New Exclusions for Solvent Recycling and Hazardous Secondary Materials

EPA’s new definition of solid waste rule will present new opportunities for waste recycling outside the scope of hazardous waste regulation. Environmental Resource Center will be presenting a webcast on the new Definition of Solid Waste rule on Monday, June 29th at 2:00 pm Eastern Time. This rule, which goes into effect on July 13, 2015, will maintain critical environmental protections while streamlining the regulatory burden for wastes that are legitimately recycled.

The first of the two exclusions is an exclusion from the definition of solid waste for high-value solvents transferred from one manufacturer to another for the purpose of extending the useful life of the original solvent product by keeping the materials in commerce to reproduce a commercial grade of the original solvent product.

The second, and more wide reaching of the two exclusions, is a revision of the existing hazardous secondary material recycling exclusion. This exclusion allows you to recycle, or send off-site for recycling, virtually any hazardous secondary material, and it will not meet the definition of solid waste. Provided you meet the terms of the exclusion, the material will no longer be hazardous waste.

Learn how to take advantage of these exclusions at Environmental Resource Center’s live one-hour webcast. You will learn:

• Which of your materials qualify for the exclusion?
• What is a secondary material?
• Which solvents can be remanufactured, and which cannot?
• What is a tolling agreement?
• What is legitimate recycling?
• What are the generator storage requirements?
• What documentation must be maintained?
• What are the off-site shipping requirements?
• What are the training and emergency planning requirements?
• Can the recycler be outside the US?

Court Orders EPA to Decide to Act on Chloropyfiros

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an order requiring EPA to decide by June 30, 2015, whether it will ban chlorpyrifos, a widely used and extremely hazardous pesticide. The Court issued the order in response to a lawsuit brought by Earthjustice on behalf of Pesticide Action Network and Natural Resources Defense Council.

“It is time for EPA to protect children in the face of overwhelming scientific evidence that this pesticide causes brain damage in children,” said Earthjustice attorney Patti Goldman, who represented the groups in the lawsuit. “EPA has dragged its feet for far too long in the face of harm to children and workers.”

Fourteen years ago, EPA banned residential use of chlorpyrifos because of the harm to children exposed in the home. In 2007, PAN and NRDC filed a petition asking EPA to ban all uses of chlorpyrifos to afford the same protection to rural children exposed through pesticide drift. PAN and NRDC also asked EPA to protect children from reduced IQ, developmental delays, loss of working memory, and other neurological damage cased by early childhood exposures.

When EPA failed to act, the groups went to court to force EPA to act. Each time, EPA promised to take action, but it continually missed its self-imposed deadlines. Two years ago, the 9th Circuit had refused to order EPA to respond in the face of EPA’s promise to decide the petition by February 2014.

In December 2014, EPA completed a human health risk assessment confirming that chlorpyrifos causes harm to children’s brains at extremely low doses. EPA’s assessment also documented unacceptable risks to workers who apply pesticides or pick crops and drinking water contamination at levels that are harmful to children.

More than 150,000 people urged EPA to ban chlorpyrifos in response to the 2014 assessment. EPA must now decide whether to heed these demands for action by the end of the month.

EPA Air Pollution Control Cost Manual Chapter Revisions

The EPA is requesting comment on two revised chapters of the EPA Air Pollution Control Cost Manual. The Control Cost Manual contains individual chapters on control measures, with data and equations available to aid users to estimate the capital costs for installation and annual costs for operation and maintenance of these measures. The Control Cost Manual is used by the EPA for estimating the impacts of rulemakings, and serves as a basis for sources to estimate costs of controls that are best available control technology (BACT) under the New Source Review (NSR), and best available retrofit technology (BART) under the Regional Haze Program, and for other programs. The two revised Control Cost Manual chapters are the selective non-catalytic reduction (SNCR) and the selective catalytic reduction (SCR) chapters (Section 4, Chapters 1 and 2, respectively).

