in Washington, D.C., to expose the Coast Guard and Navy's cover-up of deadly radioactive material the Navy has been discharging into the Puget Sound. For the past ten years, the Navy has been decommissioning nuclear submarines in the Puget Sound. The Navy is legally required to observe strict safety procedures to control for discharges of radioactive material, and has repeatedly assured the public that it has complied. Observations by SEARCH - a non-profit organization devoted to monitoring nuclear activities - reveals otherwise. Further, the Navy has refused to provide data and samples to verify its claims.
In 1993, SEARCH began collecting its own biological samples from Sinclair Inlet in Puget Sound. Analysis of these samples has revealed traces of radioactive material in shellfish and other marine life. The radioactive materials measure at levels 50 times greater than the maximum levels allowed by government safety standards. In order to comply with existing regulations in gathering biological samples, SEARCH did not send a vessel into the restricted area; rather, Norman Buske, a SEARCH scientist, took samples by swimming from a boat located in adjacent waters. Buske notified the Navy in advance of his samplings; on one or more occasions, the Navy vis-a-vis the Coast Guard has escorted Buske and used his samples for their own study.
Concerned about Buske's discoveries of the high levels of radioactive materials found in marine life, the Navy went on the offensive. On September 22, 1994, the Navy and the Coast Guard had Buske placed under arrest for purportedly trespassing on military property. The vessel which transported Buske, operated by the environmental group Greenpeace, was seized and involuntarily towed into restricted waters so that its personnel could be arrested as well. When Buske entered the area again, he was criminally prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle, Washington.
The case against Buske was thrown out of federal court by the judge, who found that this "area is not the property of the United States" and that Buske posed no threat to security or safety of government operations in Puget Sound. In June, Buske resumed his sampling, accompanied by government representatives. In an effort to stem any further revelations, the local Coast Guard office published an emergency rule aimed solely at preventing Buske from taking any further samples. It then threatened Buske with another arrest, and refused his personal request for access.
The suit filed today on behalf of Buske and SEARCH by G.A.P. aims to restrain the government from continuing to interfere with SEARCH's right to freely investigate and speak out about the Navy's dangerous and unlawful discharges of radioactive material. For more information or to request a copy of the filing contact:
Robert C. Seldon, G.A.P. General Counsel at (202) 408-0034;
Alene Anderson, Esq., G.A.P. Program Leader at (206) 292-2850; or,
Norm Buske of SEARCH at (509) 725-6666
From: tcarp@ix.netcom.com (Tom Carpenter )
Subject: press release
I am Tom Carpenter, an attorney with the non-profit organization called Government Accountability Project (GAP). GAP represents environmental whistleblowers, with our Northwest work focussing primarily on Hanford and on the oil pipeline in Alaska. We also defend forest service employees (in conjunction with AFSEE and PEER), and EPA employees nationwide. I am enclosing a press release relating to radioactive pollution in the Puget Sound, and our filing of a lawsuit on behalf of SEARCH, a non-profit eco-sleuthing group that is attempting to get access to restricted Navy waters to investigate high radiation levels found in earlier samplings.
Note that this action involved a Greenpeace Zodiac which was illegally towed into restricted waters for the sole purpose of arresting the activists on board and to confiscate the samples collected by SEARCH. I would appreciate your posting of this press release - - the complaint and accompanying brief and affidavit can easily be made available electronically, and I am happy to do so. Thanks in advance if you can help.
Date sent: Sun, 9 Jul 1995 15:57:39 -0700
From: tcarp@ix.netcom.com (Tom Carpenter )
Subject: press release