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Embattled alaska polar bear researcher questions inquiry'sintegrity by 123wert sdfsf
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Embattled alaska polar bear researcher questions inquiry'sintegrity |
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Business,Business News,Business Opportunities
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Alaska polar bear researcher Charles Monnett's career has been inupheaval since the government last year began probing the integrityof his work. His days of studying polar bears are over. He s beenreassigned to conduct studies about shipping traffic in the BeringStrait, the bottleneck at the top of the world off of Alaska'scoast connecting the Pacific Ocean to the Arctic Ocean. But thedispute continues. A 2006 paper Monnett authored about polar bears drowning in storms took center stage in the early stages of an investigation that has since branched out to include whether contracts wereappropriately awarded.
The high-profile inquiry has raisedquestions about the intersection of politics and science andwhether, when it comes to objectivity, the current administrationhas a myopic view. Monnett works for the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management andRegulatory Enforcement (BOEMRE). He has lost oversight of his priorprojects due to an investigation by the federal Office of theInspector General into allegations that he committed scientificmisconduct. The inquiry has simultaneously raised questions aboutthe quality of Monnett's work and the motives behind it -- as wellas the appropriateness of the inquiry itself, which was nationalnews last summer.
At issue his been whether Monnett ever fudged hisdata or improperly abused his position overseeing contracts inorder to influence how other scientists rated his work. Monnett's attorneys believe the investigation is a blatant attempt to squash scientific freedom and choke the credibility of government scientists whose findings mightobstruct oil development. In Alaska, the oil industry is mighty and the pursuit of petroleumriches beneath northern waters is the next frontier. More than a year after the investigation began, Monnett has notbeen charged with any wrongdoing.
His attorneys are balking at aprocess that is supposed to protect scientists from politicallymotivated pressure and attacks. Where the current Department ofInterior has promised to create a buffer between the two, it hasfailed, according to Public Employees for EnvironmentalResponsibility (PEER), the group representing Monnett. A newlyuncovered letter, obtained by PEER through the Freedom ofInformation Act, indicates that the very people who should havebeen looking out for Monnett may have been aligned with hisdetractors. The alleged impropriety involves two government entities -- theOffice of the Inspector General (OIG), which is investigatingMonnett, and the Office of Scientific Integrity (OSI), from whichMonnett sought help. The latter is designed to block politicalinterference, ensure a competent process of review, and ensureallegations of scientific misconduct are handled by independentinvestigators.
After he fell under scrutiny, Monnett complained to OSI that hisemployer BOEMRE and the OIG had improperly disrupted his work.After Monnett came forward, OSI told Monnett and PEER that it wouldlook into his allegations. Yet in a letter sent weeks later to aU.S. Congressman, OSI officer Ralph Morganweck told Rep. Ed Markeylast August that he would be assisting the OIG in reviewing thescientific integrity claims that have been raised in this matter.
Had PEER never requested the correspondence under the Freedom ofInformation Act, it may never have learned about the tone of thediscussions and allegiances taking place behind the scenes. PEER executive director Jeff Ruch calls the situation beyondscrewy. If there is no independence in these reviews, Interior sscientific integrity process is simply an elaborate exercise indamage control, he said in a prepared statement. Contact Jill Burke at jill(at)alaskadispatch.com. I am Construction & Real Estate writer, reports some information about gas cap lock , brazilian hardwood floor.
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