California to Adopt Restrictions on Use of Heavy Metals

As mentioned in earlier Environmental Resource Center Tips of the Week, California will be adopting the European ROHS standards next year. The following is the text of the rule:

Restrictions On The Use Of Heavy Metals In Covered Electronic Devices
Department Reference Number: R-2006-06
Proposed Text of Emergency Regulations

ADOPT title 22, division 4.5, chapter 10, article 3, section 66260.202 to read as follows:

§66260.202 Restrictions on the Use of Heavy Metals in Covered Electronic Devices.

(a) On or after January 1, 2007, no person shall sell or offer for sale in California, a covered electronic device if the device is prohibited from being sold or offered for sale in the European Union on or after its date of manufacture due to the concentration of one or more heavy metals in the device exceeding its maximum concentration value, as specified in the Commission Decision of August 18, 2005, amending Directive 2002/95/EC (European Union document 2005/618/EC), or as specified in a subsequent amendment to the Directive.

(b) In determining the concentrations of metals for compliance with subsection (a), the Department shall not consider any cadmium, chromium, lead, or mercury, or any component containing any of those metals, which has been exempted by Directive 2002/95/EC, or by an amendment to the Directive.

Washington Adopts Electronic Product Recycling Rule

 The rule requires retailers to only sell branded products belonging to registered manufacturers. Collectors and transport registration requirements are also included. The rule prescribes the enforcement process and associated penalties for non-compliance.

Covered electronic products are personal computers, laptop and portable computers, computer monitors and televisions.

Supreme Court Could Alter Greenhouse Gas Regulation

The ongoing debate about climate change may be influenced by the results of a Supreme Court decision, with oral arguments scheduled for Nov. 29, 2006. It consolidates a series of legal and agency actions that began in 1999, and may determine if EPA can regulate a major greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, emitted from new vehicles.

EPA decided in 2003 that it could not. Before then, EPA's official policy was that it could, according to Massachusetts Attorney General Thomas Reilly, the lead attorney for the many governments and organizations asking EPA to regulate CO2. 

The general argument of those asking EPA to regulate CO2 as a greenhouse gas is that the Clean Air Act directs EPA to regulate any chemical substance emitted into the air that can endanger public health or welfare, and that CO2's role in greenhouse warming meets these criteria.

Those opposed to regulation of CO2 as a greenhouse gas generally argue that the detailed history and nuances of the Clean Air Act's language don't include CO2, or any greenhouse gas, as substances that must be regulated, and that Congress historically has explicitly excluded greenhouse gases from regulation. They also are concerned that any court decision, which will address CO2 emitted just from new vehicles, could be applied to all other CO2 sources — which together emit much higher volumes than new vehicles — as well as other greenhouse gases, and drag down the economy 

•  

If the court generally sanctions regulation of CO2, it may be necessary for Congress to specifically address the issue before any applicable regulation can be implemented. Or if the Court agrees with EPA and says there is no current basis for regulating CO2, the many other forces at work pressing for regulation of greenhouse gases may still drive regulation or more expansive programs.

Overview of State Idling Laws

 

The free guide, called “Idle Talk: How the Regulations Affect You,” gives fleet owners and truck drivers a quick-reference compendium of the latest maximum idling time allowed across the country. “Idle Talk” also identifies the penalties for noncompliance.

North Carolina Issues Mercury Limits for Coal-Fired Power Plants

The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission (EMC) took action to require all the state’s coal-fired power plants to install effective mercury controls at each of their units by no later than 2017. The rule is the first mercury-specific regulation of the state’s utilities and is stronger than the federal mercury rule from which it was prompted. North Carolina is among the top 12 states with the highest mercury emissions from power plants.

“This rule marks an important and aggressive step forward in controlling mercury pollution in North Carolina and should stand among the strongest mercury regulations in the country,” said John Suttles, Senior Attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center. “The real winners here are North Carolina residents, who will reap the health benefits of lower emissions of this toxic pollutant.”

The rule passed by the EMC will require existing power plants to install the “maximum level of reduction” of all units no later than 2017 regardless of the level of controls the plants already receive through the Clean Smokestacks Act. New sources will be required to install the best available control technology, which is expected to result in state of the art levels of mercury control.

Existing units can avoid installing the necessary controls if they are determined not to be technically or economically feasible. However, this determination can only be made if the utility proves that continued operation of the unit without such controls will not contribute to health problems and that they will achieve deeper controls at other units. Industry trade groups have said that technology that will effectively control mercury is affordable and available. In North Carolina, significant mercury reduction technology can be installed at a cost of less than one percent of utility profits – as little as 33 cents per month on the average household utility bill.

