'-.-
England
Regiona/ Office
U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency
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ABOUT US
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's New England Office
(Region 1) is headquartered in Boston, Mass. It is one of ten regional
offices across the nation charged by Congress to protect America's land,
air and water.
Congress has instructed EPA, a federal agency based in Washington,
D.C., to use national environmental laws to maintain a compatible
balance between human activities and the ability of natural systems to
support and nurture life.
Since the agency s creation in 1970, EPAs New England Office has
defended the environment in the six New England states — Connecticut,
Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.
For more information aboutEPARegion 1 and its programs, or for
additional copies of "198 7 in Review," contact the Office of Pub lie Affairs,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, J.F.K. Federal Building,
Boston, Massachusetts 02203, Telephone (617) 565-3420.
CONTENTS
Message from the Regional Administrator
1987 Highlights
A Day in the Life of EPA
A Look at an Environmental Engineer
Legal Action against Polluters
A State and Federal Partnership
Organizational Chart
Financial Overview
Composition of the EPA Work Force
For Further Information
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4
12
18
21
24
33
34
35
36
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Dear Friends of the Environment
We, together, in 1987 took significant strides towards the protection of
public heakh and our natural environment in New England. Some, but by no
means all, of these successes are chronicled on the following pages.
Among our accomplishments diere is none of more import than our
continuing commitment to firm but fair enforcement of environmental laws.
We once again filed more cases, issued more orders and collected more
penalties than ever before. We have increased this pace annually since I
became Regional Administrator. We have done so not to "run up numbers"
but to file tough, meaningful cases which will have a deterrent effect on the
regulated community.
I am particularly proud of our criminal enforcement efforts. In 1987
we referred nine criminal cases to the Department of Justice — more than
had been referred by this office in the previous 16 years of its existence.
Among the judgments rendered was the largest fine since EPAs criminal
enforcement program began. Several criminal cases are targeted for referral
in 1988.1 trust that we have demonstrated that we have both the resources
and the resolve to enforce environmental laws whenever illegal activity
threatens the New England environment.
Looking ahead, the challenges confronting us are daunting. From
a management perspective we need to view our environment in a holistic
sense, not as merely a collection of discharge pipes. EPA was for all too
long in the business of moving pollution around. We "cured" an air pollution
problem by requiring the installation of scrubbers which in turn produced
sludge, only to be disposed of in the water or on the land. Our real mission
is to reduce risk to both human health and the natural environment. That
can only happen if we view our environment holistically, as a living, breath-
ing ecological system that sustains life itself.
We are rising to this challenge. Our programs for Narragansett and
Buzzards Bays, Long Island Sound, the Cape Cod Aquifer and die
Merrimack River Basin are examples of this broader thinking. The
Merrimack River, once among the nation's ten filthiest, now supplies
drinking water for one half million people. But the job on the Merrimack
is just beginning. Its entire 5,000 square mile basin needs to be imagi-
natively and zealously guarded from all possible threats.
Two other challenges, which in my judgement will rank among the
most confounding of the next decade, both relate directly to the "price of
prosperity" and both will require major societal change. They are the need
to reduce dramatically the proliferation of waste, both hazardous and gen-
eral, and the need to sensibly manage the unplanned, unfettered growth
which is consuming New England.
First is the issue of waste minimization. We as a country continue to
produce waste at an unconscionable rate — some 300 million metric tons
of hazardous waste per year and nearly a ton per year of garbage for every
American. Obviously this practice can't continue. We pride ourselves on our
technological ability, yet the Japanese recycle 50 percent of their waste while
we recycle only 5 percent. Similarly American industry gives little thought
2
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as to how its waste stream could be reduced or reused. Pieces of this puzzle
lie within our individual grasp. For example, nearly all of Connecticut's land-
fills and 75 percent of Massachusetts' will be overflowing by 1990 and yet
one-sixth of their capacity continues to be consumed by yard wastes which
could be composted. Likewise, we as consumers fail to register even the
mildest of protests when our retail goods continue to be encased in layers
of unnecessary plastic.
Second is the issue of sensible, growth management. Unfortunately,
government agencies in their zest to serve the public too often fail to set an
appropriate example for private developers. The Department of Transporta-
tion in Maine proposes to spend $36 million to build a marine cargo terminal
on pristine Sears Island despite evidence that there is little demand for it
and, if there ever were, there are already industrialized lands next door that
could easily accommodate such a facility.
In Rhode Island the Water Resources Board wants to spend almost
$300 million to obliterate one thousand acres of irreplaceable wetlands —
wetlands that purify and recharge the state's largely untapped underground
water resources — to build a reservoir. \fet to date there has not been a
comprehensive state-wide water audit of existing supplies and projected
demand. What we do know is that 60 percent of the state's largest potable
water supply is now used for industrial processes; that the existing rate struc-
ture encourages waste; and that damming the river's flow will require the
construction of expensive, advanced-technology sewage treatment plants by
downstream communities to adequately protect a diminished river.
What lurks behind these examples is an undemonstrated need for the
project in question, and a pervasive resistance to seeking out practicable
alternatives which cause less environmental harm. The environmental
reviews and impact statements which are an accepted part of doing business
are important because they are our mechanism for informed choice. We
look to strike a balance between man's constant drive to reshape his envi-
ronment and the desire to conserve and preserve our natural resources and
the public health. It is a critical role, and it is one we carry out conscien-
tiously and aggressively.
As our conservationist President Theodore Roosevelt wrote, "We
behave well if we treat our natural resources as assets which we must turn
over to the next generation increased, and not impaired, in value."
That is our challenge — yours and mine. More than 500 dedicated
public servants at EPAs New England Office will continue to bring imagi-
nation and commitment to their jobs. With your help we will succeed in
leaving New England a little better than we found it — a little cleaner, a little
healthier, and a little more liveable. I look forward to continuing to work
with you towards that goal, and sharing the very special sense of accom-
plishment that comes with its achievement.
ERA Regional Administrator Michael Deland (left)
and WCWTV's meteorologist, Dick Albert,
presenting awards in EPA's ecology poem and
poster contest
Michael R.Deland
Regional Administrator
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198] HIGHLIGHTS
water
The Cape Cod Aquifer Management
Project (CCAMP) in Massachusetts, a
two-year collaborative effort of federal,
state, regional and local government
agencies, developed a case study
within the aquifer recharge area for a
group of public supply wells in the Town
of Barnstable. Field work led to an
inventory of all potential contaminant
sources, an expanded observation-
well network and a refined water table
map. From this information, CCAMP
was able to make recommendations
on how to better protect groundwater.
In 1988 EPA will begin transferring
CCAMP's many insights and water
management tools to other New
England states to aid in protecting
other groundwater resources.
Charles Conway, an EPA
environmental engineer,
inspects wastewater
treatment plant.
EPA designated a dredged material
disposal site off the coast of Portland,
Maine. Although this is a nationally
designated site which may receive
dredged material from any permittee,
it will be used primarily for the disposal
of dredged material from the Portland
area.
The Buzzards Bay Project in Massa-
chusetts announced the award of
$300,000 to control coliform contami-
nation and shellfish bed closures in
Buttermilk Bay. The money will pay
for two demonstration stormwater
treatment/infiltration systems, public
education and a cooperative beach
cleanup program. The award followed
a two-year study of the causes of coli-
form pollution in Buttermilk. EPA also
funded studies and projects to control
coastal pollution in Narragansett Bay
in Rhode Island and Long Island
Sound in Connecticut and New York.
EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers improved their protection of
wetlands in 18 towns in York County,
Maine through the Advance Identifi-
cation of Sites. The wetlands are
threatened by high growth rates. The
federal agencies, in coordination with
state and local officials, identified non-
water dependent activities such as
residential development as generally
unsuitable to occur in the wetlands.
A consent agreement required that
Boston Edison Company pay a penalty
of $41,820 for violation of the use,
marking, storage and disposal pro-
visions of the PCB rules. In addition,
Boston Edison agreed to remove all
PCB-related equipment by Dec. 31,
1989, even though EPA regulations
require removal of only a portion of
the equipment. It is estimated that this
will cost Boston Edison $15 million
beyond the cost of meeting EPA
requirements for PCB equipment
phase out.
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ERA employees cast a fish
net off the ERA study ship,
the OSV Anderson.
r .
