A recent survey of scientists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) conducted by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) revealed a disturbing amount of political interference in scientific activities at the agency. The survey was distributed to more than 1,400 biologists, ecologists, botanists and other science professionals in Ecological Services field offices across the country. The survey inquired about their opinions of the USFWS’s scientific integrity, as well as political interference, resources and morale.

Reps. Henry Waxman (D-CA), ranking member of the House Government Reform Committee, and Bart Gordon (D-TN), ranking member of the House Science Committee, introduced the Restore Scientific Integrity to Federal Research and Policymaking Act (H.R. 839) Feb. 16, which would move authority for federal peer review standards away from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

The rail company banned from shipping hazardous cargo through the nation’s capital has filed a suit to overturn the emergency legislation that was enacted earlier this month. The local law bans rail shipments of hazardous cargo from a 2.2-mile radius around the U.S.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is proposing to expand the amount of information that can be withheld from the public as Safeguards Information (SGI). The new rule would amend existing SGI regulations to cover more types of information by inserting language and adding a new category of covered information — Safeguards Information-Modified Handling (SGI-M).