The rule will allow state utilities to save up excess credits if their mercury emissions fall below the limits established by EPA. They will then be allowed to sell those credits to utilities in other states. Environmentalists and public health professionals have opposed this provision as it could lead to mercury “hot spots”—local areas of high mercury contamination and human exposures.

“While this rule should clean North Carolina’s house, we remain concerned and disappointed that it buys into EPA’s discredited pollution trading scheme, which may lead to mercury ‘hot spots’ in other areas of the Southeast,” said Suttles.

After installing pollution control technology to comply with the state’s Clean Smokestacks Act, which requires controls for pollutants that contribute to smog and soot, some of the state’s power plant units will also see a reduction in mercury as a “co-benefit.” But the Clean Smokestacks Act is not designed to control mercury pollution and will leave many of the state’s largest mercury emitters uncontrolled or under-controlled for mercury.

Power plants account for more than 70% of North Carolina mercury emissions. The state’s high number of old, coal-fired power plants combined with normally high rainfall levels and numerous water bodies turns mercury into its toxic form – methyl mercury – faster in North Carolina than in other parts of the country.

GM Reportedly Will Launch a Plug-In Hybrid Car

Reuters reported that General Motors Corp. will likely unveil a prototype plug-in hybrid at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January.

The advanced technology vehicle would have an extended driving range on battery power and would also have a diesel or gasoline engine that could power the car when the battery was low, the Detroit News said, citing unnamed GM officials. Plug-in hybrids are gas-electric vehicles that can recharge their batteries with an extension cord and a normal wall outlet.

Other automakers are also researching plug-in technology, including Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. Ltd. Ford Motor Co. has a fleet of hybrid hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as part of "real world testing of fuel cell technology."

EPA Seeks Nominations for Contaminant Candidate List

 There are thousands of naturally occurring and man-made contaminants that have the potential to enter sources of drinking water (e.g., pesticides, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, industrial chemicals). Some of these contaminants may pose no risk to human health, but others may cause cancer or have endocrine disrupting, reproductive, or developmental effects. Naturally occurring microbial contaminants may also cause illness. To ensure that public health is protected, EPA assesses the universe of unregulated drinking water contaminants to determine if they are subject to regulation under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). EPA is inviting interested members of the public to help identify contaminants that may have an adverse health effect on people and are known to occur or are likely to occur in public water systems and to nominate those candidates for CCL 3.

EPA will consider the nominated contaminants along with the contaminants the agency identifies from an evaluation of chemical and microbial data sources. The agency will assess the health effects and occurrence information of each contaminant to decide if it should be included on the draft CCL 3, which the Agency expects to publish in 2007.

New Federal Emergency Response, Recovery Office

The U.S. General Services Administration has announced the creation of its new Office of Emergency Response and Recovery. GSA's Office of Emergency Response and Recovery (OERR) will leverage all the resources within GSA in one central office and provide a new level of support and assistance to first responders, emergency workers and recovery teams. GSA is the nation's premier contracting and acquisition resource and now those assets will be specifically organized to respond to national emergencies.

"I am from New Orleans and grew up in the 9th Ward," noted Lurita Doan, GSA Administrator. "My house, along with all of my neighbors', was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. I have made it a high priority to retool and substantially improve GSA's ability to react during periods of national emergency."

"We can't prevent future disasters, but we can surely respond quicker, more effectively and with more resources and that is exactly why GSA has created this new office," said Administrator Doan.

Administrator Doan signed GSA Order ADM 5440.599 on Nov. 1 creating the new office. Established in GSA's Central Office in Washington, D.C., OERR is headed by the Chief of Emergency Response and Recovery Officer who reports to the Administrator through the Chief of Staff. OERR consists of the Policy and Plans Division, Training and Exercise Division, Disaster Support Division, Communications and Security Division, and the Historic Preservation Team.

The GSA Order also abolishes the agency's Office of Emergency Management and transfers its functions to OERR. Some of the duties of those divisions include developing agency-wide disaster readiness, implementing disaster plans and integrating emergency historic preservation requirements in response and recovery plans. As an interim measure, GSA Chief of Staff John Phelps will also serve as Acting Chief of Emergency Response and Recovery Officer. Mr. Phelps has served as GSA's Chief of Staff since July 3, 2006.

"By designing GSA's Office of Emergency Response and Recovery in this fashion, we have further refined our capabilities so we can do our job – helping government agencies help the American people during disasters – when they count on us most," said Mr. Phelps.

Prior to his arrival at GSA, Mr. Phelps served as Chief Operating Officer of the Arizona Red Cross, where he was responsible for operations of the sixth-largest American Red Cross chapter in the United States.

Additionally, Mr. Phelps was the Deputy Director of the Arizona Office of Homeland Security and led the creation of systems and processes within that office to provide more effective and efficient support to hundreds of first responder organizations.

