KGUN 9 On Your Side, Tucson News, Weather & Sports9OYS Investigation: Findings vindicate museum whistleblower

9OYS Investigation: Findings vindicate museum whistleblower

Early results from government probes prompted by a 9 On Your Side Investigation are in:  It turns out that a Pima Air & Space Museum employee who lost his job after blowing the whistle on environmental violations wasn't just whistling Dixie.

Tucson, Arizona (KGUN9-TV) - It was a claim that shocked a lot of people including state and local governments.  A former employee of the prestigious Pima Air and Space Museum alerted KGUN 9 to possible environmental violations.  In its 33 year history, there has never been an investigation of any kind at the museum.  But after 9 On Your Side investigated, local and state agencies took the claims seriously and conducted their own lengthy probes.

It all started with a museum employee -- we're calling him "Mark" -- who lost his job, he says, because he blew the whistle.  "Mark" told us that jet fuel was going into the ground, that workers were stripping paint materials and washing them into the soil, and that there was no proper disposal of any of these materials.  Our investigation got the attention of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Pima County DEQ and the City of Tucson.  For the past two months, those agencies had inspectors on the case trying to figure out what, if anything was going on.

Early results are in.  Arizona DEQ inspectors leveled the biggest blow -- so far, it's issued two official notices of violation in recent days.  ADEQ found the museum's restorations department was discharging untreated wastewater without the proper permits.  That wastewater went into the Julian Wash which is a tributary to the Santa Cruz River.

The City of Tucson also determined the museum didn't have proper permits and it wasn't containing aircraft and equipment wash water - thereby allowing it to run into the ground.  Further, the museum had no plan to prevent storm water contamination, nor did it provide training for spill cleanups.

"Mark" pointed out to us a drain that was the source of that discharge.  When we first went out to take a look at the wash and the drainage pipe in question, we found the pipe but it didn't have a cap on it.  That was one of the first changes the museum made after the DEQ investigation.

Museum Executive Director Yvonne Morris didn't want to talk to us in our first report, but this did she did sit with us on camera to answer some questions.  Morris told us the museum took the position from day one that it would respond immediately and seriously to any directives that it might receive from ADEQ. 

ADEQ also found soil contamination from old paint chips, grease, oil, antifreeze, brake fluids.  It found the museum was not using proper containment for used oils, batteries and other contaminated materials.  The museum has already started making required changes but it turns out it is also doing a flat-out bad job of housekeeping.  This is perhaps surprising, given that Pima Air & Space is a tenant living rent-free on the land.   Pima County taxpayers are the landlord.

Are those kinds of practices acceptable?  9 On Your Side put that question to Tom Moulton with Pima County.  He told us that as long as the museum is a benefit to the public and a non profit organization, then it will pay nothing to use the land.  The county could evict the museum but Moulton says that's not likely.  But Moulton and Morris both say that our 9 On Your Side Investigation has been a good thing, and that as a result of all of these inspections the museum now truly understands what it means to be fully compliant with the environmental statutes. 

That's what "Mark" told us he wanted all along:  for someone to hold the museum accountable for its improper actions, actions that he believes he paid a price for pointing out and that investigators have now verified.

By the way, the state says more reports are still on the way and that for most of them,  the museum will have 30 days to comply.  The feds have also entered the picture:  OSHA has an "open investigation" and could issue citations for several safety and health related issues.  And in addition to all that, new county regulations are coming next year for the museum that will force another round of changes.

As a result of it all, the government is keeping a closer eye on what's going on at the museum -- and 9 On Your Side will do the same.   Meanwhile, one question remains:  did "Mark" lose his job for stepping up in good faith to report environmental violations?  And if so, what is up with that?  That will be the focus of our next report.

Supporting documents for this story can be found in the "Also on KGUN9.com" box in the upper left hand corner of this page.

Jennifer Waddell
jwaddell@kgun9.com