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More than 40 former employees of the Department of Natural Resources sent letters to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday expressing concerns over what they see as lax regulation and enforcement under the Walker administration.

The employees include a longtime secretary of the agency and several former administrators. They expressed concerns about inadequate water regulation and claimed the DNR has de-emphasized science in decision-making.

The DNR has come under fire from Democrats and environmentalists under Gov. Scott Walker. Officials have said they are enforcing regulations but also trying to reduce unnecessary costs and red tape by an agency that is traditionally one of the most controversial in state government.

The letters also raised questions over whether the DNR is as far along as it says it is in complying with 75 deficiencies the EPA cited in July 2011 over Wisconsin's handling of water regulations. The EPA ordered the DNR to address the problems, which began before Walker entered office in January 2011. The DNR says some issues have been cleared up. In an Oct. 28 statement, the agency said the rest are moving ahead through a state rule-making process.

"Our administration has been working diligently to address the previous issues and we believe that these rule packages will help us move forward in our efforts to protect and restore Wisconsin's vital water resources," DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp said in a statement at the time.

But the former employees asked the EPA "not to allow unsupported assertions" that the DNR is addressing these issues.

One of those signing the petition is former DNR Secretary George Meyer, who headed up the agency from 1993 to 2001. Others include Jay Hochmuth, a former air and waste division administrator; Don Theiler, a former director of air management; and Lyman Wible, a former administrator of environmental quality.

Meyer said the former employees still closely follow the agency, have contacts with employees and believe the DNR under Walker is more interested in pleasing business than protecting the environment. In their letters, the former employees said they are concerned about political pressure on employees, budget cuts and leniency on regulated companies.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported in March that enforcement activity in Walker's first term lagged substantially compared with agency action during the two terms of Jim Doyle, his Democratic predecessor. The agency said then that it is using the same enforcement system it's used for decades, and is putting the most emphasis on the biggest cases.

Meyer said he recently met with 10 former DNR employees in Stevens Point from different areas of the state — a group that he said reflects growing disaffection with the DNR by current and former employees.

"They all feel strongly that the DNR is not complying with federal laws," Meyer said.

The letters were the latest effort to put pressure on the DNR. Midwest Environmental Advocates, a legal advocacy organization that helped organize the letter writing, asked the EPA in October to strip the DNR of its powers to regulate water pollution if the state doesn't make progress on past issues cited by the EPA.

The EPA said it could not provide a comment on Monday. DNR spokesman Jim Dick said the letters amount to more than 100 pages and that the agency hasn't had time to review them.