Scientists are reporting discovery of an improved way to remove carbon dioxide—the major greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming—from smokestacks and other sources, including the atmosphere.
Alain Goeppert, G. K. Surya Prakash, chemistry Nobel Laureate George A. Olah, and colleagues explain that controlling emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) is one of the biggest challenges facing humanity in the 21st century. They point out that existing methods for removing carbon dioxide from smokestacks and other sources, including the atmosphere, are energy intensive, don’t work well, and have other drawbacks. In an effort to overcome such obstacles, the group turned to solid materials based on polyethylenimine, a readily available and inexpensive polymeric material.
Their tests showed that these inexpensive materials achieved some of the highest carbon dioxide removal rates ever reported for humid air, under conditions that stymie other related materials. After capturing carbon dioxide, the materials give it up easily so that the CO2 can be used in making other substances, or permanently isolated from the environment. The capture material can then be recycled and reused many times over without losing efficiency. The researchers suggest the materials may be useful on submarines, in smokestacks, or out in the open atmosphere, where they could clean up carbon dioxide pollution that comes from small point sources like cars or home heaters, representing about half of the total CO2 emissions related to human activity.
RCRA, DOT, IATA/IMO and SARA Title III Training Coming to Raleigh, North Carolina Area
Columbia, South Carolina RCRA and DOT Training
Indianapolis RCRA, DOT and IATA/IMO Training
Safety Consultant/Trainer
Environmental Resource Center has a new opening for a safety consultant and auditor. We are looking for a former OSHA CSHO, OSHA trainer, or state inspector for this position in our Cary, North Carolina, office. Applicants should have excellent writing and speaking skills and be willing to travel 7–14 days per month. We are looking for an expert in all of the General Industry and Construction standards who is capable of performing audits of industrial facilities as well as conducting on-site training.
Strong consideration will be given to applicants who also have experience providing HAZWOPER, Hazcom, lockout/tagout, confined spaces, and machine guarding training.
The position includes maintenance of training materials (books and presentations), working on consulting projects, development of classes and computer-based training programs, and ensuring customer satisfaction.
How to Author GHS Safety Data Sheets
OSHA is adopting the new Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for the classification and labeling of hazardous chemicals. A cornerstone of GHS is the adoption of a completely revised Safety Data Sheet (SDS).
- January 27, 2012
- February 29, 2012
How to Label Hazardous Chemicals Using OSHA’s New GHS Hazcom Standard
Workplace and supplier hazard communication labels are being reinvented as OSHA adopts the new Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for labeling hazardous chemicals.
- February 3, 2012
- March 1, 2012
EPA Releases 2010 Toxics Release Inventory National Analysis
The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program publishes information on toxic chemical disposals and other releases into the air, land, and water, as well as information on waste management and pollution prevention activities in neighborhoods across the country. Total releases including disposals for the latest reporting year, 2010, are higher than the previous two years but lower than 2007 and prior year totals. Many of the releases from TRI facilities are regulated under various EPA programs and requirements designed to limit human and environmental harm.
“We will continue to put accessible, meaningful information in the hands of the American people. Widespread public access to environmental information is fundamental to the work EPA does every day,” said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. “TRI is a cornerstone of EPA’s community-right-to-know programs and has played a significant role in protecting people’s health and the environment by providing communities with valuable information on toxic chemical releases.”
Citizens have a right to know what toxic chemicals are being released into their communities. Over the past 25 years, the TRI program has helped citizens, emergency planners, public health officials, and others protect human health and the environment by providing them with toxic chemical release and other waste management data they need to make decisions that affect the safety and welfare of their communities.
The 2010 TRI data show that 3.93 billion lbs of toxic chemicals were released into the environment nationwide, a 16% increase from 2009. The increase is mainly due to changes in the metal mining sector, which typically involves large facilities handling large volumes of material. In this sector, even a small change in the chemical composition of the ore being mined—which EPA understands is one of the reasons for the increase in total reported releases—may lead to big changes in the amount of toxic chemicals reported nationally. Several other sectors also reported increases in toxic releases in 2010, including the chemical and primary metals industries.
Total air releases decreased 6% since 2009, continuing a trend seen over the past several years. Releases into surface water increased 9% and releases into land increased 28% since 2009, again due primarily to the metal mining sector.
EPA has improved this year’s TRI national analysis report by adding new information on facility efforts to reduce pollution and by considering whether economic factors could have affected the TRI data.
TRI data is submitted annually to EPA and states by multiple industry sectors including manufacturing, metal mining, electric utilities, and commercial hazardous waste facilities.
EPA PCB TMDL Handbook Released
PCBs rank sixth among the national causes of water quality impairment in the country, and of the 71,000 waterbody-pollutant combinations listed nationally, over 5,000 (8%) are PCB-related. This handbook identifies various approaches to developing PCB TMDLs and provides examples of TMDLs from around the country, complete with online references. It aims to help states complete more PCB TMDLs and ultimately restore those waters impaired by PCBs.
