Be sure to check here first to find out what to add to your to do list for the next few weeks. (While helpful, please note that this list may not be inclusive of all deadlines affecting your facility and should not be relied upon as your only source of information.)
June 15 - Vinyl chloride emission source activities report must be submitted if applicable, under 40 CFR 61.70.
June 19 - Existing sources subject to NESHAPS for Group I and IV polymers and resins must comply with revised standards related to monitoring, testing, reporting, and recordkeeping (40 CFR 63 Subparts U and JJJ; 40 CFR 63.480 - 481; 40 CFR 63.1310-1311).
July 1 - Form R (or Form A) due for EPCRA Section 313 toxic substances manufactured, processed, or otherwise used at specific threshold quantities (40 CFR 372.25 - 30).
July 1 A PCB annual document log for 2000 must be developed for
facilities that use or store at any one time at least 45 kg of
PCBs in containers or transformers, or 50 or more large high or
low voltage capacitors (40 CFR 761.180)
FEDERAL AGENCIES ANNOUNCE NEW STUDIES OF FEDERAL REMEDIATION PROJECTS
On May 30, member agencies of the Federal Remediation Technologies Roundtable (FRTR) announced the release of 56 new case study reports describing the cost and performance of remediation at hazardous waste sites.
The studies were compiled by the Army, Navy, Air Force, DOE, and EPA as part of an ongoing commitment to document and share their experiences based on actual field applications of cleanup technologies. With the addition of this new information, 274 case studies are now available covering a wide variety of technologies for the remediation of contaminated soil and ground water. The FRTR is also making available 39 case study reports on site characterization technologies.
These 56 new reports cover such timely subjects as treatment of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) in groundwater and drinking water, optimization of groundwater cleanup systems, and cleanup of small dry cleaner sites (including reports from State agencies). Specific technologies in the update feature in situ processes, including bioremediation, flushing, chemical oxidation, air sparging (injecting air), and monitored natural attenuation.
Information from the case study reports will aid project managers, technology providers, consulting engineers, and other interested parties in identifying smarter solutions for and making better engineering judgements about site remediation.
The 274 reports are available on the FRTR web site
(http://www.frtr.gov). The web site provides the ability to
search and screen reports, allowing users to identify case
studies that match their needs. In addition, abstracts of the new
studies (Abstracts of Remediation Case Studies: Volume V) and a
CD-ROM of all 274 reports are available from the National Service
Center for Environmental Publications at 1-800-490-9198.
EPA FURTHER PROTECTS DRINKING WATER
EPA Administrator Christie Whitman has approved a final rule that will provide an estimated 35 million Americans with cleaner, safer drinking water from more than 4,600 drinking water systems.
Drinking water plants that filter water before sending it to their consumers must periodically clean their filters to remove the particulates that have been captured over time. Water is pumped backwards through the filter to remove these particulates through a process known as "filter backwashing." The resultant filter backwash water may contain significant levels of microbes such as Cryptosporidium, the spore-like substance that has caused 12 waterborne disease outbreaks since l984, including a major outbreak in Milwaukee in l993 that sickened 400,000 people and resulted in more than 50 deaths.
Many systems recycle spent filter backwash water back into their treatment plants. This recycling, when performed improperly, may increase the risk of waterborne pathogens entering treated water. Recycle practices have been identified as possible causes for three of the more recent Cryptosporidium outbreaks. The final rule establishes requirements to ensure that filter backwash recycle practices do not compromise the ability of a treatment plant to provide safe drinking water.
Additional information on the "Filter Backwash Recycling Rule,"
is available on EPA's Office of Water Web site at:
http://www.epa.gov/ow , under "What's New." The final rule is
expected to be published in the Federal Register as early as next
week.
FORMER FLORIDA RESIDENTS SENTENCED FOR VIOLATIONS DEALING WITH ILLEGAL IMPORT OF FREON
On May 25, Aurelio Anthony Vigna, formerly of Boca Raton, Fla., and his son Joseph Vigna, formerly of Davie, Fla., were sentenced on charges of violating the Clean Air Act, the evasion of excise taxes, conspiracy to violate the Clean Air Act and conspiracy to evade federal excise taxes. Aurelio Vigna was sentenced to two years imprisonment and will be required to pay $500,000 to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Joseph Vigna was sentenced to eighteen months in prison and will be required to pay $250,000 to the IRS.
Both men plead guilty to falsifying documents to the U.S. Customs Service, EPA and the IRS in order to illegally import the refrigerant gas CFC-12 into the United States between 1992 and 1994. The gas was subsequently distributed. CFC-12, also known as "freon," is commonly used in the air conditioners of automobiles manufactured before 1994. Its importation is highly restricted because, when released into the atmosphere, freon depletes the ozone layer which helps provide protection against the harmful sunlight effects including skin cancer and cataracts.
The case was investigated by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division and the IRS Criminal Investigation Division. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami.