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March 24, 1967 



ARGUS 



Po9« 5 



Polluters Are Winners 



Continued from Page 1 

 in a pulp mill county can de- 



cide that revocation of a waste 

 discharge peimit by the new 

 VVater Pollution Control Com- 

 mission is not what the Legis- 

 lature intended, rather than 

 merely determining if the 

 agency had "substantial evi- 

 dence" the law was being 

 flouted. 



The bill originally would 

 have permitted the court to 

 set aside an agency's order if 

 it weie "clearly erroneous in 

 view of the enlire record as 

 submitted." Pulp lobbyists 

 succeeded in adding the 

 phrase ". . . and the public 

 policy contained in the legis- 

 lation authorizing the deci- 

 sion." 



Forecasts Confusion 



Peck predicts the amend- 

 ment, which is unlike anything 

 found in any other state's Ad- 

 ministrative Procedures Act, 

 will "give rise to confusion, 

 uncertainty and expensive liti- 

 gation." 



Pollution opponents already 

 were displeased at losing from 

 the main pollution bill a 

 "summary abatement" clause 

 to require an immediate shut- 

 down of a violator. They fear 

 the Administrative Procedures 

 amendment will continue long 

 court cases by which the pulp 

 mills have staved off for years 

 state attempts to force them 

 to clean up the water they dis- 

 charge back into the rivers and 

 Puget Sound. 



As passed, the pollution bill 

 requires the state to give 24 

 hours' notice to a mill violat- 

 ing terms of its waste permit. 

 Then the pulp firm could have 

 a hearing, after which, if it 

 refused to comply with the 

 permit, an injunction could be 

 obtained to shut down its mill. 

 During the appeal hearing the 

 pulp company can demand on 

 the injunction, the judge could 

 substitute his decision for the 

 Legislature's intent. 



How It Was Done 



Kallauer says ths pu'.p firms 

 agreed, at the end of 13 

 months of hearings on the pol- 

 lution bill, that they would 

 not oppose it if he took out 

 the summary abatement 

 clause 



But while the Administra- 

 tive Procedure bill was grind- 

 ing through the Legislature the 

 pulp lobbyists asked Uhlman, 

 chairman of the Senate Judi- 

 ciary Committee, to go along 

 with three amendments. He 

 agreed to ^vo, hue turned 

 down the third. The lobby- 

 ists then succeeded in having 

 it added in the House. When 

 the bill got to the Seinte "the 

 pressure was terrific," Hall- 

 auer was told by several sen- 

 ators who had agreed to back 

 him. 



Some others, however, most 

 from pulp mill areas, caved in 

 under the lobbyists' barrages 

 and voted for the amendment. 



Delay Now Certain 



When Governor Dan Evans 

 failed to "item veto" the pub- 

 lic policy clause from the bill 

 this week, it became a part of 

 state law. 



"It is unclear how much au- 

 thority state agencies have 

 now," Hallauer says, "It means 

 readjusting a lot of things. It 

 will be several years before we 

 know what the case law is on 

 the subject. Now we may be in 

 court hvo, three or four years 

 until we get a Supreme Court 

 decision. Previously some cases 

 have been in court up to five 

 years. We were tn'ing to get 

 rid of that and take care of 

 them promptly." 



The polluters won again. ►' 



