DEAR EDITOR:

Regarding the “Onion” Letters to the Editor about the hiring of Dr. Ron Sahu as an expert witness for the appeal the city of Youngstown filed with the Ohio EPA. The opinion no matter how well intended, shows a lack of understanding of how serious this issue is and the needed expertise to fight for the rights of all people, including Youngstown residents to have to clean air, clean water and safe communities to live in. There is no time nor is it possible to have a city employee “bone up” on this issue to be ready to testify against the Ohio EPA.

I have been an expert witness on a couple of cases where Dr. Sahu has been involved and, having read his voluminous reports can attest to his vast knowledge of environmental and industrial issues. I don’t find a $60,000 fee too high of a price considering his education level, experience, the time he will have to invest in research, report writing and trial prep. People with his education and numerous case experiences can ask for up to $1600 an hour. At a low fee of $400 an hour he would only have to put in 150 hours or 18.75 eight hour days including testifying to arrive at that fee. The next hurdle a city employee “boning up” on the issue would face is the “Voir dire” process an expert witness has to undergo to be accepted as an “expert.”

Having undergone that process more than a few times I assure you that if you do not know your stuff you will be quickly discredited by the opponent’s legal representatives under cross examination. Dr. Sahu is the immediate answer. From what I have seen in cases I have been involved in, he is disliked by “environmental bad actors”. He is the right person at the right time for the job protecting the residents of Youngstown.

The real problem is the Ohio EPA forcing communities to pay money that they should not be required to pay to protect their environment. The Ohio EPA needs to do their job of PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT, not issuing a 10-year air pollution permit to an experimental, non-tested technology that would endanger the public health and safety of the city of Youngstown and against the citizens and elected official desires.

SILVERIO CAGGIANO

Retired Battalion Chief/HazMat WMD Specialist.

Mineral Ridge