As appears on Houston Public Media

One spring morning in downtown Houston, the state of Texas was holding a public hearing. A waste disposal company was asking for a state permit so the company could expand its landfill in northwest Houston. People who live nearby had concerns.

Connie Westfall is an attorney hired by some of the residents. She tells us later she's handled a lot of these cases, sometimes representing worried citizens, but other times working for the companies applying for a pollution permit.

"Where you run into problems is where the applicant treats the public as an irritant and just a speed bump on the way on getting their permit," Westfall said.

The state agency that issues pollution permits is the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). It's supposed to look out for the public. But Westfall says the TCEQ isn't always helpful.

"The TCEQ refused to meet with us, and they only met with us when we had a local legislator intervene," Westfall said.

The TCEQ denies it ever refused to meet with Westfall and the residents. But that kind of back-and-forth is just a taste of how contentious things can get when citizens want to be heard.

To read full article, or hear the entire radio segment, click here.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.