The agencies believe that under this proposed guidance the number of waters identified as protected by the CWA will increase compared to current practice and this improvement will aid in protecting the Nation’s public health and aquatic resources. The proposed guidance is consistent with the principles established by the Supreme Court cases and is supported by the agencies’ scientific understanding of how water bodies and watersheds function. In addition, the agencies believe that when the revised guidance is finalized and goes into effect, it will improve CWA program predictability and clarity regarding the scope of “waters of the United States” protected under the Act and that this improvement will have benefits for both the government and regulated parties.
When finalized, this guidance would supersede previously issued guidance on this matter. This guidance will apply to all CWA programs, including section 303 water quality standards, section 311 oil spill prevention and response, section 401 water quality certification, section 402 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits, and section 404 permits for discharges of dredged or fill material. In addition to this guidance, the agencies expect to propose revisions of existing regulations to further clarify which waters are subject to CWA jurisdiction, consistent with the Supreme Court’s decisions. Public comment on any such revisions will be requested at the time they are proposed.
Charlotte, North Carolina RCRA and DOT Update Training and SARA Title III Workshop
Hilton Head, South Carolina RCRA and DOT Training
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NESHAP for Coal- and Oil-Fired Electric Utility Steam Generating Units
According to EPA, the proposed NESHAP would protect air quality and promote public health by reducing emissions of the hazardous air pollutants (HAP) listed in CAA section 112(b). In addition, these proposed amendments to the NSPS are in response to a voluntary remand of a final rule. EPA is also proposing several minor amendments, technical clarifications, and corrections to existing NSPS provisions for fossil fuel-fired EGUs and large and small industrial-commercial-institutional steam generating units.
EPA Seeks Small Entity Participation on Two Upcoming Air Rules
EPA is inviting small businesses, governments, and not-for-profit organizations to participate as small entity representatives (SERs) for two Small Business Advocacy Review (SBAR) Panels to establish standards for vehicle emissions and update emission standards for refineries. Reducing pollution from vehicles and refineries is important to EPA’s mission to protecting the health of all Americans.
The Regulatory Flexibility Act requires agencies to establish a federal panel for rules that may have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. The panels will include federal representatives from the Small Business Administration, the Office of Management and Budget, and EPA. The panel members ask a selected group of SERs to provide advice and recommendations on behalf of their company, community, or organization to inform the members about the potential impacts of the proposed rule on small entities.
EPA seeks self-nominations directly from small entities that may be subject to the rules’ requirements. Other representatives, such as trade associations that exclusively or at least primarily represent potentially regulated small entities, may also serve as SERs.
Louisiana DEQ to Conduct MS4 and TMDL Workshops throughout Louisiana
Louisiana’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is sponsoring free workshops to inform and assist municipalities and parish governments with the requirements of Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems and the upcoming Total Maximum Daily Load changes and how they apply.
Pre-registration is suggested due to limited space and participants should register at least a week before each session.
The workshop locations are as follows:
- Pineville: May 26, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Main Street Community Center, 708 Main St. - Lake Charles: June 9, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
LSU Ag Center, 7101 Gulf Highway - Lafayette: June 23, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
LUS (Lafayette Utilities System) Training Center, Main Building, 1314 Walker Rd. - Covington: July 7, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Saint Tammany Parish Public Works Building, 620 N. Tyler St. - Houma: July 28, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Terrebonne Parish Library, 151 Library Dr. - Baton Rouge: August 11, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
LDEQ Headquarters, Pensacola Room, 602 North 5th St. - West Monroe: August 24, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
West Monroe Convention Center Conference Hall, 901 Ridge Ave. - Shreveport: August 25, 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Louisiana State Office Building, 1525 Fairfield, Room 205
Green Roof is a Cost-Effective Way to Keep Water out of Sewers
The Con Edison Green Roof, which is home to 21,000 plants on a quarter acre of The Learning Center, retains 30% of the rainwater that falls on it. The plants then release the water as vapor, the researchers said in the study.
If New York City’s 1 billion square feet of roofs were transformed into green roofs, it would be possible to keep more than 10 billion gallons of water a year out of the city sewer system, according to the study led by Stuart Gaffin, research scientist at Columbia’s Center for Climate Systems Research.
