Alabama Department of Environmental Management
Encyclopedia
The Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) is a state government agency charged with the enforcement of environmental policy
in the U.S. state
of Alabama
. It is authorized to adopt and enforce rules and regulations consistent with the statutory authority granted to the Alabama Environmental Management Commission and ADEM by the United States Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA). It was created in 1982 with the passage of the Alabama Environmental Management Act by the Alabama Legislature
. The act consolidated the various commissions, agencies, and programs that had been responsible for implementing environmental law
into the Alabama Environmental Management Commission and ADEM. In past years, the agency has been repeatedly accused of not enforcing environmental regulations.
licensed to practice medicine in the
state, a professional engineer
registered in the state, an attorney
licensed to practice law
in the state, a chemist
or veterinarian
, an individual certified by the National Water Well Association certification program, a biologist
or an ecologist, and one member-at-large who has been a resident of the state for at least two years.
ADEM administers federal environmental laws, including the Clean Air
, Clean Water
and Safe Drinking Water
acts and federal solid and hazardous waste laws. The agency assumed these responsibilities after state laws and regulations were demonstrated to be at least equivalent to the federal standards and that the state had the funds and personnel available to administer them. The agency has eight internal divisions: Air Division, Land Division, Water Division, Field Operations Division, the Office of Environmental Quality, Permits and Services Division, Office of General Counsel, and Human Resources. All are overseen by the Office of the Director. The Office of the Director is headed by the commission-appointed director and includes a deputy director, environmental counsel, and an environmental justice ombudsman
.
groups for not enforcing regulations, and one consequence of this criticism was the establishment of the ADEM Reform Coalition in 2002. It comprises 38 organizations and has an agenda of improving the agency’s enforcement of existing environment laws. In the past, the coalition has accused the Alabama Environmental Management Commission of not doing its job of holding the director and agency accountable. In 2003, coalition member groups gained the right for the public to speak at commission meetings. Following this, the commission supported the establishment of stronger enforcement policies. The former director, Jim Warr, retired from the agency. A new director, Trey Glenn, was brought on-board in January 2005, although his hiring, in itself, would later prove controversial and prompt a grand jury
inquiry into accusations of ethics violations by him. In 2006 an environmental justice
ombudsman was appointed to oversee ADEM's efforts to ensure that burdens of pollution are not borne disproportionately by communities with low income or "people of color."
During his tenure with the agency, Glenn took some controversial positions. Accusations of non-enforcement continued to be leveled against the agency, most notably by the Southern Environmental Law Center, which filed a lawsuit
on December 22, 2008. The lawsuit challenged ADEM's issuance of a permit for a proposed strip coal mine that would discharge waste water into the Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River
, 800 feet (243.8 m) upstream from a major drinking water
intake for Birmingham
. Glenn, a former engineer with Alabama Power
, was also noted during his time at the agency for his effort to enable Alabama companies to emit more air pollution
than their permits allow. Following lawsuits and legal wrangling, the EPA refused to authorize that rule change. A review by the ADEM Reform Coalition found that pollution penalties assessed to emitters by ADEM declined by roughly 78 percent in 2009, compared to 2007 and 2008. Glenn resigned his position on December 11, 2009. The commission appointed John Hagood, an ADEM attorney, as the interim director. On January 15, 2010, the environmental group coalition petitioned the EPA to take away Alabama's regulatory authority, charging that ADEM failed to enforce key sections of the federal Clean Water Act.
business, in Mobile
since 1990. He will assume the director post on June 1, 2010.
Environmental policy
Environmental policy is any [course of] action deliberately taken [or not taken] to manage human activities with a view to prevent, reduce, or mitigate harmful effects on nature and natural resources, and ensuring that man-made changes to the environment do not have harmful effects on...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
. It is authorized to adopt and enforce rules and regulations consistent with the statutory authority granted to the Alabama Environmental Management Commission and ADEM by the United States Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an agency of the federal government of the United States charged with protecting human health and the environment, by writing and enforcing regulations based on laws passed by Congress...
(EPA). It was created in 1982 with the passage of the Alabama Environmental Management Act by the Alabama Legislature
Alabama Legislature
The Alabama Legislature is the legislative branch of the state government of Alabama. It is a bicameral body composed of the Alabama House of Representatives, with 105 members, and the Alabama Senate, with 35 members...
. The act consolidated the various commissions, agencies, and programs that had been responsible for implementing environmental law
Environmental law
Environmental law is a complex and interlocking body of treaties, conventions, statutes, regulations, and common law that operates to regulate the interaction of humanity and the natural environment, toward the purpose of reducing the impacts of human activity...
into the Alabama Environmental Management Commission and ADEM. In past years, the agency has been repeatedly accused of not enforcing environmental regulations.
Organization
The Alabama Environmental Management Commission, whose members are appointed to six-year terms by the Governor of Alabama, provides oversight of ADEM. This seven-member panel develops state environmental policy; hears administrative appeals of permits, administrative orders, and variances issued by ADEM; adopts environmental regulations; and selects the ADEM director. The commission must include a physicianPhysician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
licensed to practice medicine in the
state, a professional engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
registered in the state, an attorney
Attorney at law
An attorney at law in the United States is a practitioner in a court of law who is legally qualified to prosecute and defend actions in such court on the retainer of clients. Alternative terms include counselor and lawyer...
licensed to practice law
Practice of law
In its most general sense, the practice of law involves giving legal advice to clients, drafting legal documents for clients, and representing clients in legal negotiations and court proceedings such as lawsuits, and is applied to the professional services of a lawyer or attorney at law, barrister,...
in the state, a chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
or veterinarian
Veterinarian
A veterinary physician, colloquially called a vet, shortened from veterinarian or veterinary surgeon , is a professional who treats disease, disorder and injury in animals....
