June 28, 2001
Contact: Tanya Gulesserian, EDC, 805-963-1622

ENVIRONMENTALISTS HALT ILLEGAL PRISON EXPANSION IN LOMPOC

LOMPOC, CA - After the Environmental Defense Center (EDC), on behalf of the Citizens Planning Association of Santa Barbara County (CPA), threatened to file a lawsuit for failing to conduct environmental review, the Federal Bureau of Prisons directed the Corps of Engineers (Corps) to immediately suspend all work on an expansion of the Federal Correctional Institute (FCI) in Lompoc.

"We were shocked to learn that the Federal Bureau of Prisons was illegally building an expansion of their facilities without notifying the public and without conducting any environmental review," said Tanya Gulesserian, Attorney for EDC. "The Lompoc community will now have an opportunity to review and comment on the project, a legal right which the federal government attempted to deny."

"This is a victory for the citizens of Lompoc and the County of Santa Barbara," said Catherine McCammon, President of Citizens Planning Association. "The federal government must comply with all environmental laws just like everyone else."

Through EDC's review of a proposed new 1,100-inmate prison in Lompoc, EDC discovered that a separate expansion project was already underway. For over six months, the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) failed to respond to EDC's requests for public documents describing the expansion project and the environmental impacts. After EDC sent a letter confirming that the BOP illegally failed to provide public documents and proceeded with a project without conducting environmental review, the BOP finally responded.

On June 25, EDC confirmed that the BOP directed the Corps of Engineers, who is building the project, to immediately suspend all work on the expansion. Although documents provided by the BOP completely fail to describe the size of the proposed expansion project and the impacts on the environment, EDC has learned that this $5 million dollar project could hold at least 250 new inmates, a significant increase in the current capacity of the federal facility. The expansion could potentially affect water, biological and cultural resources, geology and soils, safety, traffic, housing, schools, recreation and numerous public services, which are already strained in the community. The BOP indicated that it plans to initiate the environmental review process and then, re-evaluate the project.

The Environmental Defense Center is a non-profit, public interest environmental law firm serving California's Central Coast. Since 1977, EDC has provided public education, organizing, advocacy, and legal services to community groups dedicated to environmental quality and health. For more information, please contact Tanya Gulesserian at (805) 963-1622.