New York City, like other older urban centers, has a combined sewer system that carries storm water and wastewater. The system often reaches capacity during rains and must discharge a mix of storm water and sewage into New York Harbor, the Hudson River, the East River and other waterways.
Con Edison built the green roof and formed its research partnership with Columbia in 2008. The partners saw the green roof and an adjoining white roof as an outdoor laboratory for environmental research.
Gaffin’s team found last year that the green roof and white roof save energy and reduce urban air temperatures. Under its “cool roofs” program, Con Edison has turned many roofs on company facilities white to save energy and protect the environment.
“The information we are collecting from Con Edison’s roofs is invaluable in helping us determine the costs and benefits of green infrastructure projects,” Gaffin said. “Without solid data from experiments like this, it is impossible for us to know which projects are the best options for protecting the environment.”
“When we built our green roof we were confident that researchers from Columbia would gain important knowledge about protecting the environment,” said Saddie Smith, vice president for Facilities for Con Edison. “Three years later, it’s clear that our project has helped us understand how roofs can save energy, cool the atmosphere and prevent storm water runoff.”
The researchers used instrumentation to measure sunlight, and other forms of energy entering and leaving the green roof. That data allowed them to calculate the amount of energy leaving the roof in the form of water vapor.
The study concluded that based on the cost of building and maintaining a green roof it costs as little as 2 cents a year to capture each gallon of water.
MassDEP Penalizes Rockland Manufacturer $12,360 for Numerous Environmental Violations
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has penalized National Coating Corporation of Rockland $12,360 for numerous environmental violations, including unpermitted storage of hazardous waste beyond 90 days.
National Coating, which serves multiple industries as a specialty contract coater, is a registered large quantity generator of hazardous waste and small quantity generator of waste oil.
MassDEP found during a comprehensive inspection in late January and early February of 2011, there were several hazardous waste management violations involving the safe storage of these materials, and that the company was failing to keep records of its air emissions from the slitting-and-sanding operations, which is required by law. In addition, the Emergency Response Plan for the 254 Beech Street facility was insufficient in identifying the location of fire extinguishers, spill containment areas, and evacuation routes.
“Safety needs to be paramount for any company that generates hazardous waste,” said David Johnston, director of MassDEP’s Southeast Regional office in Lakeville. “This involves a cradle-to-grave understanding of the regulations and protocols when it comes to hazardous waste, including where these materials will be contained, how long, and what methods are in place for the proper and ultimate disposition of these hazardous wastes.”
National Coating has corrected the violations, but must still submit an Environmental Audit System (EAS). The EAS, which will be submitted for review to MassDEP first, must be implemented within six months. The EAS, overseen and conducted by an environmental consultant, must outline responsibilities within the company and the facility to ensure that compliance is maintained with all applicable requirements, regulations and laws.
The company must pay $8,652 of the penalty, with the remaining $3,708 suspended pending full compliance with all requirements for a period of one year.
Connecticut Company to Pay $78,000 for Environmental Reporting Violations
A company that manufactures paperboard in Sprague, Connecticut, has agreed to pay a penalty of $78,000 and to spend $40,000 to improve local emergency capabilities in order to resolve EPA claims that it violated federal community right-to-know laws.
According to the agreement signed April 14, EPA’s New England office alleged that Cascades Boxboard Group failed to file a chemical inventory form, known as a Tier II form, for the year 2006 for sulfuric acid stored at the facility. Sulfuric acid is considered to be an extremely hazardous substance under federal regulations and Cascades stored 57 times the minimum threshold level.
These violations were discovered after EPA’s inspectors noticed the company had not submitted the forms for 2007.
The environmental project will pay for emergency response equipment and training for the Town of Sprague and other area emergency response units. It also requires Cascades to conduct a large-scale chemical spill exercise to gauge emergency preparedness and identify areas needing improvement.
A facility’s failure to file chemical inventory forms deprives the community of its right to know about chemicals present and released in the neighborhood. In addition, when companies store or use extremely hazardous substances above threshold amounts, they are required to have emergency plans in accordance with federal law. Lack of chemical inventory information can compromise proper emergency planning and response by the State Emergency Response Commission, Local Emergency Planning Committees, and local fire departments.
. It will also provide the emergency response personnel with information about dangerous chemicals present in the community.