FNF Construction, Inc. Agrees to $115,000 Settlement for Air Quality Violations
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) and Arizona Attorney General’s Office have announced that FNF Construction, Inc. of Tempe, Arizona, has agreed to a settlement worth $115,000 as part of a consent judgment to resolve air quality violations that occurred at hot mix asphalt plants in Navajo, Yuma, Cochise, Mohave, and Pinal counties from 2008 through 2011.
In addition to an $85,000 monetary penalty, the settlement also requires the use of a $30,000 computer system that allows the company to remotely view information about the operation of the facility to provide reasonable assurance that the facilities will remain in compliance. FNF will not have to pay $25,000 of the penalty if it operates for two years without further, significant violations.
In 2008, ADEQ staff inspected FNF’s facility in Navajo County near Winslow and determined that it was not using the necessary precautions or air pollution control devices and practices to reduce dust emissions from its equipment. As a result, the dust cloud observed by the inspectors was thicker than allowed by the facility’s permit. Further investigation by the inspectors revealed that staff at the facility did not have the appropriate certifications to identify excessive dust emissions and that the facility did not keep records of mandatory self-audits.
In 2009, the facility that had been in Navajo County had been moved to Yuma County near Yuma International Airport. ADEQ staff re-inspected this facility as well as a different plant in Mohave County. Both inspections revealed that the facilities had violations similar to those observed in Cochise County. The facility in Yuma County subsequently moved to Cochise County near the Dragoon Mountains and failed a performance test designed to measure the amount of air pollution being emitted through the main stack of the facility.
In 2010, ADEQ staff re-inspected the hot mix asphalt facility in Mohave County near Kingman and determined that the facility was operating equipment without obtaining the necessary permit documents or performing the required performance tests for air pollution from the facility.
In 2011, the facility that had been in Navajo, Yuma, and Cochise Counties had also operated in Pinal County near Casa Grande and failed a performance test for dust emissions.
“These are serious violations that degraded air quality in five counties around the State,” said ADEQ Director Henry Darwin. “The company has resolved the violations and we hope this settlement is a new beginning.” “These kinds of highway construction companies need to rigorously comply with state standards to protect the health of our citizens and our environment,” Attorney General Tom Horne said.
New Video Shows Green Business Program Expands To Help Businesses Go Green and Thrive
More than 2,600 small businesses including restaurants, hotels, and retail stores are participating in the pilot program which started in 2005. Each certified green business has helped to use fewer toxic chemicals, reduce wastewater and solid waste, and prevent pollution across California. The video, features California green businesses including a dry cleaning company in Alameda County and a hotel in San Francisco. It also features some local partners including the Santa Cruz Green Business program that are working with DTSC on this exciting statewide program.
Businesses earn a seal of green certification from their local city or county by meeting rigorous criteria established by the California Green Business Program.
Flo Chemical Fined $29,648 for Violating Air Pollution Control Requirements
The Flo Chemical Corp., which produces a protein from corn meal at its Ashburnham, Massachusetts, manufacturing plant, was assessed a $29,648 penalty by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) for violating Air Pollution Control regulations.
During a May 2011 follow-up inspection of the company’s Puffer Street plant, MassDEP personnel determined that the company had both new and repeat violations of its Air Pollution Control Approval permit. The company was not conducting required system testing protocols, and it had not been maintaining all required operating records. Failure to keep appropriate records caused the company to misreport annual air emissions, and potentially exceed approved emission limits.
In a negotiated agreement, the company is required to comply with all applicable regulations and approval conditions, many of which it has already complied with, and pay $15,360 of the penalty. The remaining $14,288 of the penalty was suspended pending the company’s compliance with the consent order, and submission of documentation that demonstrates that the company did not exceed major source thresholds for alcohol emissions.
“Proper monitoring and record-keeping is the key to demonstrating compliance with certain environmental regulations and approvals,” said Lee Dillard Adams, deputy director of MassDEP’s Central Regional Office in Worcester.
Property Owner Fined $18,187 for Asbestos Violations
MassDEP has assessed an $18,187 penalty against 320 Elm, LLC of Southbridge, Massachusetts, for violations of MassDEP’s asbestos regulations. The violations occurred during the removal of asbestos-containing transite siding shingles from a residential property located at 255-257 Marcy Street in Southbridge, a property that the company owns.
During an inspection of the site in November 2009, MassDEP personnel found that the company had removed the asbestos-containing siding itself without having provided prior notification to MassDEP, and without following the required handling, packaging, and disposal procedures. Numerous pieces of shattered asbestos transite shingles were observed dry, uncontained on the ground, and in a roll-off dumpster at the property.
Upon discovery of the violations, the company was required to hire a Massachusetts Division of Labor Standards licensed asbestos contractor to properly handle, package and dispose of all the asbestos-containing waste materials, and to decontaminate all impacted areas of the property.
