There has been an eerie silence in Indiana as two branches of state government have steadily whittled public protections down to the nub in recent weeks. That is a frightening prospect in a state that contains one of the country's most polluted regions---but until recently, the Hoosier media has been oddly quiet about a steady assault on the state's environmental laws and regulators.

But this week, there are sudden signs of life with the US EPA and local officials joining a growing chorus of concern. Thankfully, the Gary Post-Tribune has chronicled the onslaught kicked off by Governor Daniels in December when he began taking a hatchet to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM). After weeks of hacking, here are some of the programs that have been discarded:

• Local air quality monitoring. Local air pollution monitoring contracts were dumped. An editorial in the Gary Post-Tribune, a paper plunked in the midst of some of the most polluted air in the country noted that, "The end of the contracts doesn't just mean a lack of local monitoring. It means less monitoring, period." And "The winner is industry. The loser is anyone who breathes."
• Recycling programs. The state wasn't spending a lot here, but a $2 million fund for recycling program grants has been dumped "temporarily."
• No fines for state agencies. Thanks to crack reporting from the Post-Tribune, we know that the state itself is a serial polluter. For example, the Indiana Department of Transportation was cited for dumping raw sewage into rivers and streams over 500 times in recent years. In the past, IDEM could fine the agencies to help force them to, literally, clean up their act. I guess the state got sick of paying itself fines because that power has been stripped and now IDEM can only send legal notices, an easily ignored slap on the wrist.
•  The IDEM enforcement division. Not sure how this one will shake up, but it could potentially be the most impactful of the bunch. The governor eliminated the division responsible for ensuring that the laws are followed. They are now lumped in with the folks who handle permitting and other issues. Local conservationists have expressed real concern about the mixing of these functions, though the state claims it will offer efficiency. Given some of the permits that have been issued, I think this could be very dangerous. And, according to press reports yesterday, this move has concerned the EPA enough for them to request a meeting.

In a state that can proudly claim to be a national leader in coal ash ponds, along with a huge array of industrial polluters and some massive new dirty projects coming online, you might expect this assault on the living conditions of every citizen to be countered by another branch of the government.

But apparently the Governor's marauding did not go far enough for Representative Phyllis Pond who entered a new bill into the state legislature to ensure that IDEM was completely neutered. According to the Post-Tribune:

A new bill would make it nearly impossible for Indiana to implement stricter environmental laws than required by the federal government -- unless it's an emergency and business representatives approve.

"That's exactly right," said state Rep. Phyllis Pond, R-New Haven, about the bill. "Unless there's some situation that really needs it, then we don't need to make a rule. I meant to make it very difficult to them to make rules more strict than EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.) If we really need it, EPA would have it."

The bill would establish an environmental rule review board, which would prevent existing air, water and solid waste pollution control boards from adopting state environmental regulations that are stricter than federal laws unless it's an emergency and the new board approves.

The board would consist of seven members. The three voting members would be the Indiana Department of Environmental Management commissioner or his designee and two businessmen appointed by the governor. Four legislators would be non-voting members.

From my vantage point, it seems highly unlikely that IDEM was ever going to push environmental protections to anything near new heights (look no further than the ongoing fight over BP's air pollution permits in Whiting).

But hey, better safe than sorry, right?

When the Representative was asked why her proposed board did not include any representation of Indiana citizens, municipal governments, or folks with a modicum of environmental concerns she noted that smaller boards are more likely to get things done.

Sadly, it seems like these folks have already gotten a lot done in Indiana of late...

But this week there have been hopeful signs. Earlier in the week, the USEPA sent a letter expressing their concerns and calling for a meeting. And officials from the cities of Gary, Hammond, and Evansville publicly expressed outrage over the elimination of air quality monitoring in their heavily-industrial region, which the state claims it can do more efficiently. Today's Post-Tribune includes the following from Dona Bergman, director of Evansville's Environmental Protection Agency:

Bergman called it "absolutely absurd" and "dis-ingenuous" to claim IDEM would be as effective and efficient as local agencies.

Hammond, Gary and Evansville officials have expressed concern that IDEM will be less responsive to complaints of residents and perform inspections less frequently.

"For the larger sources," such as U.S. Steel, BP and NIPSCO, "the ones that IDEM staff will have resources to inspect, 70 percent of those will get done only every two years. Thirty percent will be done every three years," Bergman said. "Local agencies did all those and a whole lot more every year."

Given our experience in the region, this last comment is perhaps the scariest part of this entire debate. If polluters like BP have been fighting lax permits given out by the state, what happens when the state stops monitoring to ensure those weak standards are met?

Hopefully these new voices will shine a light on the region---if it can penetrate the smog...

Photo taken amidst Lake Michigan's fabulous living sand dunes at Marquette Park in Gary, IN by Leah the Librarian, via Flickr