EPA Fines Indian Tribe $915,000 for Water Violations

In recent settlements with the EPA, the Pala Band of Mission Indians will pay $915,000, and its contractors, Brown Bulk Transportation Co., Valley Materials and Supply, Inc., and James Brown will pay $65,000, totaling $980,000, for illegal discharges of dredged and fill material to the San Luis Rey River in San Diego County, Calif., without U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permits.

The consent decrees, lodged last week by the Department of Justice, require the Pala Band of Mission Indians to provide $545,000 toward The Nature Conservancy's acquisition of ecologically valuable property for permanent protection within the San Luis Rey River watershed as mitigation for the impacts caused by the defendants’ activities. The Pala Band of Mission Indians will pay a civil penalty of $370,000, and the other defendants will collectively pay a civil penalty of $65,000.

"The San Luis Rey River is an important Southern California watershed," said Alexis Strauss, Director of the EPA's Water Division for the Pacific Southwest Office. "The EPA is committed to working with the Pala Band of Mission Indians to ensure the river and its aquatic resources are protected for all."

From late 1998 to early 2000, the Pala Band of Mission Indians and Brown Bulk Transportation Co., Valley Materials and Supply, Inc., and John Brown illegally graded and discharged dredged and fill materials to the San Luis Rey River as part of an aggregate mining operation without appropriate U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permits. The tribe’s construction of portions of a casino from 2000 to 2001 also resulted in unpermitted discharges of dredged and fill material to the San Luis Rey River.

The City of Skagway, Alaska to Pay $18,000 EPA Settlement to Resolve Clean Water Act Violations

The City of Skagway has agreed to pay an $18,000 penalty to resolve alleged violations of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System () permit issued to the city’s wastewater treatment plant.

The NPDES permit program, established under the federal Clean Water Act, controls water pollution by regulating sources that discharge pollutants to waters in the United States. Here, the city’s wastewater treatment facility discharges municipal wastewater into Taiya Inlet, which is part of the upper Lynn Canal located near Skagway, AK. The facility serves a population of approximately 862.

Between October 2002 and November 2005, the facility had 1,211 violations including exceedances of permit limits for biological oxygen demand, total suspended solid, fecal coli form bacteria, and E. coli bacteria.

According to Marcia Combes, EPA’s Alaska Operations Office Director, “EPA strongly believes in the importance of protecting water quality in Alaska and we are happy that the city appears to be making strides in upgrading their facility.”

EPA Cites Wisconsin Landlord for Lead-Based Paint Violations

EPA Region 5 has settled with David and Monica Stern for allegedly failing to warn tenants of an apartment building that their homes may contain lead-based paint hazards. The building owners will pay a $596 penalty and replace 18 windows at the 3843 N. Morris Blvd., Shorewood, Wis., property.

The Federal Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Rule requires that landlords and sellers of housing constructed prior to 1978 provide tenants and buyers with general and property-specific lead-hazard information and include a lease or contract clause to confirm that prospective tenants or buyers have received the lead warnings prior to signing the contract to lease or purchase.

Lead exposure can cause reduced IQ, learning disabilities, developmental delays, reduced height, poor hearing and a host of other health problems in young children.

Peeling lead paint is the most common source of lead exposure to children in the United States. About 75% of the nation's housing built before 1978 contains lead-based paint. When properly managed, lead-based paint poses little risk. If paint is not maintained, however, even low levels of lead exposure can threaten occupants' health, especially children and pregnant women. 

International Partnership Claims Economic and Environmental Benefits

Last year, the U.S. contributed more than $5 million to an international program to recover and use methane as a clean energy source.  Once these methane projects are fully implemented, they are expected to garner annual greenhouse reductions of nearly 5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, while providing enough electricity to power the equivalent of 800,000 U.S. homes, here and around the world.

"As good global neighbors, America is working with our international partners to reduce our climate footprints in aggressive yet practical ways," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "Under the Bush Administration's unprecedented financial, domestic and international commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the Methane to Markets Partnership is delivering environmental and economic results by converting waste into wealth."

. The report was developed collaboratively by EPA, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency.

The report summarizes the contributions of these government agencies and profiles methane capture and use projects around the world – and supported by the U.S. government – that address the challenges of clean development and climate change, such as:

• The world's largest power generation project fueled by coal mine methane in Jincheng, China
• New compressor station technology in Ukraine in the oil and gas sector
• Landfill gas to energy projects in Latin America
• Livestock waste management technologies in East Asia

The Methane to Markets Partnership, is a public-private partnership to advance methane recovery and use projects in four sectors: agriculture, coal mines, landfills, and oil and natural gas systems. More than 350 organizations from around the world have made commitments to this partnership. The United States has committed up to $53 million to this initiative over the next five years.

