Advertisement

If you have an ACS member number, please enter it here so we can link this account to your membership. (optional)

ACS values your privacy. By submitting your information, you are gaining access to C&EN and subscribing to our weekly newsletter. We use the information you provide to make your reading experience better, and we will never sell your data to third party members.

ENJOY UNLIMITED ACCES TO C&EN

Policy

Republicans Question Federal Science Integrity

by Susan R. Morrissey
October 31, 2011 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 89, Issue 44

Three Republican members of Congress are questioning what they call “the apparent collapse in the quality of scientific work being conducted at our federal agencies.” In a letter to John P. Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy and science adviser to the President, Sens. David Vitter (R-La.) and James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.) and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) cite four examples of what they call agency scientific misconduct. One is the EPA Integrated Risk Information System’s hazard assessment of formaldehyde, which the National Research Council criticized earlier this year (C&EN, April 18, page 10). Another is the Department of Energy’s nuclear energy policy including the decision to close Yucca Mountain as a long-term storage site for nuclear waste. “We are concerned with data quality, integrity of methodologies and collection of information, agencies misrepresenting publicly the weight of scientific ‘facts,’ indefensible representation of scientific conclusions before our federal court system, and our fundamental notion of ‘sound’ science,” the lawmakers write. They ask Holdren to address questions specific to each example by Nov. 2.

Article:

This article has been sent to the following recipient:

0 /1 FREE ARTICLES LEFT THIS MONTH Remaining
Chemistry matters. Join us to get the news you need.