, an individual certified by the National Water Well Association certification program, a biologist
Biologist
A biologist is a scientist devoted to and producing results in biology through the study of life. Typically biologists study organisms and their relationship to their environment. Biologists involved in basic research attempt to discover underlying mechanisms that govern how organisms work...
or an ecologist, and one member-at-large who has been a resident of the state for at least two years.
ADEM administers federal environmental laws, including the Clean Air
Clean Air Act
A Clean Air Act is one of a number of pieces of legislation relating to the reduction of airborne contaminants, smog and air pollution in general. The use by governments to enforce clean air standards has contributed to an improvement in human health and longer life spans...
, Clean Water
Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Commonly abbreviated as the CWA, the act established the goals of eliminating releases of high amounts of toxic substances into water, eliminating additional water pollution by 1985, and ensuring that...
and Safe Drinking Water
Safe Drinking Water Act
The Safe Drinking Water Act is the principle federal law in the United States intended to ensure safe drinking water for the public. Pursuant to the act, the Environmental Protection Agency is required to set standards for drinking water quality and oversee all states, localities, and water...
acts and federal solid and hazardous waste laws. The agency assumed these responsibilities after state laws and regulations were demonstrated to be at least equivalent to the federal standards and that the state had the funds and personnel available to administer them. The agency has eight internal divisions: Air Division, Land Division, Water Division, Field Operations Division, the Office of Environmental Quality, Permits and Services Division, Office of General Counsel, and Human Resources. All are overseen by the Office of the Director. The Office of the Director is headed by the commission-appointed director and includes a deputy director, environmental counsel, and an environmental justice ombudsman
Ombudsman
An ombudsman is a person who acts as a trusted intermediary between an organization and some internal or external constituency while representing not only but mostly the broad scope of constituent interests...
.
Criticism
In recent years the agency and commission have been criticized by numerous Alabama-based environmental protectionEnvironmental protection
Environmental protection is a practice of protecting the environment, on individual, organizational or governmental level, for the benefit of the natural environment and humans. Due to the pressures of population and our technology the biophysical environment is being degraded, sometimes permanently...
groups for not enforcing regulations, and one consequence of this criticism was the establishment of the ADEM Reform Coalition in 2002. It comprises 38 organizations and has an agenda of improving the agency’s enforcement of existing environment laws. In the past, the coalition has accused the Alabama Environmental Management Commission of not doing its job of holding the director and agency accountable. In 2003, coalition member groups gained the right for the public to speak at commission meetings. Following this, the commission supported the establishment of stronger enforcement policies. The former director, Jim Warr, retired from the agency. A new director, Trey Glenn, was brought on-board in January 2005, although his hiring, in itself, would later prove controversial and prompt a grand jury
Grand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
inquiry into accusations of ethics violations by him. In 2006 an environmental justice
Environmental justice
Environmental justice is "the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, sex, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies." In the words of Bunyan Bryant,...
ombudsman was appointed to oversee ADEM's efforts to ensure that burdens of pollution are not borne disproportionately by communities with low income or "people of color."
During his tenure with the agency, Glenn took some controversial positions. Accusations of non-enforcement continued to be leveled against the agency, most notably by the Southern Environmental Law Center, which filed a lawsuit
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...
on December 22, 2008. The lawsuit challenged ADEM's issuance of a permit for a proposed strip coal mine that would discharge waste water into the Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River
Mulberry Fork of the Black Warrior River
Mulberry Fork is a tributary of the Black Warrior River, long, in the U.S. state of Alabama. The Mulberry Fork is one of three forks, along with the Locust Fork and the Sipsey Fork, that join to form the Black Warrior...
, 800 feet (243.8 m) upstream from a major drinking water
Drinking water
Drinking water or potable water is water pure enough to be consumed or used with low risk of immediate or long term harm. In most developed countries, the water supplied to households, commerce and industry is all of drinking water standard, even though only a very small proportion is actually...
intake for Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
. Glenn, a former engineer with Alabama Power
Alabama Power Company
Alabama Power Company, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, is a company in the southern United States that provides electricity service to 1.3 million homes, businesses, and industries in the southern two-thirds of Alabama. It is one of four U.S...
, was also noted during his time at the agency for his effort to enable Alabama companies to emit more air pollution
Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....
than their permits allow. Following lawsuits and legal wrangling, the EPA refused to authorize that rule change. A review by the ADEM Reform Coalition found that pollution penalties assessed to emitters by ADEM declined by roughly 78 percent in 2009, compared to 2007 and 2008. Glenn resigned his position on December 11, 2009. The commission appointed John Hagood, an ADEM attorney, as the interim director. On January 15, 2010, the environmental group coalition petitioned the EPA to take away Alabama's regulatory authority, charging that ADEM failed to enforce key sections of the federal Clean Water Act.
New leadership
After narrowing down their choices from sixteen applicants, the Environmental Management Commission appointed Lance R. LeFleur to serve as director on April 16, 2010. LeFleur has operated Materials Recovery Corporation, a recyclingRecycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
business, in Mobile
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
since 1990. He will assume the director post on June 1, 2010.