EPA Action Leads to Compliance with Federal Underground Tank Regulations at McGuire AFB

McGuire Air Force Base in New Hanover Township, New Jersey is complying with measures required by federal law to prevent leaks of underground storage tank (UST) systems at the base, thanks to a settlement with the EPA.  Under the terms of the agreement, the U.S. Air Force, New Jersey Air National Guard and the Army and Air Force Exchange Service will also pay a penalty of $115,000 for the violations. The military installed proper corrosion protection, overfill protection and lead detection equipment, and improved annual testing and record-keeping at the 20 federally regulated UST systems it uses to store fuel for vehicles at the base.

“Leaks of petroleum underground can spread very quickly to sully the groundwater and the soil,” EPA Regional Administrator Alan J. Steinberg said. “It’s much easier to prevent leaks before they happen. The armed services protect our country and they must also do their part to protect our environment.”

Underground storage tanks have historically been the nation’s number-one source of groundwater contamination, with over 30,000 leaks and spills from tanks reported annually. Tanks range in capacity from a few hundred to 50,000 or more gallons, and are used to store gasoline, diesel, heating oil and other fuels, waste oil and hazardous substances at gas stations, marinas, government facilities and large industrial sites. Petroleum releases can be a source of contamination of drinking water from groundwater sources, making them unsafe or unpleasant to drink. Releases can also result in fire and explosion hazards and produce short- and long-term health effects.

The EPA regulations require owners and operators to maintain underground storage tanks to avoid releases into the environment. In addition, the regulations require owners and operators to clean up leaks to restore and protect groundwater resources, and provide a safe environment for those who live or work around these sites.

$15,430 for Failure to Clean-up Tetrachlorethylene

R.A. Properties Inc. of Holyoke, current owner of the property located at 35 Warwick Street in Springfield, Mass., was fined $15,430 by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) for failure to undertake required response actions involving the remediation of hazardous materials on-site.

Tetrachloroethylene and other solvents were discovered in the groundwater, resulting from past releases at this site which was used as a wire manufacturing facility from the 1930s until the early 1990s.

On June 23, 1989, MassDEP was notified of a release of hazardous materials when tetrachloroethylene was discovered in the groundwater on-site. MassDEP required that the former owner of the property undertake cleanup actions to address the release of hazardous materials. The former owner undertook assessment activities and submitted required reports to MassDEP documenting analytical results that exceeded the applicable standards for tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene and other solvents in the soils and groundwater.

On March 11, 2005, a notice of responsibility was issued to Robert Allen, the new owner and president of R.A. Properties Inc., informing him of his obligation to continue clean-up actions at the property. Despite a reminder letter, and three subsequent notices, R.A. Properties has failed to undertake the required response actions involving the remediation of hazardous materials on the property.

"Numerous opportunities have been provided to Mr. Allen to meet his obligations and he has failed to do so. It's essential that proper environmental cleanup occur to ensure this release does not result in threats to on-site workers, potential impacts to occupants of nearby buildings and damage to the environment," said Michael Gorski, director of DEP's Western Regional Office in Springfield. "MassDEP will continue aggressive enforcement against all non-responders until these sites are properly remediated."

Oregon DEQ Announces Penalties Totaling $193,470 in October 2006

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) announced 15 penalties totaling $193,470 in October. To date in 2006, DEQ has issued 144 penalties totaling $1,348,358. By the same time last year, DEQ had issued 142 penalties totaling $1,559,252.

Several of October’s larger penalties involved asbestos handling violations on two separate asbestos abatement projects that took place in Salem earlier this year. One involved asbestos removal at the former Eagles Lodge at 1195 NE Broadway; the other involved failure to properly survey, remove and handle asbestos-containing materials at the former Chalet Restaurant at 3875 Market St. NE.

Eagles Lodge project

On Oct. 25, DEQ issued penalties totaling $19,650 against 3 Kings Environmental Inc., a Washington-based, DEQ-licensed asbestos abatement contractor. The penalties were for asbestos handling, packaging, labeling and disposal-related violations regarding an asbestos removal project that took place in early 2006 at the former Eagles Lodge in Salem. 3 Kings has until Nov. 14 to appeal the penalty.

