Covanta Recruitment of Public Official - HowTo

[Future Covanta Employee] BEFORE THE MONTGOMERY COUNTY ETHICS COMMISSION
Waiver No. 05-11-008.    

2005 AD 

http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/ethics/docs/w2005-08.pdf

• Mr. Balmer acknowledges that he has significantly participated in contractual activity with two of the three companies he would like to pursue post-County employment with: Covanta and Waste Management.

• The Commission finds that Mr. Balmer's proposed employment with Convanta or Waste Management is not likely to create an actual conflict of interest if he does not work on any project within the State of Maryland.

The Ethics Division in Maryland's spelling is "Convanta".   Homer believes "Covanta" is the more truthful spelling.  Maryland's governor in 2010 is Governor Martin O'Malley, a fine musician(a).

In 2007, Arthur Balmer, a Scot, was Director - Business Development for the US office of Covanta.   Before that he was Montgomery County (USA)’s project manager for the Authority’s $290 million Resource Recovery Facility.

Arthur Balmer

• 2007: Covanta Chief salesman ["Director - Business Development for the US office of Covanta"]

• [1987-2005] : 1) project manager for the Authority’s $290 million "Resource Recovery Facility" (aka Incinerator?); 2) management of the county’s Solid Waste Disposal and Collection Fund Operating Budgets, which exceed $90 million per year

In Ireland public officials can legally jump between the incineration industry and   regulators and public waste management positions.  An example is RPS and Bord Pleanála, or EPA-Ireland and Indaver - condemned by the Green Party before they became the Forty Shades of Greed Party.

In Washington D.C. there seems to be a one year cooling off period before a public employee can work for Convanta.  However all you need is a piece of paper to get around such difficulties, correctly done of course.  

From a 2005 document from Washington D.C. the local equivalent of a Matt Twomey or a Mr Tierney or a Mr Lyons or a failed Green Party enthusiast seems to have been Arthur G. Balmer:

Arthur G. Balmer has worked for the County since June 1987, and has served as the Chief of the Solid Waste Services Division in the Department of Public Works and Transportation since October 1994.

For one year after leaving County employment, a former employee must not enter into any employment agreement with any person or business if, during the prior three years, the employee significantly participated in any procurement or other contractual activity concerning a contract with that person or business.  [Restriction NA in Green-FF Ireland?]

Arthur G. Balmer, Chief of the Solid Waste Services Division, seeks a waiver of this prohibition in order to pursue post-County employment with any of the following three major waste-to-energy companies or their subsidiaries: Covanta Holding Corporation (with 31 facilities), Waste Management, Inc. (with 17 facilities), and Veolia Environment (with 7 facilities).  [2010: Covanta owns Veolia].

Mr. Balmer reports that his oversight responsibilities have included

• almost all of the engineering and construction companies engaged in construction and waste management in Montgomery County and nationally. 

•  negotiating many multimillion dollar contracts  including ... most of the major private solid waste companies.

Mr. Balmer acknowledges that he has significantly participated1 in contractual activity with two of the three companies he would like to pursue post-County employment with: Covanta and Waste Management.

The Commission finds that Mr. Balmer s proposed employment with Convanta or Waste Management is not likely to create an actual conflict of interest if he does not work on any project within the State of Maryland.

________________________

(a) O'Malley's March album, "Galway Races" is a galloping, electrified folk song about Ireland's largest annual horse-racing festival. O'Malley was mayor of Baltimore, 1999-2007, the period covered by HBO's The Wire.   


View HBO's The Wire for a fictional view of ethics and political standards in nearby Baltimore, Maryland.  View HBO's The Soprano's for a fictional view on the waste management industry as practiced in New Jersey.  Visit nearby Washington DC to see 100,000 lawyers lobbying the US Government with money to influence laws and budgets.  Visit Brussels to see the German Chemicals industry working to fix air quality standards across Europe.