EPA is proposing new safeguards for recycling hazardous materials to protect public health and the environment. The proposal modifies EPA’s 2008 Definition of Solid Waste (DSW) rule, which exempted over 3 billion pounds of hazardous waste from RCRA. The proposal will improve accountability and oversight of hazardous materials recycling, while allowing for flexibilities that the agency says will promote its economic and environmental benefits. EPA is opening up this proposal for public comment.
EPA is also releasing for public comment its draft expanded environmental justice analysis of the 2008 DSW final rule, which evaluates the rule’s potential impact on low-income and minority communities. EPA is also requesting public comment on the environmental justice analysis as well as on suggested changes received from peer review. The analysis and peer review comments will be available in the docket for this rulemaking once the proposal is published.
“Safe recycling of hazardous materials conserves vital resources while protecting the environmental and economic health of our communities,” said Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “Today’s proposed enhancements show EPA’s commitment to achieving sustainable materials management through increased recycling, while retaining safeguards to protect vulnerable communities and the environment.”
The proposed rule, which was issued in response to a lawsuit brought by environmental groups, still exempts recyclers from hazardous waste handling requirements in many instances, but it promises to afford greater federal oversight and industry accountability. Facilities that recycle onsite or within the same company under the reduced regulatory requirements retained under the proposal would be subject to enhanced storage and recordkeeping requirements as compared to the 2008 rule. Companies that send their hazardous materials offsite for recycling would have tailored storage standards, while being required to send their materials to a permitted hazardous waste recycling facility. The proposed rule also creates a level playing field by requiring all forms of hazardous waste recycling to meet requirements designed to ensure materials are legitimately recycled and not being disposed of illegally.
EPA will accept comment on this proposal for 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.
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Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Finalized
The EPA has finalized new Clean Air Act (CAA) regulations that the agency says will slash hundreds of thousands of tons of smokestack emissions that travel long distances through the air leading to soot and smog, threatening the health of hundreds of millions of Americans living downwind. Twenty seven states in the eastern half of the country will work with power plants to cut air pollution under the rule, which leverages widely available, proven, and cost-effective control technologies. Ensuring flexibility, EPA will work with states to help develop the most appropriate path forward to deliver significant reductions in harmful emissions while minimizing costs for utilities and consumers.
“No community should have to bear the burden of another community’s polluters, or be powerless to prevent air pollution that leads to asthma, heart attacks and other harmful illnesses. These Clean Air Act safeguards will help protect the health of millions of Americans and save lives by preventing smog and soot pollution from traveling hundreds of miles and contaminating the air they breathe,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “By maximizing flexibility and leveraging existing technology, the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule will help ensure that American families aren’t suffering the consequences of pollution generated far from home, while allowing states to decide how best to decrease dangerous air pollution in the most cost effective way.”
Carried long distances across the country by wind and weather, power plant emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxide (NOx) continually travel across state lines. As the pollution is transported, it reacts in the atmosphere and contributes to harmful levels of smog (ground-level ozone) and soot (fine particles), which are scientifically linked to widespread illnesses and premature deaths and prevent many cities and communities from enjoying healthy air quality.
The rule will improve air quality by cutting SO2 and NOx emissions that contribute to pollution problems in other states. By 2014, the rule and other state and EPA actions will reduce SO2 emissions by 73% from 2005 levels. NOx emissions will drop by 54%. Following the CAA’s “Good Neighbor” mandate to limit interstate air pollution, the rule will help states that are struggling to protect air quality from pollution emitted outside their borders, and it uses an approach that can be applied in the future to help areas continue to meet and maintain air quality health standards.
The Cross-State Air Pollution Rule replaces and strengthens the 2005 Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), which the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ordered EPA to revise in 2008. The court allowed CAIR to remain in place temporarily while EPA worked to finalize the replacement rule.
The rule will protect over 240 million Americans living in the eastern half of the country, resulting in up to $280 billion in annual benefits. The benefits far outweigh the $800 million projected to be spent annually on this rule in 2014 and the roughly $1.6 billion per year in capital investments already underway as a result of CAIR. EPA expects pollution reductions to occur quickly without large expenditures by the power industry. Many power plants covered by the rule have already made substantial investments in clean air technologies to reduce SO2 and NOx emissions. The rule will level the playing field for power plants that are already controlling these emissions by requiring more facilities to do the same. In the states where investments in control technology are required, health, and environmental benefits will be substantial.
