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EPA
enforcement activity, including criminal investigations and
inspections, declined by about half between the 2018 and 2021
fiscal years, compared to the average yearly totals between 2002
and 2017, according to a study by the Environmental Integrity
Project.
Civil penalties in 2018-2021 were at least 28% lower than during
2002-2017, while criminal fines declined 49%, after adjusting
for inflation, the nonprofit group said.
The EPA declined to comment on the report's conclusions.
Eric Schaeffer, executive director of the Environmental
Integrity Project and a former EPA director of civil
enforcement, said the EPA's capacity to enforce the country's
environmental laws has declined, partly because of budget cuts.
Since fiscal year 2010, when the EPA had an annual enacted
budget of $10.3 billion and a staff of more than 17,000 people,
the agency's resources have dwindled. But under the
administration of President Joe Biden, spending is up, $9.2
billion in fiscal 2021, with plans to add more than 1,000
full-time employees in the current fiscal year, for a total of
about 15,300, according to EPA figures.
Meanwhile, the number of criminal cases opened (123) and
polluters charged (105) in the 2021 federal fiscal year that
ended Sept. 30 were at their second lowest levels in the past
two decades, while fines and years of incarceration were at
their lowest, Schaeffer said.
(Reporting By Tim McLaughlin; Editing by David Gregorio)
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