Cascades has filed the required Tier II forms for 2008 and 2009. The company also submitted the missing required Form Rs. Cascades Boxboard developed the environmental project in consultation with the fire chief of the Baltic Fire Department, which serves a village within the Town of Sprague, and with the Sprague first selectman.
Operator of Municipal Waste Incinerators to Pay $7.5 Million to Resolve Multiple Environmental Violations
The operator of three Massachusetts municipal waste incinerators has agreed to pay $7.5 million to resolve allegations that it emitted ash through holes in the roofs of two of its buildings, failed to properly treat and dispose of its ash, repeatedly dumped wastewater into a surrounding wetland, and failed to report a sudden release of hazardous material to MassDEP.
Wheelabrator Saugus and Wheelabrator North Andover allegedly committed multiple violations of the Hazardous Waste Management Act by failing to properly treat and dispose of ash, and the CWA by failing to contain fugitive ash. Wheelabrator Millbury and Wheelabrator Saugus allegedly committed violations of the CWA and the Wetlands Protection Act by releasing ash contaminated water and ash sludge into waterways or wetlands.
“Corporate responsibility is paramount if we want to preserve our communities and maintain the beauty and safety of our Commonwealth,” said Attorney General Martha Coakley. “We are grateful to those who initially raised concerns with us about Wheelabrator, and are pleased that Wheelabrator has taken the steps needed to set its three facilities on a safe path for the future. Working together with MassDEP, we have reached a settlement that will ensure continuing environmental oversight of these facilities as well as a return of dollars to both state and local budgets and help for the affected communities.”
The Massachusetts Environmental Strike Force launched an investigation into violations by Wheelabrator in September 2009 after two individuals, one current and one former employee of Wheelabrator Saugus, approached the Attorney General’s Office over concerns about environmental violations at the Saugus facility. A third individual, an employee of Wheelabrator North Andover, brought additional information about violations at the North Andover facility to the attention of the Attorney General’s office in July 2010.
“Municipal waste collection is an important public service, but waste incineration triggers many important environmental regulations, and strict compliance with those regulations is required in order to ensure that the public health is protected,” said MassDEP Commissioner Kenneth Kimmell. “Wheelabrator fell far short of meeting some of the most basic requirements and the settlement today, which is the highest ever for a state case arising out of environmental violations, reflects the seriousness with which MassDEP takes this requirement. Protecting public health and the environment must be priority one for Wheelabrator from this day forward.”
The three Wheelabrator facilities, which can process up to 1,500 tons of municipal solid waste per day, all generate ash, which contains contaminants such as lead, cadmium, and arsenic. According to a court complaint filed by the Attorney General’s Office in connection with the settlement, the Wheelabrator facility in Saugus allegedly failed to properly treat ash prior to its disposal. The Attorney General’s lawsuit also alleges that there was a hole in the roof of the Ash House at Wheelabrator Saugus, allowing ash to be released into the air. The complaint further alleges that the company used municipal water to clean the Saugus plant and its equipment, held the resulting wastewater in portable storage tanks, and then emptied the tanks into the facility’s parking lot and surrounding wetlands. The wetlands are part of the Rumney Marsh, which is a designated area of Critical Environmental Concern.
The Attorney General’s complaint alleges that, in September of 2009, a Geotube, a large filter used for removing ash from water broke open at the Saugus facility, allowing 8,000 gallons of ash sludge to spill into the parking lot and adjoining vegetated wetland. Wheelabrator failed to notify MassDEP as required for timely response under state hazardous materials laws. The company then allegedly excavated surrounding wetlands without obtaining approval from the MassDEP or the Saugus Conservation Commission.
Concerning the North Andover plant, the Attorney General’s complaint alleges that there was a hole in the roof and side wall of that facility’s Ash House, enabling ash to be released into the air surrounding the plant. The North Andover plant also allegedly transported untreated ash to landfills in Massachusetts and New Hampshire and stored it in an outdoor, “cooling pond” or “clarifier,” which it then dumped into a storage area.
MassDEP has conducted inspections of all three incinerators within the past month. At each plant, Wheelabrator outlined for MassDEP the changes it had made in operations and procedures to ensure compliance with environmental laws. Based on these inspections, MassDEP is confident that the three Wheelabrator plants no longer present a current threat to human health or the environment.
