Recent Posts
-
DATA Act Gets a Boost at Transparency Conference
September 13, 2013 -
Why Zero Wall Street CEOs Are in Jail
September 13, 2013 -
Senators Ask State Department To Respond to POGO Report on Embassy Security
September 12, 2013 -
SIGIR Releases Its Final Report
September 12, 2013 -
VA Makes Headway on Backlog with New Technology
September 12, 2013 -
Benghazi Ignored: New Evidence Exposes Gaps in Kabul Embassy Security
September 10, 2013 -
Map Shows State Dept. Official Gave Misleading Testimony to Congress
September 10, 2013 -
Watchdog Finds Flaws in DOE Contractor Responsibility Checks
September 10, 2013 -
DoD IG Confirms POGO’s DARPA Concerns
September 6, 2013
VIDEO: New Info Reveals Old Lies About #Area51
TweetAugust 23, 2013
The existence of the secretive Air Force base known as Area 51 has finally been confirmed by newly declassified documents about the U-2 spy plane program.
POGO has an unusual history with Area 51. In the 1990s, POGO investigated Area 51 as part of a lawsuit that alleged the military base was ignoring environmental regulations, which had exposed workers to extremely dangerous chemicals that were burned in massive pits.
Scott Amey, POGO’s general counsel, was involved in the lawsuit, and he provides his reaction to the official confirmation of Area 51 in the video above.
Amey also wrote a longer blog post about POGO’s previous investigation and the serious health and environmental consequences of the government’s secrecy.
From the blog post:
Area 51 highlights the government’s use of secrecy to avoid environmental standards that protect workers and the environment. It’s certainly one thing to have the government stalk your phone and internet usage, but it is another thing for the Area 51 workers to serve their country and die protecting government secrets, and in return have the government turn its back on them and their families.
Read more here.
Andre Francisco is the Online Producer for the Project On Government Oversight.
Topics: National Security
Related Content: Government Secrecy
Authors: Andre Francisco
Stay Connected
Browse POGOBlog by Topic
POGO on Facebook
Latest Podcast
Podcast: How The Intelligence World Came to Rely on Contractors
POGO's Scott Amey talks about the growing private intelligence industry that includes major federal contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, the former employer of Edward Snowden. Podcast with Joe Newman, Aimee Thomson, Jana Persky and Andre Francisco.