The rule will also help improve visibility in state and national parks while better protecting sensitive ecosystems, including Appalachian streams, Adirondack lakes, estuaries, coastal waters, and forests. In a supplemental rulemaking based on further review and analysis of air quality information, EPA is also proposing to require sources in Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin to reduce NOX emissions during the summertime ozone season. The proposal would increase the total number of states covered by the rule from 27 to 28. Five of these six states are covered for other pollutants under the rule. The proposal is open for public review and comment for 45 days after publication in the Federal Register.
Details of California Cap-and-trade and Mandatory Reporting Regulations
The draft proposals responded to direction from the ARB and cover a range of program elements that incorporate allowances, market oversight, enforcement, and offsets.
Later in the summer there will be a formal public comment and review period.
Specific elements of the discussion draft include:
- Initiation of the program elements in 2012, but extending the start of the compliance obligation to 2013.
- Establishing precise benchmarks for the allocation of carbon allowances over the life of the program.
- Details regarding allocation for both public and investor-owned utilities.
- Changes to the timing of auctions.
- Clarification of penalty provisions as part of a broader process to ensure strong enforcement and market oversight.
- Clarification of the quantity of allowances a market participant will be allowed to hold.
- Changes to language to ensure reductions in greenhouse gases (GHGs) from the electricity sector.
- Provision to support the continued benefits of voluntary investment in renewable energy sources, consistent with the state’s efforts to drive continued growth in renewable energy.
- Clarification of offset program details, continuing the stringency of ‘compliance-grade’ offsets.
The ARB also released proposed changes to the Mandatory Reporting Regulation designed to ensure that the state’s GHG reporting requirements complement the proposed changes in the cap-and-trade regulation.
EPA Seeks to Adopt Emission Standards for Large Commercial Aircraft
. The proposal would reduce ground-level nitrogen oxide emissions by an estimated 100,000 tons nationwide by 2030. Exposure to nitrogen oxide emissions can cause and aggravate lung diseases and increase susceptibility to respiratory infection.
The standards were previously agreed to by the United Nation’s International Civil Aviation Organization ). Due to the global nature of air travel, EPA works with international agencies to ensure significant and cost effective emissions reductions. If adopted in the United States, the standards would be phased in over the next two years, applying to all new engines in 2013.
Comments will be accepted for 60 days after the date that the proposal is published in the Federal Register.
Georgia Authorized to Implement the Lead Renovation Program
On July 5, 2011, the State of Georgia received authorization to administer and enforce EPA’s Lead Renovation, Repair, and Painting (RRP) Program. The authorization became effective upon EPA’s receipt of the State’s certified Renovation Authorization Application which was submitted by Georgia Governor Nathan Deal. Attorney General, Sam Olens has certified that the Georgia Program, which will be administered by the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, is at least as protective as EPA’s and provides adequate enforcement.
“EPA appreciates Georgia’s leadership in protecting kids from exposure to lead-based paint,” said Gwen Keyes Fleming, Regional Administrator for EPA Region 4. “Because lead exposure can cause permanent, serious, life-long problems, renovators and rental property owners play a big role part in shielding children from its impact in their homes.”
The RRP program mandates that contractors, property managers and others working for compensation, in homes and child-occupied facilities built before 1978, must be trained and use lead-safe work practices. They are also required to provide the lead pamphlet, “Renovate Right; Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers and Schools,” to owners and occupants before starting renovation work.
Lead contaminated dust is the most significant source of lead exposure for children. Common renovation activities like sanding, cutting and demolition can create hazardous lead dust and chips by disturbing lead-based paint, which can be harmful to adults and children. Lead-based paint was used in more than 38 million homes until it was banned for residential use in 1978. Lead exposure can cause reduced IQ, learning disabilities, development delays, and behavioral problems in young children.
Comment Period Extended NESHAPS for Steam Generating Units & NSPS for Steam Generating Units
The new date for receipt of comments is now August 4, 2011.
Compatibility of Underground Storage Tank Systems with Biofuel Blends
Oil Refinery Executive Pleads Guilty to Violations of the Clean Air Act
The Vice President and General Manager of Pelican Refinery in Lake Charles, Louisiana, pleaded guilty to negligent endangerment charges under the federal CAA. According to the misdemeanor charges filed in federal court, Byron Hamilton, oversaw operations at the refinery, which resulted in the negligent release of hazardous air pollutants, including hydrogen sulfide, an extremely hazardous substance into the air which placed persons in imminent danger of death and serious bodily injury. In pleading guilty, Hamilton acknowledged that his negligence in overseeing refinery operations was a proximate cause of the releases and associated risks.