The complaint also alleges that in March 2010, the landfill in Shrewsbury used by Wheelabrator Millbury for ash disposal, dumped ash on an ice shear, which collapsed, causing 15,000 gallons of ash water and 450 cubic yards of ash to wash into the adjacent brook and wetlands.
Wheelabrator admits no wrongdoing in resolving these allegations. It has agreed to pay a total of $7.5 million under the terms of the settlement, directed as follows:
- $4.5 million to create a Municipal Fund that the Attorney General’s office will distribute to municipalities that paid Wheelabrator Saugus and North Andover for trash incineration services;
- Two payments totaling $2 million for civil penalties arising from multiple environmental violations;
- $500,000 donation to the Massachusetts Natural Resource Damages Trust; and
- $500,000 for a supplemental environmental project or projects, to be approved by MassDEP and the AGO, designed to improve the environment in the vicinity of Wheelabrator facilities.
In addition to the monetary component, Wheelabrator must immediately hire an independent environmental auditor to monitor the company’s compliance with environmental regulations. The company will be subject to unannounced inspections by the auditor for the next three years.
The Massachusetts Environmental Strike Force is an interagency unit, which is overseen by Attorney General Coakley, MassDEP Commissioner Kimmell and Energy, and Environmental Affairs Secretary Richard Sullivan. The Strike Force comprises prosecutors from the Attorney General’s Office, Environmental Police Officers assigned to the Attorney General’s Office, and investigators and engineers from the MassDEP, which investigate and prosecute crimes that harm or threaten the state’s water, air, or land and that pose a significant threat to human health.
This case was handled by Andrew Rainer, Chief of the Massachusetts Environmental Strike Force, Chris Barry-Smith, Chief of Attorney General Coakley’s Public Protection and Advocacy Bureau, Assistant Attorneys General Betsy Harper of the Environmental Protection Division, and Emily Armstrong and Matthew Connolly of the Consumer Protection Division, Financial Investigator Amanda George, Officers of the Massachusetts State Police, and the Massachusetts Environmental Police. MassDEP’s Environmental Strike Force spearheaded the technical investigation for this case.
Widely-Used Pesticide Endosulfan to be Banned Worldwide
Representatives from 127 governments meeting in Geneva recently agreed to add endosulfan to the United Nations’ list of persistent organic pollutants to be eliminated worldwide. The action puts the widely-used pesticide on course for elimination from the global market by 2012.
The decision was among more than 30 measures taken by Parties to the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) to boost global action against POPs.
The Parties agreed to list endosulfan in Annex A to the Convention, with specific exemptions. When the amendment to the Annex A enters into force in one year, endosulfan will become the 22nd POP to be listed under the Convention.
A party may extend the phase out period of the pesticide by five years but only for a small number uses.
“The conference recognized that financial and technical support is required to facilitate the replacement of the use of endosulfan in developing countries and countries with economies in transition,” said UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner.
“In establishing a consultative process on finance for the chemicals and waste conventions, UNEP has responded to the need of those countries by seeking to make the sound management of hazardous chemicals a development priority of the green economy in which all countries can fully and fairly participate,” he added.
Endosulfan is an organochlorine insecticide used in crops worldwide. It is mainly used on cotton, coffee, and tea. Endosulfan can act as an endocrine disruptor, causing reproductive and developmental damage in both animals and humans.
“New POPs present new challenges, as we are usually dealing with chemicals that are still widely used commercially,” said Jim Willis, the newly appointed Executive Secretary of the Basel, Stockholm, and UNEP-part of the Rotterdam Convention Secretariats. “Parties have demonstrated that they can find creative solutions to speed the elimination of POPs and protect environment and human health from these dangerous chemicals.”
The conference evaluated the continued need for DDT for disease vector control to combat mosquitoes carrying the deadly malaria parasite. On the basis of available scientific, technical, environmental, and economic information, it saw a continued need to use DDT while effective alternatives were being sought and implemented by an increasing number of countries.
“Despite all efforts, malaria remains one of the world’s tragedies with almost a million fatalities every year. All means are needed to combat this vector,” said Victoria Mupwaya, director of the Environmental Council of Zambia.
The first assembly of the Global Alliance for alternatives to DDT, held on April 26, 2011, concurred with the WHO findings. Although there is no deadline for the elimination of DDT, the goal of the Alliance is to reduce reliance on DDT for disease vector control by strengthening countries capacities to deploy safer alternatives.