The Agency petitioned the Maine
Board of Environmental Protection to
reconsider a license it issued to Boise
Cascade to construct two large power
boilers. The modeling conducted for
the proposed plant configuration did
not demonstrate protection of the
national ambient air quality standards.
EPA negotiated several major consent
decrees to correct municipal sewage
pollution.
New Bedford, Mass. $150,000 penalty.
Must install secondary treatment.
Lynn, Mass. $95,000 penalty. Must
install secondary treatment.
Webster and Dudley, Mass. $37,500
penalty. Must install advanced
treatment.
Dover, N.H. $27,500 penalty. Must
install secondary treatment.
In 1987 EPA received and processed
865 Freedom of Information requests.
The written requests come from indi-
viduals, corporations, associations,
public interest groups and local, state
and foreign governments for records
held or believed to be held by EPA.
EPA settled the case with National
Gypsum, entering into a consent
decree to bring its facility into com-
pliance with applicable federal and
state VOC air emission requirements,
and to collect a $232,000 penalty.
When the wallpaper manufacturer in
Hatfield, Mass, is in full compliance,
VOC emissions to the atmosphere will
be reduced by 500 tons per year.
The State Acid Rain (STAR) projects
are into their third year. EPA has cited
the final reports by the New England
states for their quality and timeliness.
The New England projects range from
a dynamic emissions trading system
to conservation through coordination
between public utilities commissions.
EPA allocated $156 million in grants in
1987 for wastewater treatment plants
in New England, and made $210 mil-
lion in payments to grantees who were
awarded grants in 1987 and previous
years.
State
Conn.
Maine
Mass.
N.H.
R.I.
Vt.
Total
Obligation
(millions)
$ 23
$ 8
$ 64
$ 26
$ 15
$ 20
$156
Outlays
(millions)
$ 47
$ 25
$ 86
$ 27
$ 15
$ 10
$210
Rhode Island and EPA evaluated the
movement of toxic pollutants from one
environmental media to another in the
Rhode Island Toxics Integration Proj-
ect. For six weeks, officials monitored
toxics in the air, water and sludge at
a wastewater treatment plant, and
assessed the risks from sludge incin-
eration at two separate plants.
The Mobile Source Enforcement
Program began a national pilot
program issuing "traffic ticket" style
citations to gas stations illegally using
unleaded nozzles on leaded gasoNne
pumps. Violators have the choice of
paying a $200 fine by check or risk
facing prosecution and a stiffer penalty.
In the Cannons Engineering Corp.
Superfund case, 270 responsible
parties committed to enter a settle-
ment to contribute $10.9 million to the
Cannons cleanup. The settlement is
the first of its kind in the country under
a new legal authority which allows
EPA to reach early final settlements
with responsible parties who contrib-
uted small amounts of waste to a
Superfund site. The authority also
allows EPA to take legal action against
responsible parties who contributed
large amounts of waste. The Cannons
case involves Superfund cleanups at
sites in Bridgewater and Plymouth, MA,
and Londonderry and Nashua, N.H.
A deputy fire chief
in Barnstable, MA
inspects the
installation of an
underground
storage tank.
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EPA employees jogging
along the Charles River in
Boston during their lunch-
time break.
air
EPA filed a consent decree requiring
32 alleged generators of hazardous
substances to perform a remedial
action at the Beacon Heights Landfill
Superfund site in Beacon Falls, Conn.
The remedy includes construction of a
cap over the site, a leachate collection
system and a public water supply
system for nearby residences. The
remedy is expected to cost more than
S20 million.
EPA moved approximately 140 of its
Waste Division employees, roughly 25
percent of its New England workforce,
from two separate Boston locations
(the JFK Building and 150 Causeway
St.) to 90 Canal St. in Boston. The
move will improve productivity and
efficiency among Waste Division
employees who have been working in
two separate locations for the past 2
1/2 years.
EPA worked with Connecticut and
Rhode Island to conduct radon testing
of more than 1,600 private homes to
determine the extent of the radon prob-
lem. The results showed that approxi-
mately 20 percent of the homes tested
had radon levels above EPA's sug-
gested action level. It is estimated that
radon, a naturally occurring radio-
active gas, causes between 5,000 and
20,000 lung cancer deaths per year
as a result of exposure to high levels
in the indoor environment.