According to a joint factual statement filed in federal court, Pelican Refining bypassed use of a caustic scrubber designed to remove hydrogen sulfide from emissions. In addition, a continuous emission monitoring system used to measure hydrogen sulfide emissions levels was not working properly. In order to comply with a permit issued under the CAA, the refinery was required to use certain pollution prevention equipment, but that equipment was not in proper working condition. As such, releases of pollutants into the atmosphere and at the refinery were evident.
In 2005 and 2006, Pelican processed sour crude oil which included high concentrations of Hydrogen Sulfide, or H2S, a highly toxic and flammable gas inherent in sour crude refining. H2S is an extremely hazardous substance that has the odor of rotten eggs at low concentrations. Refinery workers reported smelling H2S as well as having their personal H2S monitors trigger on occasion. Pelican Refining had no procedure to record, track, report, or mitigate H2S releases.
“Facilities operating in our backyards have a responsibility to follow the nation’s environmental laws, which are designed to protect the air we breathe and the local environment,” said Ivan Vikin, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division in Louisiana. “Today’s action shows that businesses and their senior managers who choose to ignore these critical safeguards and put their employees and the public at risk will be prosecuted.”
“It is disturbing that a facility operator would bypass state and federal regulations to the detriment of human health and the environment,” said DEQ Secretary Peggy Hatch. “The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality continues to work with our state, local and federal partners in order to bring environmental violators to justice through comprehensive investigations, criminal enforcement actions and aggressive prosecution.”
The investigation is ongoing and is being conducted by the Louisiana Environmental Crimes Task Force, which is comprised of the U.S. EPA Criminal Investigation Division, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality Criminal Investigation Division, and the Louisiana State Police. The case is being prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Stephanie Finley and the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.
FedEx Fined $689,800 for Hazardous Materials Violations
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a civil penalty of $689,800 against Federal Express Corp. (FedEx) of Memphis for allegedly violating U.S. DOT hazardous materials regulations.
The FAA alleges that in 89 instances from June 13 to September 4, 2009, FedEx failed to provide pilots-in-command with complete, accurate information on the nature, quantity, and weight of hazardous materials loaded on their aircraft. Pilots-in-command must be given this information under hazardous materials regulations.
The FAA also alleged that FedEx accepted four shipments of hazardous materials for transportation by air when those materials were not accurately described and certified in the accompanying shipper’s documents. The shipments were accepted between June 18 and August 26, 2009.
The alleged violations were found during an FAA dangerous goods inspection at the FedEx cargo-handling facility at Bradley International Airport near Hartford, Connecticut, from August 31 to October 1, 2009.
“Pilots must know they are carrying dangerous goods so they can take all necessary safety precautions,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. “Shippers and airlines must follow the rules so they are able to move these materials safely.”
FedEx has 30 days from the receipt of the FAA’s enforcement letters to respond to the agency.
Bostwick Laboratories Inc. to Pay $129,900 Civil Penalty to Resolve Hazardous Waste Violations
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) and Arizona Attorney General’s Office announced that Bostwick Laboratories Inc., of Tempe, Arizona, has agreed to pay a $129,900 civil penalty under a consent judgment for hazardous waste violations.
The company, located at 1700 Desert Dr. in Tempe, provides laboratory services specializing in the monitoring and diagnosis of cancer.
During an inspection of the facility in February 2010 by ADEQ’s hazardous waste inspection and compliance unit, it was found that the company did not put decontamination equipment in one storage area and also had not made local police and fire authorities and area hospitals familiar with its emergency procedures.
The company also had incomplete inspection logs, did not have contingency emergency plans or an emergency coordinator, lacked training records for hazardous waste storage personnel, did not mark “Hazardous Waste” on five-gallon containers and shipped hazardous waste without obtaining the required ID number from the EPA.
In addition, a records review determined that Bostwick Laboratories did not register with ADEQ, pay annual registration or hazardous waste generation fees or submit annual reports since beginning operations in 2006.
“This lack of management of hazardous waste put employees and the community at risk. Agreeing to pay this sizeable penalty is an acknowledgement of the severity of the situation,” ADEQ Director Henry Darwin said.
“Any company handling hazardous waste needs to rigorously comply with state standards to protect the health of our citizens and our environment,” Attorney General Tom Horne said.
