Fw: STATE USES COURT TO HIDE I-69 VIOLATIONS [Please share widely]

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Greg Buck

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Jun 27, 2013, 9:21:59 PM6/27/13
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 Please share wisely, particularly with people who can support legal measures and to people who would share with numerous others.

 
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---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Thomas & Sandra Tokarski <ca...@bluemarble.net>
Date: Thu, Jun 27, 2013 at 3:36 PM
Subject: STATE USES COURT TO HIDE I-69 VIOLATIONS.
To: Susan Sammis <sam...@bluemarble.net>


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
27 JUNE 2013
CONTACTS: 
Thomas and Sandra Tokarski……………………812-825-9555
William Boyd……………………………………………317-538-7894


STATE TARGETS PROPERTY OWNERS WHO REPORT I-69 CONSTRUCTION VIOLATIONS.  

On Friday, June 21, Judge Frances Hill, Monroe County Circuit Court, signed a court order, requested by the State of Indiana, to prevent Thomas and Sandra Tokarski, or anyone accompanying them, from entering a portion of their property that the state is in the process of acquiring to construct I-69 in Monroe County. The Tokarskis retain title to the property. 

Access to their property is necessary to document certain types of violations. The Tokarskis have been on their property to photograph erosion control violations and violations of the Karst Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). This MOU controls construction activities in karst areas. They have also allowed members of the media to videotape the construction work. That work involves massive disturbances to this environmentally sensitive area. The Tokarskis have filed complaints to state and regulatory agencies about the construction abuses and violations. 

The Tokarskis have reported serious violations of erosion control and the Karst MOU at streams and sinkholes on and near their property. In order to cover up the problems and stop the reporting of these abuses, the state has retaliated by barring them from their property.

In a similar Greene County suit, Bill and Jan Boyd, who own a farm in Greene County, a portion of which is being taken for I-69, have been ordered to stay off the land that the Boyds still retain title to. The Boyds have been documenting and reporting construction safety violations and have filed citizen complaints to regulatory agencies of abuses to erosion control laws by the State’s contractors. 

Other members of the public have entered into and driven off-road vehicles in the construction zone in both Monroe and Greene Counties.  The Boyds have reported these intrusions but INDOT has made no attempt to keep the general public out. The state appears to be interested in prosecuting only those landowners who are reporting violations.

The state maintains the area is unsafe for the landowners and their guests and is distracting the road workers, yet violations of environmental regulations installed to protect public health and safety are ignored. The state has not demonstrated that there is any credible danger to the contractors by the Tokarskis. In fact, OSHA violations by contractors are often overlooked.  Thomas Tokarski states: “I testified in court that I stay well back from working equipment.” He continues: “99% of the time I have been on my property to take photos, no contractors are working in the area.”

Both State and federal regulators encourage citizen oversight of construction projects:

Federal regulation 33 CFR Part 326 states: ”Corps employees, members of the public; and representatives of state, local , and other Federal  agencies should be encouraged to report suspected violations”

Indiana Department of Environmental Management’s website --How to Report a Complaint or Violation to IDEM, Section 104 WCQ states: “Citizens like you are the eyes and ears of the state when IDEM inspectors are not present.” http://www.in.gov/idem/4393.htm

Unfortunately, INDOT does not believe in citizen participation in oversight of IDEM regulated projects, such as I-69.  They, are in fact, hostile to citizen oversight and haul citizens into court when those citizens report violations. This has a severe dampening impact on the willingness of citizens to report problems.

“This is our property.”  stated Thomas Tokarski, “We have been walking on our land to observe the ongoing work and no one has been injured. We are simply documenting the ongoing work and what we consider to be major violations by the contractors and the state. Those violations threaten public and worker safety and could pollute waterways and private wells. We consider our actions to be a public service.”

Bill Boyd stated: “Ordering us off our land is, plainly and simply, an attempt to cover up wrongdoing by the state and its contractors. The safety issue  is a red herring. “

Tokarskis and Boyds are performing a public service for their communities. Risky activities by INDOT and its contractors’ pose serious immediate and long term health, safety and environmental risks for their communities. Citizens have a responsibility to fill in the gap left by regulatory agencies.  In fact, Federal laws encourage this type of citizen participation. 

The reality is that regulatory agencies are understaffed, overworked and, unfortunately, politically compromised, especially when it comes to overseeing I-69.

Though this hearing was limited to issues of safety, the judge denied the Tokarskis’ request, through their attorney, that the state submit documents for the hearing related to safety and no safety experts testified for the state in the hearing.  

In another move to keep INDOT problems secret, INDOT officials recently imposed a gag order on all its employees. An INDOT memo states: “All information that is necessary for complete documentation of project construction should be reported factually without the addition of personal opinions, editorial comments, or criticism of individuals, companies or INDOT.” 

http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013305250002&nclick_check=1

INDOT ordered employees to stop replying to emails in chains, creating long strings of information that could potentially unearth more information via public records requests. This kind of self-censorship will limit public employees themselves from reporting problems with projects and interferes with the public’s right to know how their government is, or is not, carrying out its duties and responsibilities. INDOT appears to care more about hiding problems than about public and worker safety. Former Governor Daniels instructions to INDOT to rush the I-69 project and cut costs may be at least partly to blame for current construction problems.

“The public has a right to know if their government is putting its citizens’ health, safety and environment at risk” stated Sandra Tokarski,  “The state is simply trying to keep us from reporting problems. It is an attempt at a major cover-up.”

Available funding to complete the multibillion dollar I-69 project is uncertain and the project is draining funds from other transportation projects around the state.


 


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Thomas & Sandra Tokarski
CARR
PO Box 54
Stanford, IN 47463
800-515-6936






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