United States Attorney Harry S. Mattice Jr. announced today that the President’s Committee on Integrity and Efficiency has presented the Award for Excellence for 2003 to the East Tennessee Environmental Crimes Task Force.
The Award recognized the Task Force “for their outstanding performance and sustained distinguished performance in connection with the investigation and prosecution of environmental crimes within the Eastern District of Tennessee.”
Three cases during the year formed the basis for the Award. One involved the illegal disposal of 500,000 gallons “black liquor”, a byproduct of the pulp and paper industry into the Emory River in Roane County, Tennessee. Another involved the illegal discharge of sludge residues containing cyanide and chromium into a river in Sevier County, Tennessee. The individuals and company in these cases were convicted under the Clean Water Act. The third case involved an Oak Ridge company with a poor regulatory history that had been illegally storing and hiding radioactive and hazardous waste. In addition to a fine and restitution, the company spent $14.5 million to remediate the site as a result of the criminal case. This resulted in savings to the United States by keeping the company from becoming a superfund site.
The member of the Task Force from the area is Bruce Harkleroad, Special Agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation, in Chattanooga.
The East Tennessee Environmental Crimes Task Force was created in 1991 under the direction of the United States Attorney’s Office to address environmental enforcement concerns in East Tennessee. The group consists of fourteen federal agencies who donate resources to criminal environmental investigations. There are five full time agents in the group from the FBI, EPA, TVA Police, TVA-OIG and DOE-OIG. Since its inception, the Task Force has successfully prosecuted thirty-four significant environmental criminal cases in East Tennessee. The convictions have resulted in significant jail sentences for corporate management level defendants and over $1.4 million in fines, $2.6 million in restitution and almost $30 million in remediation from convicted companies directly related to the cases.
In 2001, the Task Force received the Award for Excellence from the Committee for four criminal environmental convictions in the use of new and innovative investigative techniques.
The President’s Committee on Integrity and Efficiency was established in 1992 by President Bush to address integrity and effectiveness issues and increase professionalism in federal agencies. The Committee is primarily comprised of presidentially appointed inspector generals and representatives from the federal law enforcement agencies.
The Committee accomplishes its mandated mission through interagency and inter-entity audits, inspections and investigative projects to promote economy and efficiency in federal programs and operations and address government-wide issues of fraud, waste and abuse. As part of this process, the Committee presents awards to those groups and individuals who have made exceptional contributions during the past fiscal year which are worthy of Presidential recognition.
U.S. Attorney Mattice said, “The Task Force consists of men and women dedicated to improving the environment in East Tennessee by holding companies and management responsible for committing environmental crimes. The group is the best in the United States because each office and agency has given their best agents, lawyers and technical people in this sustained effort. I am proud that my office has supervised the operation of the Task Force and development of the cases and I look forward to continued success in the future. All East Tennesseans should be proud of this group, its individual members and their accomplishments.”