Region 1 has an aggressive affirma-
tive action program, and is committed
to sustaining a diverse workforce. In
1987,58 percent of the regional
increases were women and minority
employees. To further promote gender
and racial equality, the Region also
developed a Needs Assessment Pilot
Program which created numerous
forums for dialogue concerning dif-
ferences and commonalities among
members of a diverse workforce.
EPA appealed to the Federal District
Court in Connecticut for, and the Court
issued, an order enjoining R.E.A.G.
Corporation from violating National
Emissions Standards for Hazardous
Air Pollutants under the Clean Air Act.
EPA has alleged that in apparent dis-
regard for the serious health threat
posed by asbestos, R.E.A.G., a building
owner, and three renovation contractors
tore down asbestos-containing ceil-
ings and walls in a former theatre in
downtown Bridgeport, Conn. EPA is
seeking the statutory maximum
penalty of $25,000 for each day of
violation against the four parties.
The Boston Harbor cleanup effort con-
tinued. EPA and the Massachusetts
Water Resources Authority negotiated
a comprehensive order regarding
combined-sewer-overflow (CSO)
control measures. EPA worked to help
overcome obstacles to carrying out
the previously entered court orders
requiring the construction of a new
treatment plant and the termination of
sludge discharges. Also, EPA worked
on the successful effort to obtain legi-
slation to relocate the Deer Island
prison to make way for the new treat-
ment plant.
Pyramid Companies continued to chal-
lenge EPA's decision under the Clean
Water Act 404(c) to prohibit the devel-
oper from filling the wetlands known
as Sweeden's Swamp in Attleboro,
Mass, in order to build a shopping mall.
EPA vigorously defended its action and
was upheld by the U.S. District Court.
EPA initiated a pilot project whereby
specific priority regional needs, such
as Boston Harbor, Merrimack River,
wetlands mapping, lead-in-soil, etc.,
were recognized. Under this program,
the regional administrator may for the
first time divert resources from tradi-
tional program commitments to deal
with regional problems.
Clara Chow,
EPA federal facilities
compliance coordinator.
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Michael Pawling,
an ERA inorganic chemist.
Eight percent of Region 1's total grant
or cooperative agreement dollars in
1987 were awarded to women-owned
or minority-owned businesses. Approxi-
mately $20 million went to minority-
owned businesses and roughly $10.5
million went to women-owned busi-
nesses from the grant or agreement
dollars totaling approximately $347
million. The effort represents EPA's
commitment to address the challenge
to increase contract dollars to minority
and women businesses.
EPA expanded its public education
activities through the new national
President's Environmental Youth
Awards program, the Boston Harbor
slide/video show, the youth-related
outreach in a pilot program in Boston
to prevent childhood lead poisoning by
removing lead-contaminated soil near
older lead-painted houses, and the
participation of EPA employees in An
Adopt-a-School program. Other
public-oriented activities included the
Environmental Education Ecology
Poem and Poster Contest, the annual
environmental forum, a speaker's
bureau, staffing display booths and
exhibits, the publication of the Direc-
tory of Environmental Groups in New
England, and the availability of
environmental videotapes, films,
pamphlets and brochures.
To ensure that hazardous waste is
handled properly in New England,
EPA in cooperation with Connecticut
and Massachusetts environmental
agencies developed a better system to
collect information about the approxi-
mately 17,000 companies who gen-
erate, transport, treat, store or dispose
of hazardous waste in New England. It
is the responsibility of the states and
EPA to gather data on hazardous waste
handlers concerning compliance,
enforcement, permitting, closing
hazardous waste sites and corrective
action to clean up sites. To strengthen
the accuracy of the data, EPA improved
the forms used to collect information,
improved instruction manuals for
reporting the data and trained state
staff to better gather the information.
The Agency opened the Region 1
Training Institute which offered 10 to
20 training courses each month with a
total of approximately 80 different
courses. The Institute was designed to
upgrade the skills of EPA employees
and to primarily use EPA staff as
instructors to teach the courses. The
number of employees attending
training sessions tripled as a result of
the Institute, which offered courses
ranging from administrative forms
preparation to environmental risk
assessment.
innovations
The Agency filed a complaint under
the Clean Air Act against General
Motors in Framingham, Mass, to col-
lect $13 million in penalties for a
20-month period during which GM
operated in violation of the federally
approved Massachusetts ozone
State Implementation Plan (SIP). The
case is a central piece of a larger
Region 1 initiative to address viola-
tions by sources emitting volatile
organic compounds (VOC's) which
are ozone precursors.