DEQ, on March 1, had conducted a compliance inspection of the project. DEQ had approved 3 Kings’ work plan to complete the asbestos removal project without any containment, provided that 3 Kings comply with important conditions. First, all asbestos-containing material and asbestos-containing waste material was to be kept adequately wet during the project and through disposal. Second, all asbestos-containing material was to be immediately placed in an appropriate container after removal and properly disposed of in accordance with state rules. Third, 3 Kings was prohibited from openly storing or accumulating asbestos-containing waste material. In addition, DEQ granted 3 Kings’ request to use “burrito-style” packaging or wraps during the project, provided that the wraps would be slid out of the dump trucks at the disposal site rather than dumped from the back of the trucks, to minimize the risk of rupturing the wrap.

During its inspection, DEQ found that 3 Kings failed to keep the asbestos-containing material and excavation area wet at all times until the material was disposed of at a landfill. Also, 3 Kings employees informed DEQ during the inspection that both burrito wraps filled with asbestos-containing waste material had ruptured at the landfill during disposal. Upon further investigation, DEQ learned that 3 Kings had dropped the wraps out of the back of a dump truck, causing them to rupture and spill their contents, potentially releasing asbestos fibers into the air. In addition, 3 Kings failed to attach proper warning labels to its containers of asbestos waste before sending the waste to the landfill.

DEQ also learned that 3 Kings disposed of its asbestos-containing waste at a different landfill than the one identified in documents the company submitted to DEQ. 3 Kings had listed Hillsboro Landfill as the disposal site, yet the company disposed of at least one load at Coffin Butte Landfill, just north of Corvallis.

DEQ assessed the 3 Kings penalties as follows:

• Failing to adequately wet asbestos-containing materials during the project ($9,600 penalty)
• Failing to properly package asbestos-containing material ($8,400 penalty)
• Failing to revise asbestos abatement project written notification to include name and location of waste disposal site ($600 penalty)
• Failing to properly label containers of asbestos-containing waste material ($1,050 penalty)

The 2006 Eagles Lodge incident was not the first time DEQ has contacted 3 Kings about asbestos violations. Between 2001 and 2004, DEQ issued the company six notices of noncompliance for various asbestos rule violations, but didn’t issue any penalties. However, should the company commit additional violations of Oregon’s asbestos rules and regulations, DEQ may suspend or revoke 3 Kings’ license to perform asbestos abatement work in Oregon.

3 Kings’ failure to keep the asbestos-containing material wet and its mishandling of the material during disposal created the potential to release asbestos fibers into the air, DEQ air quality officials noted. Asbestos fibers are a respiratory hazard proven to cause lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis.

Violations during former Chalet Restaurant remodel

DEQ fined two companies in mid-October for violations regarding asbestos removal work during renovation of the former Chalet Restaurant in Salem. DEQ issued fines totaling $10,532 against Charles E. Wyant, doing business as Charles Wyant & Sons, for failing to have an accredited inspector survey the facility before starting renovation work, and for allowing an unlicensed asbestos abatement contractor to perform asbestos abatement. DEQ subsequently penalized Moser Development Corp., doing business as Moser Roofing Co., $6,600 for conducting an asbestos abatement project without being licensed.

Charles Wyant & Sons did not respond by its Nov. 2 appeal deadline and now owes the $10,532 penalty amount. Moser Roofing Co. appealed its penalty on Oct. 31.

The penalties stem from a complaint DEQ received last spring about possible mishandling of asbestos-containing roofing materials at the former Chalet Restaurant. DEQ conducted an investigation at the site on April 4 and followed up with another visit the next day. DEQ observed that the old wood shingle roofing material had been torn off the facility’s roof, and that asbestos-containing roofing paper underneath had also been removed. The roofing material was weathered. In this state, it could potentially break apart and release asbestos fibers into the environment.

Upon further investigation, DEQ learned that the owner of the building, Charles Wyant, had removed sheet vinyl flooring inside the restaurant beginning March 22 under an assumed business name “Charles Wyant & Sons.” Charles Wyant and Charles Wyant & Sons are not licensed to conduct asbestos abatement projects. Also, DEQ learned that Charles Wyant failed to survey the building for the presence of asbestos-containing material prior to starting the renovation work. Oregon law requires that an accredited inspector survey a facility for asbestos prior to performing renovation or demolition work. DEQ penalized Charles Wyant $4,532 for failing to have an accredited asbestos inspector survey the site before commencing work. DEQ also penalized the company another $6,000 for allowing Moser Roofing Co., which is not licensed to perform asbestos abatement projects, to remove asbestos-containing material from the roof.

DEQ issued a $6,600 penalty to Moser Roofing Co. for conducting an asbestos abatement project without being licensed. A licensed asbestos abatement contractor would have followed strict guidelines in removing and handling the asbestos, including wetting the material during removal and properly packaging, labeling and disposing of the asbestos waste. DEQ analyzed the roofing material Moser Roofing removed from the building and found that it contained 40% chrysotile asbestos. DEQ regulates the handling and disposal of any material containing more than 1% asbestos. Mishandling of the roofing material by Moser Roofing employees created the potential to release asbestos fibers into the air, causing a public and environmental health hazard.