The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014 requested that the EPA begin development of a seventh edition of the Cost Manual. The EPA has met with state, local, and tribal officials to discuss plans for the Control Cost Manual update as called for under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2014. The EPA has met with other groups as well at their request.

Learn DOT’s New Rules for Lithium Battery Shipments

• Enhance packaging and hazard communication requirements for lithium batteries transported by air
• Replace equivalent lithium content with Watt-hours for lithium ion cells and batteries
• Adopt separate shipping descriptions for lithium metal batteries and lithium ion batteries
• Revise provisions for the transport of small and medium lithium cells and batteries including cells and batteries packed with, or contained in, equipment
• Revise the exceptions for small cells and batteries in air transportation
• Revise the requirements for the transport of lithium batteries for disposal or recycling
• Harmonize the provisions for the transport of low production and prototype lithium cells and batteries with the ICAO Technical Instructions and the International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code
• Adopt new provisions for the transport of damaged, defective, and recalled lithium batteries

If you ship batteries by ground or air, you must comply with the latest DOT and IATA/ICAO regulations that specify how the batteries must be packaged, marked, labeled, and transported. The rules apply not only to batteries, but also to equipment or vehicles that contain batteries as well as batteries packed along with equipment. Virtually all types of batteries are regulated, including lithium, lead-acid, nickel cadmium, and metal hydride alkaline. According to 49 CFR 172.704, all personnel involved in the classification, packaging, marking, labeling, or shipment of batteries must receive initial and recurrent transportation training.

Dayton RCRA and DOT Training

Raleigh RCRA, DOT, and EHS Regulations Training

Macon RCRA and DOT Training

EPA Takes First Steps to Address Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Aircraft

 EPA is now seeking public input to inform future steps by the agency.

For the past five years, ICAO—a specialized body of the United Nations with 191 member states—has been working with the aviation industry and other stakeholders to develop coordinated, international CO₂ emissions standards for aircraft. EPA and the Federal Aviation Administration, representing the United States, are participating in ICAO’s process to ensure that any standards achieve meaningful CO₂ emissions reductions through policies that are equitable across national boundaries.

The ICAO standards are expected to be adopted in early 2016. The items issued by EPA lay the necessary foundation for the development and implementation of a domestic aircraft standard, in accordance with US law and the ICAO process.

US aircraft emit roughly 11% of GHG emissions from the US transportation sector and 29% of GHG emissions from all aircraft globally. In 2009, EPA determined that GHG pollution from cars and light trucks threatens Americans' health and welfare by leading to long-lasting changes in our climate that can have a range of negative effects.

The recent actions do not apply to small piston-engine planes (the type of plane often used for recreational purposes), or to military aircraft.

Any future domestic actions toward aircraft engine standards would also be open to public comment and review before they could take effect.

Central Precision Inc. Fined $100,000 for Hazardous Waste Violations

These federal and state safeguards are designed to protect public health and the environment, and avoid costly cleanups, by requiring the safe, environmentally sound storage and disposal of hazardous waste.

Following an EPA inspection and follow-up requests for information, EPA cited CPI and LAMM for violations involving hazardous waste stored at the facility, including rinse water filtration sludge, waste paint and paint thinners associated with industrial processes. The shop is located at 20823 San Mar Road in Boonsboro.

Alleged violations included the failure to make required hazardous waste determinations; failure to comply with hazardous waste container management requirements; failure to conduct required weekly hazardous waste container storage area inspections; failure to comply with personnel training requirements; failure to prepare and maintain required hazardous waste training records; and failure to comply with contingency plan preparation and maintenance requirements.

The penalty reflects the facility’s compliance efforts, and its cooperation with EPA to resolve the violations.

EPA Releases EJSCREEN, An Environmental Justice Screening and Mapping Tool

 EJSCREEN’s simple to understand color-coded maps, bar charts, and reports enable users to better understand areas in need of increased environmental protection, health care access, housing, infrastructure improvement, community revitalization, and climate resilience.

