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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Lewiston Tribune Editorial 9/30/05</FONT></DIV>
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<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#000000 size=+4><B>T.H. - You mean you have to
actually apply for grants?<BR><BR></B></FONT><FONT face=Arial color=#000000
size=+2><I>Tom Henderson<BR><BR></I> <BR><BR> Larry Kirkland of Moscow
just learned a valuable lesson. If you don't apply for a grant, your chances of
getting it drop dramatically.<BR><BR> Kirkland is the executive secretary
of the Palouse Basin Aquifer Committee. He told committee members they had a
$100,000 federal grant to help monitor water levels, but the money was taken
back because they didn't use it in the right time frame.<BR><BR> He
characterized it as a paperwork snafu -- a confusion over deadlines for using
the money.<BR><BR> When committee members pressed him for details, he said
he needed to dig up the grant application.<BR><BR> Fishy.<BR><BR> You
tell committee members they've punted a $100,000 grant they were planning on,
but forget to bring along the paperwork?<BR><BR> Of course, Kirkland forgot
something else. He forgot to tell committee members he never applied for the
grant in the first place.<BR><BR> Officials at the Environmental Protection
Agency say they never received any kind of grant application from the Palouse
Basin Aquifer Committee.<BR><BR> Well, Mr. Kirkland? Care to
explain?<BR><BR> You have to give him credit. However, he should have gone
with the dog eating his homework. Telling committee members he has to dig up a
grant application he never submitted takes lame excuses to a new
level.<BR><BR> Is all this really that big a deal? Yes and no. Kirkland
made a mistake. It's embarrassing, but not as embarrassing as attempts to
sugarcoat it.<BR><BR> On the other hand, members of the committee often say
they want to be the lead agency in the area for water-use issues. If so, they
need to demonstrate more competence and honesty than
this.<BR><BR> Determining water levels is part of the research vital to the
future of water quality and usage, not to mention comprehensive planning,
throughout the Palouse.<BR><BR> It's serious business, requiring a serious
level of professionalism.<BR><BR> Kirkland's feet need to be held to the
fire -- even if just a little bit -- for playing spin doctor without a license.
-- T.H.</FONT></DIV></DIV></BODY></HTML>