Illinois EPA Refers Curless Flying Service to Attorney General for Enforcement
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Interim Director Lisa Bonnett has asked the Illinois Attorney General’s office to proceed with an enforcement action against Curless Flying Service, Inc., for the improper discharge of agricultural chemicals into the Turkey Branch of Otter Creek, causing a fish kill. Curless operates an agriculture chemical facility located at 11220 East Bricker Highway, Astoria.
Acting in response to a report of dead fish to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, IDNR and Illinois EPA inspectors conducted a site investigation on July 2, 2011. They observed numerous species of dead fish, frogs, and tadpoles. The inspectors proceeded to trace the dead aquatic life to a disposal site belonging to Curless. The disposal site consisted of two large burn barrels, one of which contained partially emptied jugs of agricultural chemicals. Other debris and waste was also present around the burn site.
The Illinois EPA directed Curless Flying Service to stop burning, stop open dumping, and to temporarily cover the burn barrels with a tarp to prevent precipitation from entering the barrels and carrying pollutants to waters of the State. Water samples were also collected at various locations downstream of the burn site.
The Agency has requested that the Attorney General direct Curless to permanently cease the burning of agricultural chemical containers and other wastes accumulated at the burn site, and properly dispose of all existing waste from the burn site in a permitted landfill. The Agency also requests that soils and groundwater in the burn area be sampled. A soil and groundwater remediation plan, based on the results of the sample analysis and approved by the Illinois EPA, must be implemented at the facility.
North Carolina Corporate Hog Farm and President Plead Guilty to Violating the Clean Water Act
Freedman Farms, Inc., and its president, William B. Freedman, pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court in New Bern, North Carolina, to violating the Clean Water Act (CWA) when they discharged hog waste into a stream that leads to the Waccamaw River, the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced.
After a week of trial that began on June 28, 2011, Freedman Farms pleaded guilty to a felony violation of the CWA for discharging hog waste into Browder’s Branch, a tributary to the Waccamaw River that flows through the White Marsh, a large wetlands complex. Freedman Farms, located in Columbus County, North Carolina, is in the business of raising hogs for market, and this particular farm had some 4,800 hogs. The hog waste was supposed to be directed to two lagoons for treatment and disposal. In December 2007, hog waste was discharged from Freedman Farms directly to Browder’s Branch. William Freedman pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor violation of the CWA for his role in the discharge.
“Owners and operators of concentrated animal feeding operations must comply with the nation’s Clean Water Act for the protection of America’s streams, wetlands, and rivers,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Department of Justice. “Freedman and his farm failed to do so and should be held accountable for polluting waterways and wetlands in Columbus County and the Waccamaw River watershed.”
“The hog industry is vital to North Carolina. However, we must protect our natural resources that affect other vital interests in our beautiful state,” said U.S. Attorney George E.B. Holding. “In order to assure the well-being of all, we must ensure that everyone takes care of these precious and finite resources.”
“Large farms and dairies can cause serious damage to the environment if they illegally discharge wastewater into nearby lakes, rivers, and streams,” said Maureen O’Mara, Special Agent in Charge of EPA’s criminal enforcement program for North Carolina. “That is why EPA has made addressing violations by concentrated animal feeding operations an enforcement priority. In this case, waste products from nearly five thousand hogs went directly into a sensitive wetland area, jeopardizing the safety and health of water and wildlife. This guilty plea demonstrates that farm owners must obey the law and will be held responsible for their actions.”
The CWA is a federal law that makes it illegal to knowingly or negligently discharge a pollutant into a water of the United States. The act includes as waters of the United States those that have a significant nexus to a traditional navigable water.
According to the plea agreement, the government and the corporate defendant have jointly asked the court to sentence Freedman Farms to pay $1.5 million, serve a term of five years’ probation, and publish a public apology. Under the plea agreement for William Freedman, the defendant faces up to one year in prison.
If the court decides to accept the plea agreement, the sentencing hearing for both defendants will take place on a date to be scheduled by the court, before U.S. Chief District Judge Louise W. Flanagan.
The case was investigated by the EPA Criminal Investigation Division and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the EPA Science and Ecosystem Support Division. The case is being prosecuted by the Assistant U.S. Attorney Gaston Williams of the Eastern District of North Carolina, and Trial Attorney Mary Dee Carraway of the Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division.
Companies in Vermont and Massachusetts Face Sanctions for Failing to Prevent Oil Spills
A Massachusetts and a Vermont company that each store significant amounts of oil are facing EPA penalties of up to $177,500 for failing to take adequate precautions meant to prevent and contain oil spills.