Issue Up Close Education Series

The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) is introducing a new series of brochures, designed to provide environmental education in an easy to access format. Entitled Issue Up Close, the series debuts with two new brochures: Managing Our Water Successfully and Mitigation That Works. 

"Shrinking snow pack, increasing drought years, population growth and development all combine dramatically to reduce water availability," explains Ecology Director Jay Manning in the brochure Managing Our Water Successfully. "Education on this vital issue is a statewide priority." Managing Our Water Successfully looks at the issues affecting water availability and what communities and citizens can do to make a difference."

Also part of the Issues Up Close series, Mitigation That Works: Sustaining our Remaining Wetlands for People, Fish and Wildlife, takes a close look at the critical role wetlands play in habitat preservation and how we can restore, preserve and protect the wetlands we have in our state.

Washington has lost more than 31% of its wetlands in the last two centuries, and has added the equivalent of 10 new cities the size of Tacoma or Spokane since 1982. This growth inevitably affects wetland resources. Mitigation That Works describes various options available to assist planners, landowners and developers in successfully fulfilling mitigation obligations and averting a net loss of wetlands within a watershed.

Habitat is essential to life. People, fish and wildlife all need places to live - food, water, shelter and space. Wetlands are among the habitats that are especially critical for fish, wildlife and communities.

The Ecology Web site is designed to highlight more information about the environment and help citizens make sustainable choices to protect air, land and water. The site features user-friendly navigation, a "How do I?" section that directs users to some of our most popular pages, and "clickable" photographic sections of Puget Sound, Columbia River and Hanford.

Managing our water successfully and sustaining critical habitats through mitigation that works are two of Ecology's four priorities in the agency's four-year action plan. The other two priorities are reducing toxic threats and protecting and restoring Puget Sound and Hood Canal.

Illinois Proposes Pipeline for Containment and Transportation of Greenhouse Gases

Illinois will issue a request for information (RFI) regarding the construction and operation of a carbon dioxide (CO2) pipeline stretching from the coal gasification plants planned for central and southern Illinois to Illinois Basin oilfields in southeastern Illinois.

The governor’s energy plan calls for the investment of $775 million to help build ten new coal gasification plants over the next ten years, which would convert Illinois’ coal from a solid to a gas that can be processed into a substitute for natural gas, diesel fuel, or electricity. The plants would use Illinois coal to meet 25% of the state’s diesel fuel needs, 25% of natural gas needs, and 10% of electricity needs. Coal gasification is the cleanest and most efficient way to convert coal to energy, with low emissions of mercury and other air pollutants, and allows carbon dioxide to be captured for permanent underground storage.

“Our energy plan will reduce Illinois’ dependence on foreign oil allowing us to use Illinois’ own natural resources to meet 50% of our fuel needs by 2017,” said Gov. Blagojevich. “Constructing a carbon dioxide pipeline is a big part of our plan because it will allow us to build coal gasification plants and use the CO2 they emit to extract more oil without contributing to global warming.”

As part of his energy plan, the Governor has proposed building a pipeline from gasification facilities in Illinois to Illinois Basin oilfields in southeastern Illinois. Illinois’ oil fields hold about one billion untapped barrels of oil resources. Because these oil fields are mature, production cannot increase without using advanced recovery techniques. “Enhanced Oil Recovery,” which uses carbon dioxide to extract more oil from existing reserves, could nearly double the amount of petroleum produced by Illinois annually. The 140-mile pipeline would transport the carbon dioxide captured by the coal gasification plants to oilfields and use the pressurized carbon dioxide to extract more oil.

Additionally, the carbon dioxide transported by the pipeline could be used to extract methane from Illinois coal reserves. Illinois coal reserves hold enough methane, a fuel similar to natural gas, to meet all of the state’s natural gas needs for seven years. The royalties from the recovered oil and gas would subsidize the infrastructure costs of transporting and permanently storing the carbon dioxide underground.

In an effort to recover residual oil and natural gas from Illinois’ vast oil and coal bed methane reserves, the state is seeking expressions of interest from the private sector to build and/or operate a pipeline “backbone” that will link new coal gasification and biofuels production facilities with mature oil fields amenable to enhanced oil recovery (EOR) and with potential enhanced coal bed methane resources in Illinois.

In the event that carbon dioxide becomes a regulated commodity, a CO2 pipeline would assist generators of CO2 to generate revenue from carbon credits they may accrue by transporting CO2 from coal gasification and biofuel plants to sites suitable for permanent storage in deep saline reservoirs, such as in the Mt. Simon Sandstone reservoir.

