County could have been hit with fine over Freon removal

Adrienne Packer

Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2000 | 11:04 a.m.

Shoddy record-keeping by the Clark County department that oversees the removal of Freon from county buildings could have led to hefty fines by the Environmental Protection Agency, an audit released Monday says.

The county could have been penalized $25,000 each day it was out of compliance with EPA regulations that require records showing how much refrigerant is removed or charged in air-conditioning systems.

"Logs detailing refrigerant use by unit and by leakage were not maintained by the county or by the vendor even after EPA regulations requiring such records were in effect," according to a report released by Clark County auditor Jeremiah Carroll.

The internal investigation was triggered by inventory documents that listed nearly 12,000 pounds of Freon worth about $295,000 as missing. The 1996 inventory sheet, which was turned over to a television station, was not a form used by either the county or its contractor.

While Carroll claims most of the Freon reported missing had actually been used in other systems or thrown away, the audit revealed the Real Property Management Facilities Division -- which is in charge of Freon removal -- didn't keep track of the expensive refrigeration gas.

"Internal controls do not exist, procedures are inconsistent and current inventory records are incomplete ... ," the audit says.

Clark County spokesman Doug Bradford said the auditors cross-referenced documents the facilities division did have with paperwork kept by vendors to determine what happened to the Freon in question.

The results of the probe show 2,224 pounds taken from the Clark County Courthouse were sold to a reclaimer in the summer of 1996; 980 pounds of Freon taken from the Bridger Building were used in other county systems and 200 pounds were taken from the Family Court Building and thrown away.

In addition, most of 1,492 pounds of refrigerant were transferred from the Clark County Detention Center to other county buildings.

The county put more stringent conditions in place to better track Freon, which is being phased out because of the damage it causes to the Earth's ozone layer. Freon is expensive, and there is a booming market for the refrigerant on the black market.

The county plans to work more closely with the EPA and its vendors. Inventory forms will be numbered and controlled at all times and certificates of destruction will be kept on file.

New inventory policies have been established and software was installed on computers to protect against tampering with the records.

The oversight of refrigerant removal also has been taken out of hands of Bill Barrett, manager of the facilities division. Barrett said Monday that no Freon was missing, which indicates procedures the division used were effective.

"Whoever speculated something was missing, their plans went awry," Barrett said.

Like many county officials, Barrett suspects workers in his unionized division fed the story to the media to retaliate against him for supporting Clark County Commissioner Mary Kincaid. Kincaid upset some union members when she voted against an ordinance that would have prohibited the nonunion Wal-Mart from opening its traditional Supercenters in Clark County.

About the same time the missing Freon story broke, an amateur video showing Barrett wearing a pro-Kincaid shirt and using a county vehicle was turned into a local television station. Barrett was reprimanded by the county manager.

"This is America," Barrett said. "We have differences in opinion about who to support and who not to support. But having differences is no cause to sabotage anyone in the workplace or in the home."