Both complaints were based on inspections by EPA staff.
The complaint against Knight Oil alleged the violations took place at its facilities at 49 Congress St. and 91 Congress St. in Amesbury. Among other things, SPCC plans require adequate containment to prevent spilled oil from reaching surface waters. Several surface waters, including the Back River, Clarks Pond, and the Powwow River, could be affected if oil were spilled from either facility.
EPA’s New England office also alleged in a separate complaint that Rowley Fuels failed to adequately maintain and implement an SPCC plan at its facility at 10 Industrial Park Road. Because of the facility’s proximity to surface waters and a municipal stormwater drain system, which both drain into Lake Champlain, a fuel-oil spill at the facility could result in fuel-oil being discharged into Lake Champlain.
In addition to facing penalties that could be as high as $177,500, the companies must take steps to bring the facilities into immediate compliance with the federal spill prevention and response planning requirements. Both companies have taken steps to bring the facilities into compliance with federal SPCC requirements.
Every year, thousands of gallons of oil are spilled from oil storage facilities, polluting New England waters. Even small oil spills can cumulatively have an adverse effect on aquatic life and on public and private property. Because discharges from these facilities are often to small streams and rivers that have little to no dilution capabilities, the harm can be great. SPCC plans are critical to ensuring that such spills are prevented and, if they do occur, are adequately addressed.
Federal law requires facilities that have the potential for spills take every step possible to prevent, before they occur, oil discharges to the nation’s rivers, lakes, and oceans through putting in place SPCC plans. Any facility with more than 1,320 gallons of aboveground oil storage capacity and meeting certain other criteria must develop and put in place SPCC plans to prevent and contain spills, including installing non-porous containment around storage tanks.
The law recognizes that it is equally important that facilities know how to minimize environmental damage when spills do occur, and therefore requires response planning and spill preparation. To ensure that a facility can adequately respond to a spill, it must have adequate employee training and spill response equipment.
$500,000 Penalty for Diesel Engine Violations
The California Air Resources Board (ARB) announced that Cummins Inc., a manufacturer of heavy-duty diesel engines, paid $500,000 for failing to properly retest its engines already in use.
The California Air Pollution Control Fund, established to mitigate various sources of pollution through education and the advancement and use of cleaner technology, received $125,000, while the EPA collected an additional $375,000.
Violations include:
- Not testing at least four engines in selected engine families;
- Completing tests after the deadline set in a 1998 settlement agreement for a previous air quality infraction;
- Reporting test results more than 30 days after test completion; and,
- Testing 10 vehicles at less than the maximum weight, as designated in the terms of a 1998 agreement.
ARB determined that while Cummins satisfied the intent of the engine testing provisions, the company failed to ensure that all settlement provisions were met.
ARB, working with EPA, discovered this most recent offense during an investigation regarding Cummins’ delivery of approximately 570,000 diesel engines without exhaust after-treatment devices between 1998 and 2006, a violation of the CAA.
Diesel exhaust contains a variety of harmful gases and over 40 other known cancer-causing compounds. In 1998, California identified diesel particulate matter as a toxic air contaminant based on its potential to cause cancer, premature death, and other health problems.
Vexor Technology Inc. Fined $24,000 for Hazardous Waste and Surface Water Permit Violations
Vexor Technology Inc., has agreed to pay a $24,000 penalty to settle hazardous waste and surface water permit violations at its facility located at 955 West Smith Road in Medina. Vexor is an industrial waste and used oil transporter, transfer, and processing facility.
In April 2010, Vexor workers placed a 10-gallon container of ignitable hazardous waste into the facility’s solidification pit resulting in a chemical reaction and fire. Ohio EPA found Vexor failed to comply with its surface water permit which allowed for only non-hazardous wastes to be placed in the pit. The company also was cited for establishing and operating a hazardous waste storage and treatment facility without the proper permit.
The plans detail how the company will profile and manage incoming wastes, including hazardous wastes which are inadvertently received at the facility. The company also will establish financial assurance and liability coverage for those areas of the facility subject to potential cleanup under the plans.
The settlement includes a civil penalty of $20,000 to support Ohio’s hazardous waste cleanup fund and water pollution control efforts, and $4,000 for Ohio EPA’s Clean Diesel School Bus Fund.
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Trivia Question of the Week
About how much water is used to fracture a large horizontal natural gas well?
a. 50,000 gallons
b. 500,000 gallons
c. 5,000,000 gallons
d. 50,000,000 gallons