MassDEP regulations require asbestos-containing transite materials to be removed wet, in a manner that minimizes breakage, and then carefully lowered to the ground. The regulations also mandate that asbestos waste be sealed, while wet, into leak tight containers that have the appropriate asbestos warning labels affixed to them.
Under the terms of the settlement, the company must pay $4,000 of the assessed penalty, and MassDEP suspended the remaining $14,187 as long as there are no repeat violations for one year.
“Contractors and property owners must be fully aware of their responsibilities to thoroughly inspect buildings, which they intend to renovate for the presence of any asbestos containing-materials,” said Lee Dillard Adams, deputy director of MassDEP’s Central Regional Office in Worcester. “Failure to identify and properly remove asbestos-containing materials is an extremely serious and ultimately a costly oversight that potentially exposes workers, residents and the general public to a known carcinogen. Noncompliance inevitably results in significant penalty exposure, as well as escalated cleanup, decontamination, disposal and monitoring costs to both the property owner and the contractor.”
Property Owner Fined $31,000 for Failing to Complete Oil Spill Cleanup
MassDEP has issued a $31,000 penalty to Jeanne Golrick, former owner of a vacant, two-family residence at 34 East Main Street in the Miller Falls section of Montague, Massachusetts, for violations of the hazardous waste management regulations.
Ms. Golrick failed to complete the cleanup of an oil spill from an aboveground storage tank and failed to eliminate the potential for spills of oil from other storage tanks and drums present at the property.
In September 2010, MassDEP staff inspected Ms. Golrick’s property at the request of the Montague Board of Health and Fire Department. According to town officials, a detached garage at the property was being used by Ms. Golrick’s son to repair vehicles. MassDEP staff observed six 275-gallon aboveground fuel oil storage tanks and five 55-gallon drums, believed to contain oil, located in the basement at the property. The legs of one of the aboveground storage tanks had sunk into the dirt basement floor, and oil was leaking from the tank.
MassDEP issued a notice to Ms. Golrick in October 2010, requiring her to take immediate steps to empty the drums and aboveground storage tanks, and clean up oil-contaminated soil in the basement. Massachusetts’ regulations require that the recipient of such a notice submit written notification and cleanup plans for review to MassDEP within 60 days. Ms. Golrick failed to submit the required documentation, and failed to respond to a Notice of Noncompliance, issued in January 2011 that allowed an extension of the deadline to submit the required information.
Ms. Golrick also failed to attend a meeting with MassDEP in October 2011 to discuss the violations. Therefore, MassDEP has issued a penalty to Ms. Golrick in the amount of $31,000.
Subsequent to MassDEP’s initial inspection of the property, the Town of Montague has taken ownership of the property for non-payment of taxes. MassDEP is currently working with town officials to assist them with completing the required cleanup.
“MassDEP made an effort to assist Ms. Golrick in completing the required cleanup, but that effort was unsuccessful,” said Michael Gorski, director of MassDEP’s Western Regional Office in Springfield. “It is unfortunate that MassDEP has been required to take this enforcement action; completing the cleanup at the site would have been less costly. We will continue to work with the Town of Montague to ensure the property is cleaned up and returned to active use.”
Overexposure to Radon: Second Leading Cause of Lung Cancer in the US
EPA has declared January as Radon Action Month as part of the agency’s on-going efforts to make families aware of the health hazard presented by radon in homes.
Radon enters homes from underground. So, living healthy and green starts from the ground up. By preventing radon from entering homes, every family can have safer, healthier air to breathe.
Part of the campaign features former NFL kicker Fuad Reveiz, now a home builder who uses radon-resistant construction and encourages others to do the same.
Scranton Sewer Authority Penalized for Safety Violations
The alleged violations, identified in an April 2010 EPA inspection, focused on the sewer authority’s failure to comply with a risk management plan designed to reduce the risk of an accidental release of harmful chemicals into the atmosphere. Some of the specific violations included failure to properly train employees in operating procedures, failure to test and inspect equipment, and failure to conduct a three-year compliance audit.
Under the Clean Air Act, facilities that produce, handle, process, distribute, or store certain chemicals are required to develop, implement and submit a risk management plan to EPA. Alleged violations included the authority’s failure to update safety procedures, train employees, perform inspections, or maintain proper identification.
Under the settlement, the authority will pay a cash civil penalty of $12,619, and will implement a supplemental environmental project costing $30,000 that involves purchasing and planting 100 trees in urban neighborhoods on the south side of Scranton. The tree project is intended to improve air quality in Scranton by absorbing air pollutants, which are triggers for asthma, and thereby creating health benefits for asthma sufferers.
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Trivia Question of the Week
Which of the following are not currently regulated in drinking water under the Safe Drinking Water Act regulations?
a. Methyl bromide
b. Methyl-t-butyl ether (MTBE)
c. Adenoviruses
d. All of the above
