v>EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Off ice of Water
Washington, D.C.
EPA832-F-99-010
September 1999
Storm Water
Management Fact Sheet
Employee Training
DESCRIPTION
In-house employee training programs are
established to teach employees about storm water
management, potential sources of contaminants,
and Best Management Practices (BMPs).
Employee training programs should instill all
personnel with a thorough understanding of their
Storm Water Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP),
including BMPs, processes and materials they are
working with, safety hazards, practices for
preventing discharges, and procedures for
responding quickly and properly to toxic and
hazardous material incidents.
APPLICABILITY
Typically, most industrial facilities have employee
training programs. Usually these address such
areas as health and safety training and fire
protection. Training on storm water management
and BMPs can be incorporated into these programs.
Employees can be taught through 1) posters,
employee meetings, courses, and bulletin boards
about storm water management, potential
contaminant sources, and prevention of
contamination in surface water runoff, and 2) field
training programs that show areas of potential storm
water contamination and associated pollutants,
followed by a discussion of site-specific BMPs by
trained personnel.
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
Advantages of an employee training program are
that the program can be a low-cost and easily
implementable storm water management BMP.
The program can be standardized and repeated as
necessary, both to train new employees and to keep
its objectives fresh in the minds of more senior
employees. A training program is also flexible and
can be adapted as a facility's storm water
management needs change over time.
Obstacles to an employee training program include:
• Lack of commitment from senior
management.
• Lack of employee motivation.
• Lack of incentive to become involved in
BMP implementation.
KEY PROGRAM COMPONENTS
Specific design criteria for implementing an
employee training program include:
• Ensuring strong commitment and periodic
input from senior management.
• Communicating frequently to ensure
adequate understanding of SWPPP goals
and objectives.
• Utilizing experience from past spills to
prevent future spills.
• Making employees aware of BMP
monitoring and spill reporting procedures.
• Developing operating manuals and standard
procedures.
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• Implementing spill drills.
IMPLEMENTATION
An employee training program should be an
on-going, yearly process. Meetings about SWPPPs
should be held at least annually, possibly in
conjunction with other training programs. Figure 1
illustrates a sample employee training worksheet.
Worksheets such as these can be used to plan and
track employee training programs. Program
performance depends on employees' participation
and on senior management's commitment to
reducing point and nonpoint sources of pollution;
therefore, performance will vary among facilities.
To be effective these programs need senior
management's support
COSTS
Costs for implementing an employee training
program are highly variable. Most storm water
training program costs will be directly related to
labor and associated overhead costs. Trainers can
reduce costs by using free educational materials
available on the subject of storm water quality.
Figure 2 can be used to estimate the annual costs
for an in-house training program. Table 1 provides
an example of how this worksheet can be used to
estimate annual costs.
REFERENCES
1. U.S. EPA, 1979. NPDESBMP Guidance
Document.
Tim Clark
285 Aragon Avenue
Coral Gables, FL 33134
Hillsborough County, Florida
Jose Rodriguez
Hillsborough County Public Works
601 East Kennedy Boulevard
Tampa, FL 33601
King County, Washington
Dave Hancock
Department of Natural Resources, Water and Land
Resources Division, Drainage Services Section
700 5th Avenue, Suite 2200
Seattle, WA 98104
Mitchell Training, Inc.
Barbara Mitchell
5414 SW 177th Street
Archer, FL 32618
Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning
Commission
Bob Biebel
916 N. East Avenue, P.O. Box 1607
Waukesha, WI53187
The mention of trade names or commercial
products does not constitute endorsement or
recommendation for the use by the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency.
2. U.S. EPA, Pre-print, 1992. Stormwater
Management for Industrial Activities:
Developing Pollution Prevention Plans and
Best Management Practices. EPA 832-R-92-
006.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Center for Watershed Protection
Tom Schueler
8391 Main Street
Ellicott City, MD21043
City of Coral Gables, Florida
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EMPLOYEE TRAINING
Worksheet Completed by:
Title:
Date:
Instructions: Describe the employee training program for yourfacility below. The program should, at a minimum, address spill prevention and
response, good housekeeping, and material management practices. Provide a schedule for the training program and list the employees who
attend the training sessions.
Training Topics
Spill Prevention and Response
Good Housekeeping
Material Management
Practices
Other Topics
Brief Description of
Training
Program/Materials (e.g.,
film, newsletter, course)
Schedule for
Training (list dates)
Participants
Source: U. S. EPA, 1992.
FIGURE 1 SAMPLE WORKSHEET FOR TRACKING EMPLOYEE TRAINING
TABLE 1 EXAMPLE OF ANNUAL EMPLOYEE TRAINING COSTS
Title
Number
Average Overhead* Estimated Estimated Annual
Hourly Multiplier Yearly Hours Cost ($)
Stormwater
Engineer
Plant Management
Plant Employees
1 X
5 x
100 x
*Note: Defined as a multiplier (typically
costs other than salary of employing a
Rate ($)
15 x 2.
20 x 2.
10 x 2.
ranging between 1 and
person, expenses, etc
onSW
Training
0 x 20 = 600
0 x 10 = 2,000
0x5 = 10,000
Total Estimated Annual Cost $12,600
3) that takes into account those costs associated with
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Title Number Average Overhead Estimated Estimated
Hourly Multiplier Yearly Hours on Annual Cost
Rate ($) SW Training ($)
XXX =
XXX =
XXX =
XXX =
Total Estimated Annual Cost
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
(Sum of A+B+C+D)
Source: U.S. EPA, 1992.
FIGURE 2 SAMPLE ANNUAL TRAINING COST WORKSHEET
For more information contact:
Municipal Technology Branch
U.S. EPA
Mail Code 4204
401 M St., S.W.
Washington, D.C., 20460
IMTB
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