Marthena Higgins,
EPA supply technician.
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Region 1 developed a new program to
work with a Massachusetts manufac-
turing company to clean up hazardous
waste. The program may become a
model for the nation. An EPA agree-
ment with Monsanto's Indian Orchard
Plant in Springfield, Mass, allows the
company to conduct its own investi-
gation of its hazardous waste problem
with EPA and state oversight. The
plant used nine lagoons, solid waste
landfills and burning pits for approxi-
mately 45 years until 1980 to dispose
of its hazardous waste. Currently, the
company is revising its plan to identify
the location, kinds and extent of its haz-
ardous waste contamination in order
to make decisions about its cleanup
options. Monsanto has spent $15 million
on this project in the past three years.
public affairs
An ERA news conference
announcing the desig-
nation of Buzzards Bay as
an estuary of national
significance
Recognizing that EPA informs the
public about environmental issues
through the media, the agency wrote
and released to newspapers, radio
and television approximately 175 news
and feature stories in 1987. EPA
officials regularly spoke with reporters
from the Boston Globe, the Boston
Herald, the Boston Phoenix, the
Hartford Courant, the Providence
Journal, the New York Times, the Wall
Street Journal, Time, Newsweek and
other major television, radio and
newspaper outlets in New England.
Also, top EPA administrators met with
many New England editorial boards,
general station managers and editorial
directors.
Celeste PhilbriGk,
an EPA marine biologist.
To ensure that local citizens are
involved in decisions about cleanup
actions at the 59 major hazardous
waste (Superfund) sites in New
England, the Superfund Community
Relations Program held 22 public
meetings in site communities for
citizens to learn, raise issues and ask
questions about site developments.
Public input and comment were
solicited on the proposed cleanup
options for several of the Region's
sites which had reached the stage for
the design of a final cleanup plan.
Also, the Community Relations staff
distributed 30 site specific fact sheets
and more than 40 news releases to
keep citizens apprised of Superfund
actions.
EPA established a Superfund Finan-
cial Management Unit in June, 1987 to
financially manage and recover the
costs at Superfund cleanups. The unit
is staffed by five employees. They are
responsible for ensuring that all of
Region 1's Superfund transactions are
properly recorded in the Agency's
accounting system and assembling
the documentation necessary to
support cost recovery actions at
Superfund sites.
EPA assisted the Penobscot Nation in
Maine with undertaking an extensive
analysis of the Nation's ability to play a
larger role in the water quality man-
agement of the Penobscot River,
which runs through the Nation's land.
The Agency has a special respon-
sibility to Native Americans, often
called the "first environmentalists." In
Region 1, an Indian Affairs Coordin-
ator acts as a liaison between EPA's
various programs and New England's
six federally-recognized Indian Tribes.
The Agency instituted a national data
management effort to identify and
resolve data quality and communica-
tion issues and to assist selected
states in making use of information
tools and systems available both
within EPA and the states. Maine was
chosen as the regional pilot state to
participate in this effort. Although the
project is not complete, a high speed
link between EPA's National Computer
Center and the State of Maine has been
installed, and the training and support
for direct, online access to all major
EPA databases has been completed.
8
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The Region received 1,131 notifica-
tions of spills and responded to 120 of
them (state agencies responded to the
others). Of the 120 responses, 24 were
major oil spills and seven were major
chemical releases which required EPA
funding. Two of the more notable
responses included the location and
removal of hundreds of drums contain-
ing hazardous materials which were
swept away by severe spring flooding
of the Kennebec and Androscoggin
rivers in Maine and the Housatonic
River in Connecticut, and a major
release in Putnam, Conn, from afire
and explosion which required around-
the-clock firefighting and removal
efforts for several weeks and cleanup
activities which will last for many
months. Emergency actions were also
begun to eliminate health threatening
situations at six Superfund sites.