Potential sources of large quantities of CO2 are now being developed in Illinois. Several well-financed coal gasification projects and ethanol plants are now under development in Illinois that would yield gas streams with high CO2 concentrations suitable not only for EOR but possibly enhanced coalbed methane (ECBM) where the adsorption of CO2 on deep coal seams may boost methane production to enhance regional supplies of natural gas.

Building a CO2 pipeline to permanently trap and store carbon dioxide supports the governor’s recently announced Climate Change Initiative, which includes an executive order that created the Illinois Climate Change Advisory Group. The group will consider the full range of policies and strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Illinois and make recommendations to the governor. The advisory group will have broad representation that will include business leaders, labor unions, the energy and agricultural industries, scientists, economists, and environmental groups from throughout the state. The governor named Illinois Environmental Protection Agency Director Doug Scott as chair of the advisory goup.

The governor also announced that Illinois would join New Mexico to become only the second state in the nation to join the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX). As a CCX member, the state makes a commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the electricity and fuel needed to operate state facilities and motor vehicles; the reduction target only applies to state government operations.

Capital Resin Fined for Hazardous Waste Violations

Ohio EPA reached a settlement with Capital Resin Corporation for past hazardous waste violations and issued an administrative consent order on Nov. 8. The violations occurred at its facility located in Columbus, Ohio.

• Stored hazardous waste in the hazardous waste accumulation area beyond 90 days without a permit
• Failed to properly label one satellite accumulation container
•  
• Failed to provide emergency communication equipment to personnel handling hazardous waste in the 90 day accumulation area

The settlement includes a $20,000 penalty. In lieu of paying $5,600 of the civil penalty, Capital Resin Corporation has implemented a supplemental environmental project by hiring a full-time environmental technician to handle waste compliance.

How Will the Election Impact Environmental Regulations?

Republicans who have supported higher energy prices and opposed protecting property rights suffered major losses in House and Senate elections, according to an initial analysis by the Competitive Enterprise Institute.

In the Senate, Green Republicans Lincoln Chafee (R.I.) and Mike DeWine (Ohio) were sent packing by voters. In the House, notable green Republicans who were defeated include Representatives Charles Bass (N.H.), Jeb Bradley (N.H.), Nancy Johnson (Conn.), and Jim Leach (Iowa). The re-election race of another green Republican, Rep. Rob Simmons (Conn.), was still undecided as of Wednesday morning.

"Although many green Republicans, such as Senator Chafee stressed their environmental records, it didn't seem to do them much good," said Myron Ebell, CEI Director of Energy and Global Warming Policy. "It is also worth noting that groups such as the League of Conservation Voters and the Sierra Club didn't spend any money to support their Republican allies in Congress.

"Green Republicans were replaced by green Democrats, while conservative Republicans were mostly replaced by moderate Democrats," Ebell said. Environmentalists hope the new Congress will restore environmental protections that the Bush administration and Republican Congress stripped away. Democrats will be able to accomplish this when they take over committees. Much of what makes it to the floor of the House or the Senate for a vote must first go through a committee, where it can be stalled if it runs afoul of committee chairs.

One of the most strident Republican committee chairs has been Congressman Richard Pombo of the House Resources Committee. Representing the agricultural district of Stockton, Calif., Pombo made it his mission to revoke the Endangered Species Act and enforced a six-point screen on any proposals for new wilderness protection so that few measures made it to the House floor. He was defeated by Jerry McNerney, an engineer and renewable energy specialist who is the CEO of a company that produces wind-energy turbines.

Pombo will now be replaced as the chair of the House Resources Committee by ranking Democrat Congressman Nick Rahall of West Virginia. Congressman Rahall has represented southern West Virginia in Congress since 1977. He has worked to pass mine safety legislation, establishing the Gauley River National Recreation Area, and the Bluestone as a National Scenic River.

The House Resources Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, another important environmental post, has been chaired by Congressman Greg Walden. He is considered "second only to Pombo in his anti-environmental record," by Bark-Out.org, an Oregon-based forest conservation group. Over the past six years, the Forest Service has removed requirements for analyzing the environmental impacts of logging and restricted public participation in the management of public forests.

Walden is a supporter of fire salvage logging conducted by the U.S. Forest Service. But environmentalists such as Bark-Out say salvagers take old-growth trees in areas that could recover if allowed to regenerate naturally, and at a financial loss to the taxpayers. Walden will be replaced as subcommittee chair by Congressman Thomas Udall of New Mexico, who has earned a 95% pro-environment rating by the League of Conservation Voters. He has voted to preserve Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge instead of drilling it, against deauthorizing "critical habitat" for endangered species, and against speeding up approval of forest thinning projects.

