905R02011
United Stales Region 5
Environmental Protection 77 West Jackson Boulevard
Agency Chicago Illinois 60604
&EPA
Celebrating Success
In 2002
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.
As each of us goes about our
daily work, it's easy to lose
track of all the great things
we do as a Region. We've
put forth a lot of effort
during the year, and it's
important to stop and
take the time to enjoy our
accomplishments.
That's what this booklet is
for. We're going to take a
look back at a few of Region
5's achievements in 2002.
This is by no means a complete list of our successes
over the past year, but this booklet offers a look at some
of the many ways in which we worked hard to protect
public health and the environment. Whether it was helping
eliminate lead poisoning among children or keeping our
public drinking water systems safe from possible terrorist
attacks, Region 5 got the job done.
I'm proud of what we accomplished together in 2002, and
I'm looking forward to having even greater stories to tell
at the end of next year.
Tom Skinner
Region 5 Administrator
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AIR
The Illinois trading program for
volatile organic compounds is the first
state cap-and-trade program in the
nation to earn EPA approval. And it's
the only cap-and-trade program that
reduces and regulates emissions of
VOCs. Region 5 has been working
with Illinois EPA to track the results
of this program, which has operated
smoothly for two years. As expected,
the innovative process has resulted in
emission reductions that might not
have been possible otherwise. In
addition, analysis shows the program
has led to a relatively uniform reduction
of hazardous air pollutant emissions.
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The Northeast Ohio Project provides local environmental and health
information for residents of a 15-county area. Urban sprawl and environ-
mental quality were identified as two of the region's top problems, and the
project addresses the environmental impact of expanding popula-
tion beyond a city's boundaries. Residents of Northeast Ohio receive
near-real-time data on air quality. There's also an extensive community
outreach program. The
project was part of EPA's
Environmental Monitoring
for Public Access and
Community Tracking Program.
* * <>
Excessive ground-level ozone
has been a problem in the
Lake Michigan shoreline
states since the first standards
were set in 1971. But a series
of reduction strategies in
Chicago, Northwest Indiana,
Milwaukee and other shore-
line areas have made an
impact. In 2002, the Air &
Radiation Division approved a
group of plans that represent
a joint effort to meet the
one-hour ozone standard by
2007.
Region 5 approved rules from Illinois and Indiana this year that could lead
to a 30 percent reduction in the ozone-forming chemical nitrogen oxide by
2007. Other states in the region are expected to institute similar rules. All
will be part of an eventual 21-state trading program that will significantly
reduce the movement of ozone in the Eastern United States. This will help
many areas attain the one-hour ozone standard, and could become the
basis for the trading program envisioned under the Clear Skies Initiative.
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WATER
About $1.4 million in
BEACH Act grants went to
Region 5 states in 2002 to
make Great Lakes beaches
safer for swimming. States
used the grants to improve
beach monitoring and public
notification programs,
including outreach materials
to educate swimmers about
the risks of swimming in
contaminated water.
***
Enforcement actions have
also helped reduce the
amount of untreated or
partially treated waste water
that is contaminating lakes,
rivers and streams in the
Midwest. A settlement with
the city of Toledo, Ohio, is
one example. Toledo agreed
to spend nearly $400 million
to upgrade its water treat-
ment system. The project
will drastically reduce
discharges of untreated
waste water, and eliminate
sanitary sewer overflows.
This will help reduce the
number of beach closings along
Lake Erie near Oregon, Ohio.
One of the year's priorities was protecting public drinking water systems
from possible terrorist attacks. Striving to protect the most people in the
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complexes. All this in an area of East Moline, III., that was once an unregu-
lated dump. With EPA Brownfields assistance, the city identified areas
contaminated by metals, and built a
new road to cover them. The most
heavily contaminated soil was
removed. Town homes are under
construction, with plans for an
office building, a restaurant, a
visitor's center and possibly an
indoor sports complex.
Eight cities in Region 5 received
awards for pilot projects to rede-
velop properties contaminated by
leaking underground storage tanks.
Each city will receive up to
$100,000 for the projects, which
are expected to demonstrate the
benefits of a partnership approach
to the cleanup and reuse of idle or
abandoned commercial properties
such as gas stations. Awards went
to Freeport and Waukegan in
Illinois, Indianapolis and South Bend
in Indiana, Detroit and Kalamazoo
in Michigan, as well as Minneapolis,
and Youngstown-Boardman, Ohio.
A mercury spill at a residence in
Flint, Mich., sent the Superfund
Technical Assistance & Response Team into action. Mercury vapors in the
house were as much as 15 times higher than the acceptable limit. Timely
action by EPA and its contractors had the residents back in their home in
just 10 days.
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The Critical Ecosys-
tems Team finished
its initial work in
identifying the
highest quality
intact ecosystems in
the Region. The
data gained from
this study will help
EPA focus commu-
nity efforts to
restore and protect
critical ecosystems,
and protect areas
from further
decline.
-f, tlf •'*
In a continuing
project with the
Chicago Depart-
ment of Health,
Office of Strategic
Environmental Analysis staff used CIS maps to identify areas where children
might be in danger of lead poisoning. The maps helped select homes for a
door-to-door screening campaign. The effort found 350 children who had
not previously been tested for lead poisoning, and 164 of them showed
elevated levels of lead in their blood. Because of the project, these children
will get the medical help they need sooner rather than later. Region 5 is also
working with 10 tribes to reduce the incidence of childhood lead poisoning.
More than 500 tribal children have been tested, with very few showing
elevated blood-lead levels.