Biology Section personnel conducted
more than 60 toxicity analyses and
special studies. Along with the numer-
ous benthic taxonomic studies, asbes-
tos identification projects and Giardia
and other microbiological analyses
requests, the lab expanded its capa-
bilities in the marine environment by
developing in-house test cultures for
marine invertebrates and marine algae.
Water Section personnel conducted
130 compliance studies to determine
whether discharges complied with
wastewater permits or pretreatment
guidelines. Several special studies
included participation in the National
Dioxin Study of a bleach/kraft pulp
and paper mills, an organic/metals
toxicity study of Quincy Bay, lead-in-
soil investigations, field sampling
projects at Superfund and RCRA sites
and major cooperative water quality
studies on the Millers River with the
State of Massachusetts, on the
Ashuelot River with the State of New
Hampshire and on the Pootatuck
River with the State of Connecticut.
The Chemistry Section analyzed more
than 5,000 samples for a variety of
parameters ranging from BOD to semi-
volatile organics to heavy metals to
PCBs. More than 1,000 samples were
for volatile organics for the Superfund
program using gas chromatograph/
mass spectrometer technology and
2,000 involved using X-ray fluores-
cence for the lead program.
The Air Section processed approxi-
mately 1.5 million air quality values
from the criteria air monitoring
networks throughout New England.
Section personnel observed and/or
evaluated 25 stack emission tests,
evaluated the emissions from several
hazardous waste incinerators and
conducted air toxics monitoring
activities at several Superfund sites.
Also, the Air Section conducted
workshops and simulations for the
accidental release of air pollutants,
established emergency planning
districts in the New England states
and reviewed and tested contingency
plans for potential accidental releases.
Excavating toxic soil at the
McKin hazardous waste
site in Gray, ME.
hazardous waste
In one of the first such cases of its
kind, EPA successfully identified the
parties potentially responsible for the
contamination at the Union Chemical
Co. Inc. hazardous waste (Superfund)
site in South Hope, Maine. The Agency
signed a settlement agreement with
263 of the parties which requires them
to study the nature and extent of con-
tamination at the site, propose cleanup
options and pay approximately $1.6
million in past EPA cleanup costs.
Also, EPA filed a lawsuit against 11
parties who declined to join settle-
ments with the Agency for past and
future cleanup costs at the site. The
suit was one of the first times EPA has
gone after nonsettlers.
Patricia Pools, EPA
"Secretary of the Yeat"
9
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The $30 million cargo port proposed to
be built at Sears Island in Penobscot
Bay, Maine, received critical EPA
reviews under the National Environ-
mental Policy Act. The impact state-
ment revealed no need for such an
elaborate project and showed that a
moderately scaled facility could be
built by expanding a nearby port, thus
preserving saltwater wetlands and a
900-acre island on the coast of Maine.
governmental
The John F. Kennedy
Federal Building, EPA's
New England Office
EPA staff walked the corridors of New
England statehouses and worked with
governors and key state legislators.
Such activity in Massachusetts
resulted in a plan to move a decrepit
prison from Deer Island and make
space for the new Boston Harbor
sewage treatment plant. EPA staff also
worked to pass laws like the one to
stop the last major pollution of the
Nashua River, which was the old MDC
plant in Clinton, Mass. They also
worked to defeat bills such as the one
in Connecticut to repeal the auto-
mobile air pollution inspection and
maintenance program.
EPA answered more than a thousand
phone calls and hundreds of letters
from senators and congressmen, vis-
ited them in their offices, and trudged
with them through Superfund sites
and old sewage treatment plants. The
congressional delegation asked EPA
how it is carrying out the laws that
Congress passed and whether EPA
needs new laws to finish the job of
cleaning up the environment. EPA staff
answered even the difficult questions
and the New England congressional
delegation gave bipartisan support to
pollution control.
The Agency approved 34 plans to
close hazardous waste lagoons,
impoundments, landfills and waste
piles in New England in 1987. Under
Congressional acts, facilities which
treat, store or dispose of hazardous
waste must obtain permits to upgrade
their waste sites or close them. There
are approximately 135 such sites in
New England. Thus far, more than
130 facilities have closed or are
preparing to close. Of the 34 closure
plans approved in 1987,27 were in
Connecticut. The Connecticut sites
cover a total surface area of 820,000
sq. ft. and will cost industry more than
$19 million to remove the waste, cap
the waste, and/or monitor groundwater
at the site.