The conference requested UNEP to take over administration of the Global Alliance, in collaboration with the World Health Organization. UNEP was also requested to take over the PCB Elimination Network.
Monique Barbut, chief executive officer of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), speaking at the “Finance Forum for Sustainable Solutions” on the opening day of the conference, announced the GEF would provide $250,000 in support to countries to update their national implementation plans in response to the adoption of new POPs to the Convention. In recent years, the GEF has funded more than $1 billion to address implementation of hazardous chemicals and waste cluster agreements.
Petroleum Distributors to Pay $2.5 Million for Illegal Mixing and Distribution of Gasoline
Three gasoline distributors have agreed to pay $2.5 million to resolve claims that they illegally mixed and distributed more than one million gallons of gasoline that did not meet CAA emissions and fuel quality requirements.
Use of gasoline that does not meet the CAA’s standards for fuel can result in increased emissions from car tailpipes, affect vehicle performance, and in some cases can damage engines and emissions controls. The settling companies will pay a $2.5 million civil penalty and conduct an environmental project designed to offset the harm EPA alleges was caused by their failure to meet federal gasoline quality requirements.
“Providing and distributing gasoline that fails to meet the Clean Air Act standards for fuel can have serious consequences for human health and the environment,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. “This settlement appropriately requires that the distributors undertake a project that will result in major annual reductions in emissions of volatile organic compounds in order to offset any harm they may have caused.”
“Complying with the Clean Air Act’s fuel regulations is critical to ensuring that our nation’s important emissions standards are met,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “Today’s settlement shows that EPA is committed to protecting the air we breathe by reducing illegal air pollution.”
According to the government’s complaint, at two terminals in Dupont and Fountain, Colorado, between 2006 and 2009, the companies produced millions of gallons of illegal gasoline by mixing natural gasoline, a byproduct of natural gas production, and ethanol with gasoline previously certified to meet CAA requirements. The blended gas was distributed and sold by Western Convenience Stores, Inc., and Offen Petroleum, Inc., at retail gasoline stations in Colorado and Nebraska.
The CAA allows refiners to produce gasoline by adding other fuel sources to previously certified gasoline, but anyone using this method must ensure that the blended gasoline still meets applicable emissions and fuel standards. They must also comply with sampling, testing, and quality assurance requirements to ensure that the gasoline meets these standards.
The companies’ gasoline blending operations may have resulted in the introduction into the environment of a total of more than 10 tons of excess emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which can lead to higher levels of ozone. Human exposure to ozone can cause lung damage, aggravate asthma, and cause difficulty breathing. EPA sets gasoline standards to reduce air pollutants from motor vehicles, such as volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, and toxic air pollutants, because they contribute to serious public health and environmental problems. To offset any excess emissions, the companies will install a geodesic dome cover on a gasoline storage tank at one of the terminals where the fuel blending took place. The cover is expected to reduce VOC emissions by more than 8.6 tons annually.
EPA to Hold Public Hearing in Chicago on National Standard for Mercury Pollution from Power Plants
EPA will hold a public hearing on May 24, 2011 on the proposed mercury and air toxics standards. The new power plant mercury and air toxics standards would require many power plants to install widely available, proven pollution control technologies to cut harmful emissions of mercury, arsenic, chromium, nickel, and acid gases, while preventing as many as 17,000 premature deaths and 11,000 heart attacks a year.
The hearing will be from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Crowne Plaza Chicago Metro, 799 W. Madison St., Chicago, IL 60611.
BP Exploration Alaska to Pay $25 Million Penalty for Alaskan North Slope Oil Spill
The U.S. Department of Justice, EPA, and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) have announced that BP Exploration Alaska, Inc., (BP Alaska) will pay a $25 million civil penalty and carry out a system-wide pipeline integrity management program as part of a settlement for spilling more than 5,000 barrels of crude oil from the company’s pipelines on the North Slope of Alaska in 2006. The penalty is the largest per-barrel penalty to date for an oil spill.
“This penalty should serve as a wake-up call to all pipeline operators that they will be held accountable for the safety of their operations and their compliance with the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act and the pipeline safety laws,” said Ignacia S. Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. “Companies like BP Alaska must understand that they can no longer afford to ignore, neglect or postpone the proper monitoring and maintenance of their pipelines. This agreement will help prevent future environmental disasters and protect the fragile ecosystem of Alaska’s North Slope.”
