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On his last day at work before taking early retirement, he was escorted out of his office. That was after he had been grilled by the government's top plumber, a former police officer, who never had such an easy time finding the source of a leak.

Mr. McAdams, a 55-year old ecologist, fell afoul of the provincial government, and became targeted as a risk-management threat, by filing an affidavit in the Supreme Court of British Columbia last spring. The affidavit supported a court action to stop a minister from doing something it was alleged he didn't have a legal right to do: approve a road through endangered painted-turtle habitat in Grohman Narrows Provincial Park, near Nelson.

Bill Barisoff, who was then the minister of. water, land and air protection, agreed to the road to help a trucking company, dismissing as secondary the damage that would be done to turtles.

It seemed a done deal, except that Mr. McAdams felt that the minister's mandate was to preserve and protect parks, not bulldoze them.

So Mr. McAdams went into government files, found documents that showed the project would damage turtle habitat and put it before the courts.

For this, on the verge of retirement, he found himself across the table from Shaun Fynes of the Risk Management Branch, Government Security Office, who reminds him of the public servant's oath of secrecy. Mr. Fynes asked how those government documents came to be attached to the affidavit.

Mr. McAdams said he dug out the records one lunch hour after attending a public meeting in Nelson at which Blair Suffredine, who was then the local Liberal MLA, announced the government had concluded the road was going to "be good for turtles."

When Mr. McAdams found records showing the government knew just the opposite, he knew he had to do something.

Reprinted with permission
THE GLOBE AND MAIL

"I could have gone to the press with it. I could have gone to the public with it, probably could have sold it," Mr. McAdams told Mr. Fynes, according to a transcript of the interview, provided by Mr. McAdams.

"Those I would say are not appropriate. The appropriate way to deal with this... possible indiscretion to go through the courts. ... I am not denying anything. I am saying I did that purposely."

Mr. Fynes: "You weren't devious about this at all, the way you put them into play into the public arena through your affidavit. Forgive me, but I have one question. Why would you not go back [after seeing the files] and do a Freedom of Information Request?"

That seemed a fair enough question. British Columbia has FOI legalization so the public can gain access to government files.

Mr. McAdams told Mr. Fynes he had filed an FOI request weeks earlier and had been told he would not get a reply until long after the government had built the road.

Well, asked Mr. Fynes, why not then take your concerns to a deputy minister? "Unfortunately, and I have got to be blunt here, I didn't... [have] faith in the managers,"

Action cost him $50,000, McAdams estimates

"How do you bring the problem to the person who is the problem? I felt the courts was the way to deal with it."

Mr. Fynes thanks Mr. McAdams for his frank admissions. But it didn't save him the ignominy of being fired.

"Although you gave stated you are prepared to take responsibility for your actions, you have not demonstrated any sense of remorse," Chris Trumpy, deputy minister of sustainable Resource Management, said in a letter of dismissal.

As a result, your employment with the Public Service is terminated, effective immediately."

Because he was fired, Mr. McAdams said he suffered loss of wages and pension worth about $50,000.

"It's a substantial penalty," said Mr. McAdams, who recently attended a grievance hearing in a continuing fight to win back his losses. Technically, the government dismissed Mr. McAdams for breaking his oath. In effect, it penalized him for speaking the. truth.

When the matter of the turtle road went before Madam Justice Sinclair Prowse if the Supreme Court, Mr. McAdams's view was confirmed - and Mr. Barisoffs decision to approve the road was set aside as "an unauthorized exercise of his statutory power."

There was no penalty for Mr. Barisoff, who is now Speaker of the House, and no penalty for the bureaucrats who, seven months later, still haven't produced the documents requested under FOI laws But at least the turtles are safe. Thanks to Mr. McAdams's costly act of courage.

Note: Shortly after this Nov. 7th article, Gordon McAdams was awarded with a financial settlement from his former employers. He reports that all parties concerned are happy with the agreement and he will be enjoying his retirement. Gordon hopes to avail the knowledge gained from his work to interested environmental organizations. He continued to work with the Nelson City Council, re-elected with a large majority on Saturday.

-Elaine Robinson