“EJSCREEN provides essential information to anyone seeking greater visibility and awareness about the impacts of pollution in American communities,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “EJSCREEN has been a valuable resource for EPA to advance our commitment to protect Americans most vulnerable to pollution. I’m excited to share this tool with the public to broaden its impact, build transparency, and foster collaboration with partners working to achieve environmental justice.

“State environmental agencies appreciate EPA’s collaborative work on the use and release of this important tool,” said Dick Pedersen, Director of Oregon’s Department of Environmental Quality and past President of the Environmental Council of States. “Citizens having access to environmental and demographic data is extremely important in helping states implement environmental programs and ensure public health and environmental protection for all. To that end, EJSCREEN facilitates vital citizen engagement.”

EJSCREEN can help governments, academic institutions, local communities, and other stakeholders to highlight communities with greater risk of exposure to pollution based on eight pollution and environmental indicators, including traffic proximity, particulate matter, and proximity to superfund sites. These indicators are combined with demographic data from the US Census Bureau American Community five-year Summary Survey enabling users to identify areas with minority or low-income populations who also face potential pollution issues.

EJSCREEN’s capabilities could provide support for educational programs, grant writing, and community awareness efforts so that users can participate meaningfully in decision-making processes that impact their health and environment. While EJSCREEN is being shared publicly to improve work on environmental justice, EPA is not mandating state governments or other entities use the tool or its underlying data.

EJSCREEN does not direct EPA decisions; it does not provide a basis for identifying areas as EJ communities, and it is not an appropriate standalone tool for making a risk assessment. As a screening tool, its data may have levels of uncertainty, and is therefore incomplete in capturing the total number of pollution problems people face.

The release of EJSCREEN initiates a stakeholder engagement period over the next six months. EPA will collect feedback on the datasets and design of the tool—as well as how it could be further enhanced—and will release a revised version in 2016.

Environmental justice is defined as the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people, regardless of race or income with respect to the development, implementation, and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. EPA’s goal is to provide all people with equal access to the environmental decision-making process to maintain a healthy environment in which to live, learn, and work.

EPA Releases Technical Guides to Support Vapor Intrusion Assessment and Mitigation Activities

The Technical Guide for Assessing and Mitigating the Vapor Intrusion Pathway from Subsurface Vapor Sources to Indoor Air applies to all sites being evaluated under federal land cleanup statutes by EPA, other federal agencies, state and tribal governments and brownfield grantees. A companion document, the Technical Guide for Addressing Petroleum Vapor Intrusion at Leaking Underground Storage Tank Sites addresses any sites where vapor intrusion related to petroleum contamination from underground storage tanks is a potential concern. Both guides are applicable to residential and non-residential settings.

“These guides will promote national consistency in assessing and addressing the vapor intrusion human exposure pathway at contaminated sites to protect human health—particularly the most vulnerable,” says Mathy Stanislaus, assistant administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. “States, tribes and localities, in particular, will find the guides to be critical resources for identifying and considering key factors related to vapor intrusion assessments, risk management decisions, and mitigation actions.”

National awareness and concern about vapor intrusion has grown over the last several decades. At the same time, knowledge of and experience with assessment and mitigation of vapor intrusion has substantially increased, leading to heightened understanding of and improved approaches for evaluating and managing vapor intrusion. Relying upon this enhanced knowledge and more extensive experience, the guides present EPA’s current recommendations for identifying, evaluating and managing vapor intrusion while providing flexible technical approaches to accommodate site-specific conditions and circumstances.

At sites where vapor intrusion poses a potential or actual hazard to occupants’ health or safety, exposures usually can be prevented or reduced through relatively simple actions such as changing building pressure and ventilation. In most cases, costs associated with addressing vapor intrusion can be very manageable, resulting in long-term benefits including improved public health and less costly response actions. These benefits are especially likely when actions are undertaken early.