Global warming is likely to receive more attention in the Democratic Congress. A number of Democrat and bi-partisan bills have already been introduced, including one by Congressman Udall. Udall and Wisconsin Republican Tom Petri, re-elected unopposed, introduced the “Keep America Competitive Global Warming Policy Act of 2006,” last month. Udall and Petri say that it is time for America to take steps to address global warming. “Our bill is modest, certain and efficient,” they said. “It begins to slow the growth of greenhouse gases, but minimizes the negative impacts to the U.S. economy.” 

Senate Democrats, including new members elected on Tuesday, will caucus November 14 to formally select their leaders. The Energy and Natural Resources Committee is likely to be chaired by Jeff Bingaman, a New Mexico Democrat, who would take over from fellow New Mexican Republican Pete Dominici. Bingaman helped write and supported the 2005 energy bill, but he did not succeed in including tax breaks for conservation and renewable energy development.

For the nonprofit League of Conservation Voters, the Democratic sweep was about public dissatisfaction with the Bush energy policy, according to LCV President Gene Karpinski.

From Risk Reduction to Value Creation

BT leads the field in SustainAbility’s latest biannual benchmarking survey of leading practice in corporate sustainability reporting, published in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Standard and Poor’s. The report, entitled “Tomorrow’s Value,” ranks the world’s leaders in corporate sustainability reporting, transparency and disclosure. Strikingly, half of the “Leading 50 companies” are complete newcomers, including five entrants from non-OECD countries.

 

 

 Highlights include:

• Yesterday’s risks become tomorrow’s opportunities for value creation

Companies - including BP, BT, GE and Philips - are shifting the focus of their sustainability strategy away from risk management, towards a more progressive and entrepreneurial approach that seeks to identify the sustainability opportunities for strategic innovation and market building. However, the pioneers are a minority, representing 28%, compared to 60% who demonstrate a more conservative, risk focused approach.

• Financial markets begin to influence sustainability disclosure

Cutting-edge sustainability reports are framed as part of a portfolio of information available to both SRI and, increasingly, mainstream investors. A panel of financial experts, convened to provide input to the report, agreed that their sector’s appraisal of stock volatility and long-term value was benefiting from heightened corporate transparency. Although around 70% of companies report some interaction with investors on sustainability matters, many still lack the hard targets and forward-looking information needed to become essential reading for mainstream analysts.

• Sustainability integrates into core business processes

Most so-called sustainability reports are only steps in that direction, but there has been a leap in the proportion of companies reporting the integration of sustainable development factors into core decision-making. A central concept in this area has been ‘materiality’, helping companies sort the critical risks and opportunities from the background noise. This year at least 80% of companies were rated as integrated on at least one aspect of their reporting.

• Public policy initiatives and disclosure remain weak

Tomorrow’s Value concludes that under half of corporate reporters still fail to sufficiently discuss and link their sustainability initiatives and commitments to the lobbying activities they undertake and to the wider influence they exercise, either directly or through lobbying and trade organizations. Only 28% of the 50 reporters covered this area meaningfully.

• International frameworks begin to provide context

The report spotlights and encourages an emerging effort by some businesses to link their individual sustainability targets and activities with broader macro-frameworks, to provide a sense of scale and to help measure individual contributions.

Senators in Call for Restored Access to EPA Libraries

As noted in earlier editions of Environmental Resource Center’s Tip of the Week, EPA has recently closed several of its libraries and plans to close more in the future. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) led a group of senators in a letter to senior members of the Senate Appropriations Committee requesting that the committee direct the EPA to restore and maintain public access to its library collections.

Despite an EPA report in 2004 showing that the monetary benefits of operating EPA libraries far outweigh the costs, the agency is shutting down libraries across the country that hold valuable information on important public health and environmental issues. Boxer’s letter, co-signed by 17 of her colleagues, requests that EPA maintain its library services and solicit and consider public and congressional input on its plans for cuts.

Senator Boxer said, “The administration's efforts to shut down public access to critical environmental information by closing EPA libraries is just one more attempt by theaAdministration to cover-up its negligent handling of environmental protection and should not stand.” Boxer’s letter was cosigned by Senators Frank Lautenberg, Tom Harkin, Richard Durbin, Maria Cantwell, Jack Reed, James Jeffords, Barack Obama, Ken Salazar, Max Baucus, Joe Lieberman, John Kerry, Jeff Bingaman, Edward Kennedy, Russ Feingold, Paul Sarbanes, Mark Dayton, and Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Trivia Question of the Week

Replacing a 100-watt incandescent with a 32-watt compact fluorescent lamp can save you at least how much money in energy costs over the life of the bulb?

a. $10
b. $20
c. $30
d. $40

Answer