Industrial contamination of the White River in Indiana has lead to the death of hundreds of thousands of fish and may put a damper on the reelection campaign of Indiana Gov. Frank O’Bannon (D). More than 85 tons of dead fish have piled up along a 50-mile stretch of the river since it was poisoned five weeks ago by what investigators believe to be an industrial polishing agent used at an auto parts plant. Enviros have criticized the state for responding too slowly and failing to keep the public informed. Ironically, in 1996, O’Bannon attacked his Republican opponent, former Indianapolis Mayor Stephen Goldsmith, for a sewage release in the city that killed 500,000 fish in the same river. Now John Price, a contender for the GOP gubernatorial nomination, has filmed a TV commercial of himself standing next to dead fish on the riverbank, saying he wants to protect Indiana’s rivers.