Vapor intrusion refers to the migration of hazardous vapors from contaminated subsurface sources such as groundwater through soil into overlying building and structures. Exposure to these vapors by building occupants can potentially pose both acute and chronic health risks. Vapor intrusion is a potential concern at any building—existing or planned—located near soil or groundwater contaminated with vapor-forming toxic chemicals.

Massachusetts Department of Corrections Fined $7,557 For Environmental Violations

In addition, the DOC was not meeting the operational, recordkeeping and inspection requirements of the underground storage tank regulations.

Through a consent order, the DOC must correct all the violations and pay the penalty.

 "The DOC has worked with MassDEP to correct the violations and to maintain compliance going forward."

Everett Concrete Plant Fined for Water Quality Violations

Street drains outside the company’s property at 6300 Glenwood Ave. empty into a tributary of Pigeon Creek Number Two, which flows into Puget Sound. CEMEX operates a sand and gravel pit and a concrete mixing plant at the site.

“This case involved repeated and preventable violations,” said Kevin Fitzpatrick, Ecology’s regional water quality section manager. “It’s important for CEMEX to fix these problems because the street drains flow directly to the creek and Puget Sound.”

The penalty cites CEMEX for two series of violations:

Concrete wash water discharge: The company allowed the release of about 1,000 gallons of water from a concrete washout pond to the sidewalk, roadway and storm drains on Glenwood Avenue on Feb. 25, 2015. CEMEX stopped the discharge and cleaned concrete slurry from the road and storm drain pipes under a city of Everett emergency order.

Concrete wash water is caustic and can harm fish and other aquatic life. Ecology fined CEMEX $6,000 for a similar violation in 2013.

Muddy water discharges: Ecology and Everett inspectors observed muddy water flowing from the CEMEX property onto the street in November 2014 and March 2015. The company used a spray truck to wash dirt tracked by trucks onto Glenwood Avenue into storm drains over four days in February 2015.

Water in the tributary at the storm drain outfall contained more than 16 times the allowable muddy content during these incidents. Muddy water can damage the delicate breathing membranes on fish and other aquatic animals.

CEMEX has reported to Ecology that it has repaired and re-sealed the drain opening.

“CEMEX is mindful of the unique ecosystems of Pigeon Creek and Puget Sound and diligently works to ensure we operate in a responsible and environmentally-conscious manner. Unfortunately, during our efforts to keep our trucks and the nearby community streets clean, some of the water inadvertently flowed where we did not intend for it to do so. CEMEX has been making improvements to our drainage systems to ensure that these issues do not reoccur,” said Sara Engdahl, Director of Communications, CEMEX USA.

CEMEX may appeal the penalty to the Washington State Pollution Control Hearings Board.

Clearwater Paper Corporation Fined $300,000 for Clean Air Act Violations

 Clearwater Paper is the country's largest provider of private label tissue to retail grocery chains and a major bleached paperboard manufacturer.

The USDOJ, acting on behalf of EPA, filed both a Complaint alleging claims under the Clean Air Act and a proposed Consent Decree resolving those claims in the federal district court in Idaho. The Complaint alleged that Clearwater violated the Clean Air Act by failing to control emissions of total reduced sulfur (TRS) and hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) as required by applicable regulations.

"Communities like Lewiston depend on Clearwater Paper to comply with their permits and minimize air pollution wherever possible," said Ed Kowalski, director of EPA’s Office of Compliance and Enforcement in Seattle. "Inspecting facilities like Clearwater Paper is also key to our National Air Toxics Enforcement Initiative, where EPA is focused on reducing illegal emissions of hazardous air pollutants that can harm air quality and community health."

As part of the settlement, Clearwater Paper will invest approximately $800,000 in re-routing sawdust digester gases containing TRS and HAPs to pollution control equipment at the plant. Prior to reaching final settlement, Clearwater spent an additional $43,000 on repairs to its pulp washers which reduced emissions. The settlement terms also require that Clearwater Paper pay a $300,000 civil penalty.

