"This cafeteria opens today as a symbol of our federal government's efforts to lead by example and to leverage our enormous purchasing power to minimize the environmental burdens of the products and services we buy" said EPA Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances Assistant Administrator Steve Johnson.
The new cafeteria stands as an example of environmental preferability. From the ceiling to the floor to all things in between, the cafeteria features some impressive environmental aspects. The carpet tiles are made from post-consumer recycled materials. Dining chairs are made from recycled soda bottle material while cast iron table bases come from reclaimed engine block materials thus "closing the loop of recycling" according to EPA Assistant Administrator for Office of Administration and Resource Management Morris Winn.
Rather than using disposable serviceware, the cafeteria uses china, glassware and stainless steel utensils all washed in Energy Star dishwashers to minimize energy use, cut back on water consumption and reduce landfill waste. For those who prefer take-out food, the cafeteria features biodegradable biobased products for carry-out thus opening up the possibility for composting as a new alternative to traditional food waste management practices in the D.C area. A comprehensive recycling program includes food wastes, plastic, cans, glass, cardboard, newspaper and even grease.
Finally, much of the food in the new facility supports sustainable agricultural practices locally and abroad. For example, the cafeteria features organically grown fruit and vegetables as well as bird-friendly shade grown coffee. At the end of the day, all those who pass through the cafeteria doors leave having further contributed to the issues they work on every day.
Steve Johnson concluded his remarks in saying "We believe that the approach used here can serve as a model for cafeteria design and operation throughout the Federal government and beyond."
REPORT SHOWS EVIDENCE OF RECOVERY FROM EFFECTS OF ACID RAIN IN NORTHERN AND EASTERN U.S.
EPA Administrator Christie Whitman announced the release of a report that documents the success of the Agency's Acid Rain Program in reducing acid rain in sensitive ecosystems of the United States. The Acid Rain Program is the market-based cap and trade program on which President Bush's Clear Skies proposal is modeled.The most recent data, available in the report, confirm a large and widespread decrease in wet sulfate deposition (i.e., acidic precipitation) across broad areas of the Northeastern and Upper Midwestern U.S. The amount of wet sulfate deposited to lakes and streams declined by approximately 40 percent in the 1990s, allowing significant reductions in the number of these systems affected by acid deposition. Regional declines in surface water sulfate can be linked to declines in emissions and deposition of sulfur that have occurred since the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments, signed into law by President George H.W. Bush, which created EPA's Acid Rain Program.
EPA's Acid Rain Program has achieved more emission reductions at a faster pace and lower cost than originally expected. The 1990 law set a goal of reducing annual sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by approximately 50 percent below 1980 levels in 2010 to combat acid rain. In 2001, emissions of SO2 under the Acid Rain emissions trading program measured 10.6 million tons, already more than six a half million tons below 1980 levels. The reductions to date represent 80% of the progress needed to reach the program's emission reductions goal.
EPA's Office of Research and Development, along with other collaborators, released the report, "Response of Surface Water Chemistry to the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990." EPA and its collaborators have conducted extensive monitoring and scientific assessment since 1990 to determine whether control measures have reduced levels of acidity in lakes and streams in five geographic areas of the Upper Midwest and Northeastern United States those areas most affected by acid rain.
In three of those areas, one-quarter to one-third of lakes and streams previously affected by acid rain are no longer acidic, although they are still highly sensitive to future changes in deposition. In other areas, signs of recovery are not yet evident, suggesting that further reductions such as those proposed in the Administration's Clear Skies proposal will further assist in ecosystem recovery. Highlights of the report show:
- Eight percent of lakes in the Adirondacks are currently acidic, down from 13 percent in the early 1990s.
- Fewer than one percent of lakes in the Upper Midwest are currently acidic, down from three percent in the early 1980s.
- Nine percent of the stream length in the Northern Appalachian Plateau region is currently acidic, down from 12 percent in the early 1990s.
Acid rain includes both wet deposition (rain, snow and fog) and dry deposition (gases and particles) of sulfate.
The study was conducted by Dr. John L. Stoddard, of EPA's Western Ecology Division at the National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, with collaborators from researchers at University of Maine, Syracuse University, Oregon State University, U.S. Geological Survey, University of Virginia, Pennsylvania State University, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, Adirondack Lake Survey Corporation, and EPA Office of Air and Radiation.
The full report is posted on EPA's Office of Research and Development Web page at http://www.epa.gov/ord/htm/ordpubs.htm and can be downloaded by scrolling down to "air." A limited number of printed copies will soon be available from EPA's National Service Center for Environmental Publications (NSCEP). To obtain copies, please contact NSCEP at 1-800-490-9198 and reference EPA document number 620/R-03/001.
