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Koster: No laws broken on E. coli report release

By Chris Blank
Associated Press

Published: Friday, August 14, 2009 2:05 PM CDT

Attorney General Chris Koster concluded Thursday that the Missouri Department of Natural Resources did not violate open records laws by waiting a month before releasing a report finding unsafe levels of E. coli in the Lake of the Ozarks.

But the findings won't end questions about the delay. The attorney general's probe was swiftly decried by a prominent environmentalist involved in the case as "shabby," and lawmakers still plan to review how the situation was handled.

Water samples taken from the Lake of the Ozarks on May 26 showed E. coli levels in two places were 19 times higher than the state standard. The report wasn't released until June 26, when lower E. coli levels from later testing were reported.

Koster's investigation concluded no laws were violated because no one sought the testing data in a way that the department should have interpreted as a Sunshine Law request. The review concludes those seeking the E. coli testing data asked when it would be available and urged for a speedy release but did not make a formal or informal request.

The lake is a popular Midwest tourist destination about an hour southwest of Jefferson City and is created by a dam owned by St. Louis-based utility Ameren Corp.

The company agreed to provide $15,000 a year to monitor for E. coli as part of a 2007 state settlement. State health officials say they are not aware of anyone ill after swimming in the lake.

DNR Director Mark Templeton said Thursday the E. coli findings should have been released immediately and that the department is reviewing the attorney general's recommendations.

"The department could have done a better job in getting the information out to the public, and we're going to do that in the future," Templeton said.

The attorney general's report states that Joe Bindbeutel, who was the department's deputy director, decided not to immediately release the report because he wanted additional data to put the findings in context and because he wanted to use the tests to suggest additional proposals for addressing E. coli in the lake. Bindbeutel also tried to understand how heavy rains during the sampling affected the results.

Bindbeutel did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Records obtained by The Associated Press last month show that Bindbeutel sought a copy of the E. coli report before an early June meeting in the governor's office. Bindbeutel left DNR after Nixon appointed him to the Administrative Hearing Commission. Nixon's office asserts the report was not discussed at that meeting and that it told DNR to release the E. coli findings when it first learned about them.

A cover letter attached to the report and signed by Koster defends Bindbeutel, who had led the Environmental Protection Division within the attorney general's office before joining DNR after Nixon's gubernatorial election. Koster wrote that E. coli results should have been released around June 1 but that Bindbeutel has filed lawsuits in hundreds of cases to protect Missouri's environment

"While Mr. Bindbeutel may well have made a bad decision with regard to the May 26 data, I hope you will consider his decision within the context of his long tenure as an aggressive advocate for Missouri's environment," Koster wrote.

Ken Midkiff, whose Sunshine Law complaint triggered the review, blasted the attorney general's finding and called the review a "shabby" investigation conducted in a "partisan snowjob fashion." Midkiff, of Columbia, is the chairman of the Missouri Clean Water Campaign, which is part of the Sierra Club.

Koster is a Democrat, and the director of the Department of Natural Resources is appointed by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon.

"I can only surmise that the office of the attorney general is much more interested in protecting state agencies than in ensuring that the laws of the state of Missouri are followed," Midkiff said.

A Senate environment committee also is reviewing how the E. coli report was handled, and senators said they plan to develop a timeline for how the data was obtained and released.

Missouri Republican Party Executive Director Lloyd Smith said the attorney general's report was narrowly focused and still leaves unresolved questions.

"Missourians still don't know what Jay Nixon knew and when he knew it, and they don't know if Nixon continues to conceal evidence that would implicate him in the scandal," Smith said.

The report also recommended that the department consolidate responsibility for open records requests from the 40 different people now listed as custodians of record. And it suggests DNR provide clear instructions on its Web site for how to submit Sunshine Law requests.


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Koster: No laws broken on E. coli report release

By Chris BlankAssociated Press

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By Chris Blank
Associated Press