“This penalty is a stern reminder to pipeline operators to follow orders issued by PHMSA or risk a federal civil lawsuit and steep fines,” said PHMSA Administrator Cynthia L. Quarterman. “Also, it is a warning that operators must know, test and maintain their pipelines or risk harming people and the environment and having to spend, as in this instance, hundreds of millions of dollars replacing those pipelines.”
“Today’s settlement with BP Alaska imposes a tough penalty and requires the company to take action to prevent future pipeline oil spills on the Alaska North Slope,” said Cynthia Giles, Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “The Clean Water Act gives the U.S. authority to assess higher penalties when oil spills are the result of gross negligence, and this case sends a message that we intend to use that authority and to insist that BP Alaska and other companies act responsibly to prevent pipeline oil spills.”
“BP Alaska admits that it cut corners and failed to do what was required to adequately maintain its pipelines,” said Karen Loeffler, U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska. “The penalty reflects the seriousness of the conduct. The consent decree is important to ensure that BP Alaska implements changes that will prevent spills like this in the future. The Department of Justice and the United States Attorney’s office for the District of Alaska are committed to strong enforcement of our environmental laws.”
In March 2006, BP Alaska spilled approximately 5,054 barrels of crude oil on the North Slope in Alaska. A second spill occurred in August 2006, spilling approximately 24 barrels of crude oil. Investigators from EPA and PHMSA determined that the spills were a result of BP Alaska’s failure to properly inspect and maintain the pipeline to prevent corrosion. PHMSA issued a Corrective Action Order (CAO) to BP Alaska that addressed the pipeline’s risks and ordered pipeline repair or replacement. When BP Alaska did not fully comply with the terms of the corrective action, PHMSA referred the case to the Department of Justice. The settlement also addresses CAA violations arising out of BP Alaska’s improper asbestos removal along the pipeline in the aftermath of the spill.
The settlement requires BP Alaska to develop a system-wide program to manage pipeline integrity for the company’s 1600 miles of pipeline on the North Slope based on PHMSA’s integrity management program. The program will address corrosion and other threats to these oil pipelines and require regular inspections and adherence to a risk-based assessment system. The program will cost an estimated $60 million over three years and is in addition to the approximately $200 million BP Alaska has already spent replacing the lines that leaked on the North Slope.
Of the $25 million penalty, $20.05 million will be deposited in the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund established under the CWA. The remainder, $4.95 million, will be paid to the U.S. Treasury. The funds paid to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund will be used to finance federal response activities and provide compensation for damages sustained from future discharges or threatened discharges of oil into water or adjoining shorelines. Oil spills are known to cause both immediate and long-term harm to human health and ecosystems, including the suffocation of wildlife and the contamination of nesting habitats.
In 2007, BP Alaska pleaded guilty to one misdemeanor violation of the CWA for the March 2006 spill and was sentenced to three years probation, ordered to pay a $20 million criminal penalty, including a $12 million fine, $4 million to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to support research and activities on the North Slope, and pay $4 million in restitution to the state of Alaska.
CHRISTUS® St. Vincent Regional Medical Center Fined $21,400 for Medical Waste Violations
CHRISTUS St. Vincent Regional Medical Center in Santa Fe, New Mexico paid a $21,400 civil penalty to the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) on April 28, 2011. The fine was assessed in a recent compliance order alleging the improper disposal of infectious waste at the Caja Del Rio Landfill in Santa Fe. The compliance order also cited the medical center’s failure to properly label containers of infectious waste and the failure to secure the infectious waste storage building from unauthorized access, as identified during an inspection of the medical center by the NMED Solid Waste Bureau.
The improperly-disposed infectious waste was discovered during a waste screening inspection at the landfill, and was found inside both clear, unlabeled plastic bags and red bio-hazard-labeled plastic bags. The infectious waste included gauze, napkins, disposable diapers, plastic tubing, latex gloves, suction containers, plastic urine containers, and syringes that contained or were saturated or contaminated with blood, bloody liquids, or other potentially infectious material. Used, but empty, bio-hazard labeled plastic bags were also discovered in the waste.