Actions required by this settlement will reduce both TRS and HAPs emissions.

Comments on the document may be sent to the Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and should refer to United States v. Clearwater Paper Corporation, D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-2-1-10620. Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:

•  
• By mail: Assistant Attorney General, USDOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, D.C. 20044-7611

EPA Inspection Reveals Violations of Renovation, Repair, and Painting Rule

 As part of a settlement with EPA filed recently in Lenexa, Kansas, the company has agreed to pay a $12,194 penalty to the United States.

The rule regulates lead-based paint activities, including renovation of residences built prior to 1978, and the certification of individuals and firms who are involved in these activities.

The recordkeeping inspection at Damage Control & Restoration, a home renovation company that specializes in fire and water restoration, revealed that the company failed to distribute required pamphlets, and retain records documenting lead-safe work practices.

Lead exposure can cause a range of adverse health effects, from behavioral disorders and learning disabilities to seizures and death, putting young children at the greatest risk because their nervous systems are still developing. Today at least 4 million households have children who are being exposed to high levels of lead.

There are approximately half-a-million US children ages 1–5 with blood lead levels above 5 micrograms per deciliter (µg/dL), the reference level at which the Centers for Disease Control recommends public health actions be initiated.

Enbridge to Pay Millions for Natural Resource Damages after Oil Spill in Kalamazoo River

The United States recently filed a proposed consent decree that will resolve claims of federal, state, and tribal resource trustees for natural resource damages (NRD) caused by the 2010 rupture of Enbridge’s Line 6B pipeline in Michigan that resulted in one of the largest inland oil spills in US history. Under the proposed settlement, several Enbridge affiliates will be responsible for completing numerous natural resource restoration projects along the Kalamazoo River and will pay an additional sum of nearly $4 million to fund additional restoration projects, reimburse natural resource damage assessment costs of federal and tribal trustees and support ongoing restoration planning activities of natural resource trustees.

“This settlement will restore natural resources affected by the 2010 spill—one of the largest inland spills in our history—and compensates the public for natural resource losses resulting from the spill,” said Assistant Attorney General John C. Cruden for the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “By requiring restoration and monitoring, along with funding for the federal, state and tribal trustees, this settlement will go a long way toward correcting the injuries to injured natural resources along the Kalamazoo River.”

The state settlement was filed May 12 in the circuit court for Calhoun County, Michigan. The NRD settlement, which was filed in federal court, provides funding to the federal, state and tribal trustees to conduct natural resource restoration, reimburses assessment costs spent by the federal and tribal trustees and incorporates requirements from the state settlement for Enbridge to conduct restoration and monitoring.

The state settlement provisions that will also be enforceable under the NRD settlement include commitments by Enbridge to perform work to restore or compensate for injuries to injured natural resources along the Kalamazoo River, at an estimated cost of at least $58 million. Thus, the two settlements combined result in estimated expenditures of at least $62 million to resolve natural resource damages.

The NRD settlement addresses Enbridge’s liability for natural resource damages under the Oil Pollution Act (OPA) and Michigan’s Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act. The NRD settlement provides for habitat improvement projects to address injuries to aquatic organisms, fish, reptile, mammals and birds, as well as for enhancements to public access and use of the Kalamazoo River for recreational, educational and cultural purposes. The trustees are proposing to implement the following projects with funding from the NRD settlement:

• Replace undersized culverts, remove existing obstacles to water flow and increase floodplain capacity in two tributaries to the Kalamazoo River
• Control Eurasian water milfoil and other invasive species, within the Fort Custer State Recreation Area to provide improved habitat for warm water fisheries
• Restore 175 acres of oak savanna uplands in Fort Custer State Recreation Area
• Track and protect turtle reproduction in the impacted area of the Kalamazoo River
• Restore wild rice beds in suitable areas along the Kalamazoo River

Document the historic use and knowledge of natural resources by members of the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of the Pottawatomi Indians (Gun Lake Tribe) and the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi to guide restoration and stewardship.

