From the October 1998 Idaho Observer:

Idaho Delegation Impotent Against EPA

Craig, Chenoweth cannot (will not?) stop EPA from poisoning public

Rathdrum company OZ Technology has the answer to the world's refrigeration dilemma. For its sins, it has been forced to spend $3 million in perpetual litigation with the EPA over the last six years. OZ has learned that EPA policy is knowingly and willingly poisoning the American public with its post-CFC era policy. Representative Helen Chenoweth (R-ID) has been aware of the problem for some time and still the EPA is allowed to militantly enforce its deadly policy. Senator Larry Craig (R-ID) was sent the following letter, which even spells out what he would find upon investigation, in hopes that the authority of his office might force the EPA to reconsider the intelligence of promoting the widespread use of a deathly toxic greenhouse gas to replace the use of Freon. Chenoweth and Craig have thus far been unwilling (unable?) to keep the EPA from enforcing a policy that is poisoning the American public. Why?

9/1/98

Senator Larry Craig

Attn: Laurie

Senator Craig:

In response to the international ban of CFCs and the resultant Clean Air Act, in 1992 Gary Lindgen of Rathdrum invented the answer to the world's refrigeration dilemma. He also designed a CFC incinerator and an ingenius CFC/HC exchange program. Problem solved.

Rather than support the use of organic, inexpensive, readily available, non-toxic, environmentally friendly hydrocarbon (HC) blend refrigerants as one would expect, court documents, articles, a well- documented pattern of unlawful enforcement actions and six years of EPA/OZ correspondence proves beyond doubt that the EPA has been using apparently limitless federal resources to conduct a campaign intended to kill OZ and keep its product HC-12a® out of the marketplace.

OZ has spent nearly $3 million in six years of perpetual litigation with the EPA. We suspect that the EPA has spent at least double that amount in its unscientific and provably unlawful persecution of OZ.

Why? The EPA's only argument against the use of OZ refrigerants is the inherent flammability of HCs_yet after millions of applications over several years there is not one incident of accident, injury or property damage that has been reported from anywhere in the world that is attributable to the appropriate use of HC refrigerants. Not one. Dozens of credible independent scientific safety and risk assessment reports that have been submitted to the EPA support what has been learned in the field: HC refrigerants, when used properly, are safe to well within established safety guidlines.

Conversely to its campaign to discredit OZ and its refrigerants, EPA post-CFC era policy is promoting the widespread use of HFC-134a. According to DuPont sales literature, HFC-134a, "May cause death without warning." Several scientific studies that have been submitted to the EPA which support arguments that the odorless and tasteless HFC-134a is deathly toxic to humans in concentrations documented (by Wright-Patterson AFB and others) to be as little as 400 ppm.

The EPA has also determined that HFC-134a is a greenhouse gas. HFC-134a is corrosive, thermally inefficient and, at 350 degrees F., becomes deadly hydrofluorine gas. It must be used with toxic, carcinogenic and flammable PAG or POE compressor oils.

In our files is a complete paper trail of EPA lies, deceit, lawlessness and abuse of authority. While reading the mountain of correspondence that has accumulated between OZ and the EPA, a pattern developes: OZ's original optimism and cooperation turns to frustration, frustration turns to sarcasm and sarcasm to anger. By 1994 it was obvious that the EPA intended to use its authority to drive OZ out of business. Articles quoting named EPA officials prove this to be true. In thousands of pages of correspondance there is not one example of EPA support or cooperation_only obstruction, obfuscation and inaccurate interpretations of science obviously intended to discredit OZ and its perfectly safe and viable technology.

A thorough investigation of this matter would uncover the following: That groundlevel emissions of CFCs cannot damage stratospheric ozone; that the 30-year patent protection for Freon was nearly up by 1987; that major chemical companies provided the solution to the CFC ban (HFC-134a); that the EPA has done everything in its power to discourage the use of HCs (based ostensibly upon public safety issues with regard to flammability); that the EPA has determined that HFC-134a is a greenhouse gas; that it has knowingly ignored HFC-134a safety and risk assessment and toxicological data; that EPA "acceptability" of HFC-134a as a CFC replacement has never been held to the same evidentiary standards to which HC- 12a has been held.

The end result of a thorough investigation of this matter would be the following: The EPA has enforced a post-CFC era policy that has encouraged the widespread use of a deathly toxic greenhouse gas that has been responsible for thousands of medical complications, perhaps including death, over the use of natural, non-toxic, thermally efficient environmentally friendly refrigerants that have have never harmed anybody.

We have all of the documentation and witnesses to prove the horrible implications of the above statements.

The EPA is currently attempting to change the rules through the statutory rulemaking process. The new rules, once adopted as final, will kill OZ. To implement the rules that it "proposed" June 11, the EPA has changed the meaining of terms in true Orwellian fashion and is claiming authority that is clearly not found in the Clean Air Act which gives the EPA the authority to create post-CFC era policy.

As an important issue of public health and safety, EPA post-CFC era policy must be investigated and you are apparently the only person with the authority to compel such an investigation. If something is not done to make the EPA accountable for its unscientific and ovbiously special interest-driven and motivated post-CFC era policy, OZ will be out of business and the public will be epidemically exposed to a deathly toxic greenhouse gas.

Please contact our legal counsel so that we may arrange a meeting. Time is of the essence as within days we are going to realize the death of a company whose only sin was to be caught within the enforcement authority of the EPA.

Sincerely,

Don Harkins, OZ Technology

The documentation is crystal clear: The EPA is wrong and its post-CFC era policy is exposing Americans to a deathly toxic "greenhouse" gas. Should not senators and representatives at least have the power to stop federal agencies from enforcing policies that kill innocent Americans? Contact Craig and Chenoweth at the numbers below. Tell them it makes you mad when Congress refuses to investigate a federal agency that is being accused of poisoning the American public. The EPA has replaced the IRS as Public Enemy #1. Maybe Congress should do something about it. What do you think?

Senator Larry Craig
Hart Senate Office Building,
Room 313
Washington, D.C. 20510

Phone: (202) 224-2752
Fax: (202) 228-1067

email: larry_craig@craig.senate.gov

Congressman Helen Chenoweth
U.S. House of Representatives
Longworth House Office Building,
Room 1727
Washington, D.C. 20515

Phone: (202) 225-6611
Fax: (202) 225-3301

email: ask.helen@mail.house.gov