<>f>s*
Great Lakes National Program Office and the Great Lakes Commission
launched the first large-scale collaborative effort to assess the ecological
health of Great Lakes coastal wetlands. A group of wetland scientists and
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shortest time, Region 5 targeted water systems serving large numbers of
people. The Region awarded $5.5 million this year to 50 of these systems,
helping local officials assess the vulnerability of their systems and outline
steps needed to improve security. This helped improve the safety of
drinking water for more than 20 million people.
A plan to build three new bridges across the Fox River in Kane County, III.,
included the loss of sensitive wetlands. The Office of Strategic Environmen-
tal Analysis worked with the Federal Highway Administration to reduce the
amount of wetlands lost from 4.5 acres to 2.5 acres.
Children at an elementary school in Roselawn, Ind., have clean, drinkable water
after action by Region 5's Underground Storage Tank Section and Drinking
Water Branch. Responding to a citizen's complaint about underground storage
tanks at a local gas station, EPA staff found the school's drinking water had 10
times the acceptable level of the gasoline additive MTBE.
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Virginia, Minn., is a town on the Mesabi
Iron Range that is short on land for
development. It is surrounded by open-
pit mines and former mines, and much of
the remaining area is wetlands. An area
known as the Oneida Addition remained
unused for years, littered with old,
rusting mining equipment and covered
with waste from ore-sifting. After a
relatively simple environmental assess-
ment funded by an EPA Brownfields
Assessment grant, the site is home to
much-needed senior citizen housing.
There are townhouses, assisted living
apartments and an Alzheimer's care unit.
A new roadway invites walkers and cyclists
to observe wildlife, and construction has
begun on new business and residential
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EMS
resource managers from the U.S. and Canada will design and validate
indicators to assess the wetlands, design a long-term monitoring program
and create a binational database.
»*•*
Region 5 continues to work
with states and tribes to build
integrated environmental
information systems. These
systems will provide the public
and regulators access to
information they need to
document environmental
performance, understand
environmental conditions and
make sound decisions that
ensure environmental protec-
tion. Network Readiness grants
awarded in 2002 will help
states and tribes build links to
the National Environmental
Information Exchange Network.
»**
Input from the Office of
Strategic Environmental Analy-
sis has helped the Federal
Highway Administration select
locations for one or two new
Interstate Highway bridges
across the Ohio River in
southern Ohio.The recommen-
dations, coordinated with
Region 4, included comments
on how the bridges will affect
wetlands, air and water quality,
noise, and wildlife habitat.
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Teaching marina operators and boat owners about oil spill prevention is
helping reduce the number and size of oil spills around the Great Lakes.
Compliance assistance tools have been developed as part of a series of
Marina Oil Pollution Prevention Education Seminars. A Web site designed
for marina operators provides additional information, including help in
developing their own plans for spill prevention control.
Region 5 and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources started a
project that will encourage local governments and lenders to take title to
abandoned properties. The new title holders would only be required to
take actions such as razing worn-down buildings or installing a fence
around the property. That would control any immediate risks. In return,
the state will agree not to force the new owners to do a complete
cleanup. In most cases, the cost of a complete cleanup might exceed the
value of the property. This project helps address the most pressing needs.
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3 N M E NTAL STEWARDSHIP
A regulatory innovations project is expected to make the air in Toma-
hawk, Wis., cleaner. A site-specific rule allows Packaging Corporation of
America to opt for an alternative compliance in its pulping process. The
result should be a seven-fold increase in the treatment of hazardous air
pollutants over what would be achieved by strictly following federal
requirements.
**#
Murphy Oil Corp. agreed to pay a $5.5 million civil penalty as part of a
settlement with EPA and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Re-
sources. This is the largest penalty ever levied in an environmental en-
forcement case in Wisconsin. The settlement is also significant because the
control measures Murphy is required to make will reduce carbon dioxide
emissions by 1,300 tons a year. They will also significantly reduce volatile
organic compounds. The case involved Murphy's refinery in Superior, Wis.
*«•*
Region 5's training program sponsored more than 100 classes in 2002,
despite budget cuts. The region's Workforce Development Board directed
course selection, with an increased emphasis on distance learning over the
Internet and the launch of a New Skills/New Options developmental
program for clerical and administrative professionals.
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Roadside poetry promotes Wisconsin's Integrated Pest Management program
to area farmers. The creative sign campaign, reminiscent of old-fashioned
Burma Shave ads, also promotes the IPM Web site, funded by Region 5.
-/ -? ^
EPA says indoor air quality is important, and our own building is no excep-
tion. The Public Health Service checked out air quality in the Superfund
Division work space and found no major problems.
•t «,> <:-
Region 5 is supporting the work of federal and state agencies to keep the
Asian carp - and other invasive species - out of the Great Lakes. If the
Asian carp reaches the Great Lakes, it could have a significant effect on
native fish and shellfish habitats. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has built
a barrier in the Chicago Sanitary & Ship Canal near Romeoville, III. Great
Lakes National Program Office supported early development work on the
barrier's design.
-'i ^ -r-
The Office of Public Affairs helped manage several appearances in Region 5
states by EPA Administrator Christie Whitman. One of those visits was in
Muskegon, Mich., where she officially released Great Lakes Strategy 2002. The
Strategy presents a basin-wide vision for protecting and restoring the Great
Lakes, and identifies common goals for federal, state and tribal agencies to work
toward. The office was also heavily involved in the roll-out of President Bush's
Clear Skies Initiative, which attracted extensive media interest.
Region 5 supported a seminar on local response to terrorism, sponsored by
two county health departments in Ohio. An EPA speaker presented valuable
information on chemical agents and decontamination.
* *>•$
Some great numbers:
$ Since 1990, air emissions of mercury have declined by more than
40 percent.
* At least 30 percent of PCB-containing transformers in use in 1994
have been safely disposed of.
& Since 1987, there has been a 70 percent reduction in dioxin
emissions.
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