The NRD settlement also incorporates certain requirements from the state’s settlement with Enbridge, including requirements to:

• Restore and monitor the 320 acres of wetlands affected by the spill and response activities
• Permanently restore, create, or otherwise protect at least 300 additional acres of wetland habitat in compensation for wetland losses
• Evaluate stream function within the restored areas of Talmadge Creek and perform additional actions as needed
• Conduct monitoring and restoration activities related to the removal of large woody debris during the spill response
• Fund the state of Michigan to monitor fish contamination, fish populations, and the health of stream bottom communities along Talmadge Creek and the Kalamazoo River

Enbridge has already implemented additional projects that relate to losses of natural resources:

• Created the Kalamazoo River Community Recreational Foundation including a $2.5 million endowment to assure perpetual care of these projects
• Removed the dam at Ceresco on the Kalamazoo River and restored over 2.5 miles of river channel that was previously impounded

“This cooperative approach will enhance our ability to return to the public the natural resources lost due to the spill.”

Enbridge’s Lakehead Line 6B pipeline ruptured near Marshall, Michigan, on July 25, 2010, discharging oil into the environment. Enbridge discharged significant additional oil from Line 6B during two attempts to restart the ruptured pipeline on July 26, 2010. Oil discharged from Line 6B entered Talmadge Creek and ultimately extended approximately 38 miles down the Kalamazoo River. The oil impacted over 1,560 acres of stream and river habitat as well as floodplain and upland areas, injuring birds, mammals, reptiles, and other wildlife. The river was immediately closed to the public and sections remained closed for several years, reducing recreational and tribal uses of the river.

The natural resource trustees in this case include the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, the Michigan Department of the Attorney General, the US Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Tribe and the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of the Pottawatomi Indians (Gun Lake Tribe).

A Greener Globe Corporation Fined $677,531 for Failure to Provide Monitoring Reports

The Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a $677,531 civil liability against A Greener Globe Corporation, Inc., Thursday, June 4, for failure to submit technical reports for its Berry Street Mall Landfill at 901 Galleria Blvd. in Roseville.

In 1996, A Greener Globe Corporation bought the closed landfill through foreclosure. The 26- acre parcel is on Galleria Boulevard near the Roseville Galleria mall, Creekside Retail Plaza and the Fountains at Roseville shopping center. A Greener Globe leases a portion of the landfill site to Green Acres Nursery.

Landfills contain high levels of constituents that can impact groundwater and surface water, and state regulations (Title 27, California Code of Regulations) contain specific requirements for maintaining closed landfills, including conducting regular monitoring to ensure any impacts from these constituents are detected and remediated. The Central Valley Water Board regulates the facility through a Waste Discharge Requirements permit, which implements the applicable portions of Title 27.

A Greener Globe has failed to comply with the Water Board’s requirements ever since it bought the site in 1996. The Board has taken numerous enforcement actions, including a referral to the Office of the Attorney General in 2000. The most recent violations focus on the failure to submit six technical reports and six complete monitoring reports as required by the Waste Discharge Requirements permit.

However, A Greener Globe has not submitted complete monitoring reports since then, and Board staff cannot determine the current extent of the contamination. In addition, A Greener Globe has not submitted a plan to remediate the groundwater and has not submitted other technical information necessary to ensure it is appropriately maintaining the landfill. The $677,531 penalty is intended to act as a deterrent and to compel A Greener Globe to comply with the Waste Discharge Requirements.

“A Greener Globe has a track record of non-compliance with the requirements of their permits, despite the substantial income they are generating from their site,” said Andrew Altevogt, assistant executive officer for the Central Valley Regional Board. “The penalty adopted by the Board reflects the recalcitrance of A Greener Globe in meeting very standard regulatory requirements.”