Infectious waste is specifically prohibited from landfill disposal by the New Mexico Solid Waste Rules. It is a special waste with unique handling, transportation, treatment, and disposal requirements to assure that it does not come into contact with humans in a manner that could spread disease.
Prior to partnering with CHRISTUS Health in 2008, the former St. Vincent Regional Medical Center received a compliance order from the NMED for unauthorized disposal of infectious waste at the Caja del Rio Landfill on three separate instances during 2007. That compliance order assessed a civil penalty of $55,800 and was settled in lieu of a hearing by payment of $43,500 reduced civil penalty. In addition, the medical center received a Notice of Violation for similar incidents involving the improper disposal of infectious waste during September and October of 2006.
GreenChill Partnership Reaches All 50 States
. From regional grocers like Stater Bros. in southern California, and small health food stores like Down-to-Earth, to nationally-recognized names like Whole Foods and the newest partner Target Corporation, the partnership now represents 20% of the supermarket industry. GreenChill’s food retailers are reducing pollution from commercial refrigeration, decreasing their impact on the ozone layer, and protecting people’s health. Protecting the ozone layer protects people from too much ultraviolet radiation, which can lead to skin cancer and cataracts.
“GreenChill is a great example of how businesses and government can work together to protect people’s health and the environment,” said Gina McCarthy, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. “GreenChill capitalizes on industry’s drive for innovation by providing a forum for technology advances and financial savings.”
EPA estimates that GreenChill partners’ refrigerant emissions are 50% lower than the industry average. If every supermarket in the nation reduced their emissions to the average GreenChill store rate of 12%, the industry would save more than $100 million in refrigerant costs alone annually, while saving the equivalent of 22 million metric tons of carbon dioxide and 240 tons of ozone-depleting substances every year. The GHG pollution from an average store’s refrigerant leaks is often higher than the GHG pollution from an average store’s annual total electricity consumption.
EPA launched the GreenChill program in 2007, as a way to partner with food retailers to reduce refrigerant emissions, GHG pollution and decrease their overall impact on the ozone layer. The partnership works with food retailers to transition to more environmentally friendly refrigerants, reduce the amount of refrigerant used in stores, and eliminate harmful refrigerant leaks.
Dredging Firm to Pay $105,000 Fine for Ocean Dumping Violations in Massachusetts
A Salem, Massachusetts dredging company has agreed to pay a penalty of $105,000 to settle EPA claims that it improperly disposed of dredged sediments.
EPA asserted that Burnham Associates violated the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act—commonly known as the Ocean Dumping Act—as part of a dredging project in Hingham Harbor. Burnham, through the actions of its subcontracted towing company, on at least 50 occasions dumped dredged sediments in locations that were in some cases up to one nautical mile from the designated coordinates within the prescribed ocean dumping zone. The Massachusetts Bay Disposal Site is a circular area two nautical miles in diameter about 18 nautical miles from the entrance to Boston Harbor.
These “misdumps” deprive regulators of the ability to monitor the sediments once they have been disposed of and so determine migration and erosion rates. In addition, regulators are unable to monitor impacts on the marine environment and, particularly in this case, to construct a boundary of a “containment cell” that could potentially limit the spread of future dredged material disposed of in the Massachusetts Bay Disposal Site.
In acting on this enforcement case, EPA coordinated closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the permitting authority for ocean dumping projects involving dredged materials.
Late last year another dredging company, Cashman Dredging & Marine Contracting Co., of Quincy, Massachusetts, agreed to pay $50,000 for ocean dumping violations while dredging the Porter and Crane rivers in Danvers. This payment included a $12,500 cash penalty and $37,500 paid for installing in Beverly Harbor “low impact” moorings to prevent turbidity and allow eelgrass habitat to recover. According to regulators, Cashman performed a “short dump” of sediment in Beverly Harbor, well outside of the prescribed ocean dumping zone. EPA also alleged that Cashman overdredged in some areas and took unauthorized sediments for disposal in the Massachusetts Bay Disposal Site.
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Trivia Question of the Week
Each year, over 140 million cell phones are disposed of (about 14 million are recycled). For each million recycled, how much gold and silver can be recovered?
a. 500 and 5000 ounces, respectively
b. 15 and 150 pounds, respectively
c. 50 and 550 pounds, respectively
d. Virtually none, gold and silver are no longer used in the manufacture of cell phones