As the National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA) turned 18 years old,
Region 1 celebrated NEPA's birthday
but worried about its health. Environ-
mental reviews under NEPA continued
to be the best way for citizens and EPA
to get an early look at major projects.
For example, EPA successfully urged
that a federal energy agency prepare
an environmental impact statement (its
first) on the large "Ocean State" power
plant proposed on the Rhode Island-
Massachusetts border. EPA felt, and
the company came to agree, that
otherwise many issues would not have
been opened up for fair review by
the public and the plant's maybe-
neighbors-to-be.
EPA worried though about NEPA's
long-term health. As EPA saw other
federal agencies such as the Corps of
Engineers and the Federal Highway
Administration becoming less willing
to include the tough, necessary
questions in their projects' impact
statements, EPA objected to their new,
watered-down regulations. Region 1
urged that EPA stand firm for the
proposition that NEPA's mandate for
full fair disclosure of impacts is and
should be the law of the land.
Melvin P. Holmes,
EPA marine ecologist.
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The National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) can save money as well as pro-
tect the natural environment. The Corps
of Engineers had proposed to build a
$2 million dam for flood control in the
northern Vermont town of Richford.
However, the environmental impact
statement showed that most of the proj-
ect's supposed "benefits" were to pro-
tect a 60-year-old bridge which needed
protection more from its advancing
years than from floods, and would
need replacement anyway. EPA felt
that the case had not been made for
flooding a mile of the free- flowing
Missisquoi River and objected to the
project under NEPA.
Despite criticism from the Department
of the Interior, EPA reasserted its obli-
gation under the National Environ-
mental Policy Act to critique plans to
drill for oil in the George's Bank area of
the Outer Continental Shelf. ERA stated
that the proposed Lease Sale 96 should
be deferred or cancelled because the
risks posed by oil drilling were unrea-
sonable and unnecessary in view of
the exceptionally valuable biological
resources on and near George's Bank,
the relatively low oil and gas estimates
for the North Atlantic, and the low level
of industrial interest.
EPA selected remedies at three
(Superfund) sites. The $15 million
cleanup at Ottati and Goss in Kingston,
N.H. will utilize an innovative aeration
process for treating contaminated
soils, incineration of PCB-contaminated
soil and groundwater extraction and
treatment. The $27 million cleanup
at the Davis Liquid Waste Site in
Smithfield, R.I. will consist of an alter-
nate water line to homes affected by
contamination, on-site incineration of
soil and extraction and treatment of
groundwater. The $20 million Resolve
Inc. Site in Dartmouth, Mass, will
use an innovative dechlorination
process to treat PCB-contaminated
soils and extraction and treatment of
groundwater.
McKin Site
EPA completed one of the most
successful soil treatments in New
England at the seven-acre McKin
hazardous waste (Superfund) site in
Gray, Maine. Under EPA supervision,
Canonie Environmental Services Corp.
of Indiana dug up and treated more
than 12,000 cubic yards of contami-
nated soil — roughly enough soil to
cover a football field 10 feet deep. The
company employed a technology to
treat the soil known as soil aeration, a
process that involves some of the same
equipment found in portable asphalt
batch plants.
The temporary aeration plant assem-
bled right on the McKin site operated
as follows: The soil entered the dryer
unit of the plant where it was heated to
300 degrees Fahrenheit. It was mixed
and aerated to allow the volatile con-
taminants to evaporate. The gases
were then driven off and treated in a
series of air pollution control devices.
After lab analysis verified that the
contaminated soil had been adequately
treated, it was returned to the McKin
site. The soil treatment took one year
and cost approximately $4 million.
After cleanup. A freshly
planted meadow grew
where the McKin dump
site had been.
The McKin site was used as a collection
and transfer station for waste oil and
other industrial wastes, handling
between 100,000 and 200,000 gallons
annually from 1972 to 1977. In some
places the contaminants seeped into the
earth 40 feet to groundwater, and pol-
luted nearby private drinking water wells.