SUPPLIERS PARTNERSHIP FOR THE ENVIRONMENT READY TO ROLL
At a recent ceremony at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington DC, EPA Deputy Administrator Linda Fisher unveiled the new program Suppliers Partnership for the Environment (SPE) along with a host of top executives and representatives from member companies including General Motors, Ashland Chemical, Johnson Controls, Lear, The Bing Group, Delphi, Federal Mogul Corporation, Freudenberg-NOK, Haas Corporation, Petoskey Plastics, and Visteon. Judging from the results thus far, SPE stands as the next generation of P2 initiatives designed to green the supply chain of manufacturers from the ground up.SPE is an industry-led voluntary partnership with US EPA and Department of Commerce, National Institute for Standards and Technology's (NIST) Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) and the aforementioned private companies to provide direct technical assistance on environmental and production issues (such as materials efficiency) to sub-tier suppliers while increasing business value and output. SPE is a forum for large Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and their suppliers to come together on environmental issues and implement real change within their supply chain.
In 2001, EPA's Pollution Prevention program and General Motors set up a pilot project at the Saturn Motors auto manufacturing plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee. This pilot project was a long-term voluntary partnership to reduce the environmental impact of the GM supply chain by providing multimedia pollution prevention technical assistance directly to suppliers. Through the Saturn pilot project SPE partners identified cost saving opportunities in the range of $374,000 to $464,000, collectively from the four Tier I workshops (Tier I suppliers are those that supply directly to the OEM's like Saturn). Extrapolated across the entire GM Tier I supply chain, the estimated potential economic value of the work done to date is between $390 million to $520 million. Cost savings realized through SPE activities and workshops remain with the participating supplier, allowing suppliers to meet pricing demands from customers without sacrificing business value.
After the initial success, SPE participants are looking towards the future. "Programs like SPE provide an innovative approach to environmental management," says Kristin Pierre, manager of the Greening the Supply Chain project at EPA and member of SPE. "It shows that we're headed for the bright future." For more information on SPE, contact Kristin Pierre at pierre.kristin@epa.gov or 202-564-8837.
EPA PROVIDES INSTRUCTIONS TO WATER UTILITIES FOR CONDUCTING 'VULNERABILITY ASSESSMENTS'
In partnership with America's drinking water systems, EPA announced progress toward protecting America's drinking water by providing a set of instructions that will help drinking water utilities submit security self-assessments to EPA in a secure manner."Drinking water utilities are already submitting Vulnerability Assessments to EPA, marking a significant milestone in our efforts to protect our Nation's drinking water supplies," said G. Tracy Mehan, III, EPA's Assistant Administrator for Water. "These instructions to utilities and our secure information handling procedures demonstrate EPA's resolve to protect this vital information prepared by water utilities."
The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 requires EPA to work with water utilities to protect vital infrastructure and public health. Under the Bioterrorism Act, all community drinking water systems that serve more than 3,300 people are required to certify and submit vulnerability assessments and certify completion of emergency response plans to EPA. The deadline to certify and submit vulnerability assessments to EPA is March 31, 2003 for drinking water systems serving 100,000 or more people; Dec. 31, 2003 for systems serving 50,000-99,999 people; and June 30, 2004 for systems serving 3,301-49,999 people.
Once a drinking water system certifies completion of its vulnerability assessment to EPA, it is required, within six months, to certify completion of its emergency response plan. The instructions explain how the drinking water system is to submit the required documents to EPA.
For further information, log on to http://www.epa.gov/safewater/security .
DESIGN FOR THE ENVIRONMENT HELPS FLEXOGRAPHIC PRINTERS GET THE RIGHT MIX: PERFORMANCE, ENVIRONMENT, COST
This month, the Flexography Partnership of the U.S. EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE) Program is releasing a set of environmental publications for flexographers. For the past several years, DfE has been working with a number of associations and companies to evaluate the environmental, human health, performance, and cost aspects of solvent-based, water-based, and ultra-violet cured ink systems. The results of this study were published in February 2002 - Flexographic Ink Options: A Cleaner Technologies Substitutes Assessment (CTSA).Since then, the Flexo Partners have created a series of shorter publications that summarize key CTSA results and provide quick, practical information. The intent of these publications is to
- inform flexographers about comparative chemical risks in inks,
- facilitate the use and formulation of cleaner inks, and
- encourage adoption of workplace practices that minimize exposure to chemicals of concern.
One of the most interesting findings of the CTSA was the large variation of environmental, health, and safety characteristics within water-based and uv-cured inks. The practical implication here is that selecting the best ink formulations is just as important as selecting an ink system. Also, ideally flexographers would always choose the best-performing ink system with the lowest cost. However, the CTSA indicates there may be some cost-performance trade-offs. Lower-cost systems and formulations may yield lower performance. Alternatively, the CTSA indicates that printers may want to consider using systems and formulations with equal or better performance and higher operating costs if those higher costs are accompanied by environmental benefits. Three examples of private environmental benefits that printers may not be factoring into their ink purchase decisions include reduced occupational health risk, reduced safety hazards and regulatory costs, and reduced energy use.
New publications include:
- An Evaluation of Flexographic Inks on Wide-Web Film: Summary Booklet (EPA 744-R-02-002)
- Pollution Prevention: Tips for Flexographic Printers (EPA 744-F-020011)
- Developing Cleaner Ink Formulations: A Flowchart for Ink Formulators (EPA 744-F-02-003)
These publications are available from PPIC (ppic@epa.gov ) or the DfE website (http://www.epa.gov/dfe/projects/flexo). For more information, contact Karen Chu at chu.karen@epa.gov or 202-564-8773.