Crow Wing Feeders is Penalized for Feedlot Violations

Crow Wing Feeders, LLC, has been fined and must take corrective actions as a result of feedlot violations at its cattle farm near Pillager, Minnesota.

According to Minnesota Pollution Control Agency staff inspection reports, Crow Wing Feeders allowed cattle access to Seven Mile Creek, failed to operate and maintain a manure-storage basin according to MPCA-approved plans, and housed cattle on unpermitted areas of land, which caused manure discharges to a nearby stream that resulted in excess E. coli bacteria levels. Other violations included stockpiling manure within the 50-foot setback from a road ditch and improper land application of manure, which resulted in over applying nitrogen and phosphorus.

Seven Mile Creek and the nearby stream both drain into the Crow Wing River, which is on the MPCA’s list of impaired waters. Pollutants like E. coli, nitrogen and phosphorus can negatively impact water quality and harm aquatic life.

Crow Wing Feeders has agreed to pay a $30,000 civil penalty and complete a series of corrective actions.

When calculating penalties, the MPCA takes into account how seriously the violation affected the environment, whether it is a first-time or repeat violation, and how promptly the violation was reported to appropriate authorities. It also attempts to recover the calculated economic benefit gained by failure to comply with environmental laws in a timely manner.

EPA Recognizes Partners for Creating and Using Safer Choice Products

“These winners demonstrate that Safer Choice-labeled products, which are safer for homes, schools, and workplaces and perform well, can also be good for business,” said EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. “The name says it all: Safer Choice products are safer for you, your kids, pets, co-workers, communities and the environment. Our scientists employ a stringent set of human health and environmental safety standards when reviewing products for the Safer Choice program, so a product with the label is backed by EPA science.”

To qualify for the Safer Choice (formerly “Design for the Environment”) label, a product must meet EPA’s Safer Choice Standard, a stringent human and environmental health criteria. Currently, the Safer Choice Program has nearly 500 formulator-manufacturer partners who make more than 2,000 products for retail and institutional customers.

Partner of the Year award winners represent a wide variety of leadership organizations. Participants include Fortune 500 companies, small- and medium-sized businesses, state governments, and non-governmental organizations. The 2015 Safer Choice Partner of the Year Awards will be presented at 2:00 p.m. on June 22, 2015, at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, DC. The winners fall under the following categories:

• Safer Formulator-Manufacturer: Case Medical, Inc. (South Hackensack, New Jersey); Earth Friendly Products (Garden Grove, California); Jelmar, LLC (Skokie, Illinois); Osprey Biotechnics, Inc. (Sarasota, Florida); The Sun Products Corporation (Wilton, Connecticut); and Wexford Labs, Inc. (Kirkwood, Missouri)
• Safer Chemical Innovator: AkzoNobel (Chicago, Illinois); Chemlink Laboratories (Kennesaw, Georgia); and Stepan Company (Northfield, Ill.)
• Purchaser/Distributor: District of Columbia Office of Contracting and Procurement (Washington); GreenStar Hub (Forest Hills, New York); PRIDE Industries (Roseville, California); and Solutex, Inc. (Sterling, Virginia)
• Retailer: Staples, Inc. (Framingham, Massachusetts); and Wegmans Food Markets (Rochester, New York)
• Program Supporter: The Ashkin Group (Los Angeles, California); Consumer Specialty Products Association (Washington, D.C.); GreenBlue (Charlottesville, Virginia); ISSA, the Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association (Northbrook, Illinois); Loyola University Chicago, Institute of Environmental Sustainability (Chicago, Illinois); and Washington State Department of Ecology/Northwest Green Chemistry (Olympia, Washington)

Remember to look for the Safer Choice label, appearing on products and store shelves nationwide starting this summer and fall.

Environmental News Links

Trivia Question of the Week

What energy source is the fastest growing renewable energy source with worldwide power installed capacity reaching 14,000 MW?

a) Solar

b) Wind

c) Geothermal

d) Ocean Waves