"Gov't scientist fired over Emails?"

Read the full article by Kirsten Weir in The Scientist of 9th January 2007.

The article states:

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation is attempting to fire biologist Charles (Rex) Wahl, charging he shared sensitive information with environmental groups and other government agencies in a deliberate attempt to undermine Reclamation projects......

At issue are Emails Wahl sent while an Environmental Specialist in Reclamation's Yuma, Arizona office. His supervisors discovered the messages -- addressed to individuals at the Corps of Engineers, the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the nonprofit group Environmental Defense -- on Wahl's computer after he transferred from Yuma to Albuquerque last May........

According to Paula Dinerstein, an attorney with Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), which is representing Wahl, he is protected by provisions of the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, and Solid Waste Disposal Act. "In some cases he was disclosing what he saw as a violation of a regulation or law, or a danger to public health or safety," she said. "Those are protected disclosures."......

the hostile environment Wahl described sounded familiar to Kirk Lashmett, a biologist who retired from the Bureau of Reclamation's Western Colorado office last spring. [Wahl's] "is not an isolated case," Lashmett told The Scientist. After more than 30 years with Reclamation, Lashmett claimed he was forced into early retirement when his supervisors cited him for misconduct. He contends a bizarre misconduct claim -- that he let his dog defecate in the office (a charge he denies) -- was invented as retaliation for speaking out about environmental negligence. "Environmental compliance is a joke," he said. "If you're not willing to turn your cheek and look the other way, they'll go after you."

I don't know enough about the case to comment, but it doesn't seem to be an offense for a scientific officer in one government agency to communicate with officers of other agencies by email without prior permission from his agency. The government would grind to a halt were that standard to be imposed and inforced!