Sen. Jay Rockfeller is seeking more funding for the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, in the wake of the board taking on another investigation — of safety problems at the DuPont Co. chemical plant in Belle, W.Va.
In a letter sent today to the Senate Appropriations Committee, Rockefeller noted this statement, made by CSB board member William E. Wright when the board announced its plans to deploy a team to Belle:
Mr. Wright cautioned that the new case would likely delay efforts to complete other investigations that are being conducted by same investigative team, including those at the Bayer CropScience facility in Institute, West Virginia, and an Ohio environmental services company. Including DuPont, the CSB has 17 open investigations, the largest number in its 11-year history.
Rockefeller responded:
I am very concerned about the possibility that the CSB may have to suspend efforts on their Bayer investigation in order to devote the time and resources to investigating last week’s DuPont incidents – this is intolerable. The tragic incidents at both facilities affect the safety and security of Kanawha County residents and all West Virginians, and the investigation at one facility should never hurt the ability of another equally important investigation to move forward.
So, Rockefeller asked for a $1.3 million supplemental appropriation in the current year’s budget that would allow the CSB to create a new, Houston-based, five-person investigation team to alleviate pressure on the agency’s three existing teams. Rockefeller said:
This will allow each of the four investigation teams to focus on a particular region of the country and will provide certainty to West Virginians and all Americans that the safety and security investigations are completed in a timely and thorough manner.
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[...] officials noted that hoped-for additional funding proposed by members of West Virginia’s congressional delegation (who were concerned about ongoing CSB probes at two Kanawha Valley chemical plants) has not [...]