United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Water
(WH-547)
EPA832-F-93-010
September 1993
&EPA
Source Reduction
Workshops
Case Studies
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PROGRAM DESCRIPTION j
The Metropolitan Waste Control Commission (MWCQ
in St Paul, Minnesota is presenting three pollution prevention
(PP) workshops designed to educate the municipal wastewater
community (e.g., POTW staff and industrial dischargers) in PP.
This project is funded with a $100,000 matching grant from
EPA's Pollution Prevention Division. The Minnesota Technical
Assistance Program (MnTAP) supportsJUWCC by organizing
the three workshops and providing technical assistance.
Primarily funded by the Minnesota Office of Waste
Management, MnTAP is a nonregulatory unit that provides PP
assistance to businesses and organizations in Minnesota.
MWCC is the largest POTW in Minnesota and includes 11
plants serving 105 communities and approximately 750
industrial dischargers. '•
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PROGRAM OBJECTIVE
MWCC has two main objectives for the workshops: (1)
to better educate their staff so that they are able to teach
industrial users about alternative waste management practices,
including PP and (2) to achieve reductions in the concentrations
of pollutants and volumes of wastewater discharged to
MWCC's wastewater^treatment system through PP at the point
of generation. ;"
Three workshops were scheduled, one in April 1992,
another in October 1992, &hd;the final one in March 1993.
Their goals were to identif^lirect applications for PP
techniques such as source reduction and municipal water use
efficiency. These workshops were designed to motivate the
municipal water community — supplier, manager, or user of
water resources- to utilize PP techniques. The following
workshop descriptions highlight the topics covered.
Workshop No. 1 - April 1992 '
The first workshop involved approximately 50
participants consisting of MWCC pretreatment program staff,
MWCC staff committee members, representatives from seven
other Minnesota POTWs that have federally approved
pretreatment programs, Minnesota Pollution Conteol Agency
industrial wastewater staff, and representatives from county
hazardous waste programs. This first workshop lasted a half
day and aimed to shift participants' orientation from
pretreatment towards PP. PP activities at the state and federal
level were discussed to provide participants with a basis for
understanding local PP initiatives. A worksheet on PP
opportunities for POTWs was used during small group
discussions. MWCC intends to use the worksheet to identify
areas where further education could help POTW personnel
promote PP. The worksheet addressed the following topics:
1. What can POTWs do to prevent pollution and contribute to
Minnesota's effort to prevent pollution at its source?
2. How can POTWs balance their roles as "regulator" and
"technical assistance provider"?
3. What tools, training, staff development, and resources will
a POTW need to implement an effective PP program?
4. What PP opportunities exist.outside the industrial
discharger arena (e.g., PP opportunities with commercial
businesses and the general public)?
5. How can POTWs identify and communicate PP
opportunities to dischargers?
6. How much must a POTW inspector know about
dischargers' processes to provide PP assistance?
7. How can POTW inspectors integrate PP into their jobs?
8. To whom does a POTW inspector refer dischargers for
further informatiom?
9. How can POTW inspectors coordinate PP opportunities
with other agencies;?
Addressing these issues will facilitate the development of
an approach to PP based on cooperation rather than
regulatory penalties.
Printed on Recycled Paper
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WnrkshOD Nn. 2 . Higher 1992
The second workshop involved 80 participants
representing the same organizations as in Workshop No. 1.
Using the worksheets completed during Workshop No. 1,
MnTAP designed the second workshop to provide detailed,
technical information on PP techniques, primarily geared
toward wastewater. The purpose of this workshop was to
integrate PP into pretreamient inspections and other POTW
programs, identify PP opportunities, identify opportunities for
MnTAP to provide technical assistance, discuss PP success
stories, and review industrial PP plans and annual progress
reports.
After the keynote address and a general introduction on
PP, there were 13 different breakout sessions, each lasting
45 minutes, on various topics for the participants to choose
from:
Q Food Industries I: Keeping Food Materials Out of
Wastewater
Q Food Industries IT: Recycling Restaurant Food as
Livestock Feed
Q Photoprocessing
Q Printing
a Machining/Cutting Fluids and Coolants
a Parts Cleaning
Q Electroplating and Metal Finishing
Q Printed Circuit Board Manufacturing
Q Commercial Sources
a Household Hazardous Waste .
Q Nonpoint Source Pollution
Q Greater Minnesota's POTW Issues
Q Lake Superior Partnership
Following the breakout sessions, there was a general
session entitled "SARA Title m Section 313 - Pollution
Prevention Plans and Progress Reports." Finally, the group
discussed "next steps" and adjourned The workshop was well-
received and the participants commented that they found it
extremely informative.
Workshop No. .1 . March 1993
The final workshop included participants from Workshop
Nos. 1 and 2 as well as staff from other POTWs and industrial
users of the sewage treatment system. This workshop included
roundtable discussions on PP designed to allow the industrial
users and POTW staff to share ideas and PP experiences.
Again, results of the worksheets from the previous workshops
were used to guide presentations and discussions in this
workshop.
PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS
It may be several years after these workshops have been
completed before the accomplishments become fully apparent
However, MWCC anticipates that the workshops will make
both the regulatory agencies and the regulated community more
aware of opportunities to implement successful PP programs
focusing on source reduction. The process of developing,
planning, and conducting these workshops, however, has
already served to increase awareness and appreciation for PP
techniques on the part of personnel at MWCC, other POTWs,
and industrial facilities using these wastewater treatment
faculties.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
For additional information on the source reduction
workshops, contact Navneet Tiku at (612) 772-7016 or write
to:
Metropolitan Waste Control Commission
Mears Park Center
230 East Fifth Street
St Paul, Minnesota 55101
f For additional information about the MWPP Program, contact the U.S. EPA Office of Wastewater Enforcement and
Compliance, (202) 260-5856.
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