The soil cleanup at McKin is a good
example of EPA's program to find more
permanent on-site remedies at
Superfund sites, rather than moving
wastes from one site to a more secure
site. And the soil aeration at McKin is a
good example of the new technologies
that industry and government are
developing to treat massive volumes of
contaminated soil. The emerging
technologies are the latest thrust in the
campaign to clean up hazardous waste
in New England.
Before cleanup, McKin
hazardous waste site In
Gray, ME.
-------
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF THE EPA
'7 98 7 in Review "goes behind the scenes to look at a 24-hour interval at EPA. All of the
following events actually occurred in 198 7. Although they did not all take place on the same
day, they do depict a fairly normal day of activity at EPA's New England Office. Only a Jew
of EPA's employees can tell their stories here. But they are representative of the hundreds of
committed EPA personnel whose dedication to quality government service has distinguished
Region 1 as an office of integrity and action.
12
Cleaning up wastes
from midnight dumpers
Workers clean up a toxic
spill from a bailer truck
accident in Waterbury, CT.
It was dark and cold when Bob
Ankstitus, an on-scene coordinator
with EPA's Oil and Hazardous
Materials Section, arrived at a dead-
end commercial street in Lowell,
Mass, to clean up a dozen 55-gallon
drums of hazardous waste. Lowell
police, who had called Ankstitus at
home about the spill on an emergency
phone number, greeted him when he
stepped out of his EPA response van.
As Ankstitus inspected the site, he
knew that the chemicals probably
belonged to a midnight dumper who
didn't want to pay $5,000 to $10,000 to
properly dispose of the material.
Ankstitus proceeded cautiously with
the cleanup because he didn't know
what toxic wastes the drums may
contain. A cleanup crew arrived and
the workers lit up the area with spot-
lights. Of the 12 drums, 10 were
standing and two were knocked over
and leaking. Ankstitus and the workers
suited up in full safety uniforms with
self-contained breathing units. Their
surveillance instruments indicated that
the wastes were flammable, and so
they used spark-proof tools to open
the drums and take samples that were
sent immediately to EPA's lab for
analysis. They operated a tractor with
a drum-grappler to upright the two
leaking drums and to place all the
drums into larger steel drums for
added protection. Next, the workers
mopped up the spilled wastes and
cleaned up the contaminated area.
"The fatigue factor always sets in.
Your body says you should be in bed
by 11. But you have to fight it off and
maintain your mental alertness while
running a job. And you have to make
sure the other personnel are working
safely and alertly," Ankstitus said.
At 4 a.m. the crew completed the
cleanup. By that time, a chemist at
EPA's lab had produced initial lab
results that showed the wastes con-
tained heavy metals and solvents
including xylene, toluene, ethyl
benzene and tetrachloroethylene,
which are degreasers and waste oil
probably collected by the owner of a
garage or auto body shop. Before
returning home for a few hours sleep,
Ankstitus asked the Lowell police to
guard the drums until EPA could find a
licensed incinerator to bum the wastes.
The Lowell incident is not an isolated
event. According to Ankstitus, mid-
night dumpers push their wastes out
of trucks approximately 20 to 50 times
each year in New England.
12
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Protecting workers
from asbestos
8
am
Donald Dahl, an environmental
engineer and an asbestos inspector
in EPA's Air Division, watched six
workers remove asbestos from ducts
and industrial ovens at a Central
Massachusetts facility. He was there
during an unannounced inspection
because someone had called and
complained that the work was not
being performed according to EPA
regulations. Dahl, who was wearing a
disposable suit and a respirator similar
to the safety uniforms worn by the
workers, stood inside the asbestos
demolition area sealed off with tem-
porary clear plastic walls.
He saw dust clouds of asbestos rise in
the air as an asbestos removal worker
improperly stripped off dry asbestos
and dropped it to the ground. Dahl
also witnessed two workers illegally
shoveling dry asbestos into a bag and
noticed another pile of dry asbestos on
the floor. The workers should have
thoroughly soaked the asbestos with
water before removing or handling it
to prevent the asbestos fibers from
becoming airborne. Airborne asbes-
tos, which is invisible to the eye, can
cause asbestosis, a noncancerous,
but disabling and sometimes fatal
scarring of the lungs; mesothelioma, a
relatively rare, but almost always fatal
cancer of the chest and abdominal
linings; and lung cancer. The diseases
surface 15 to 30 years after a person
has inhaled or ingested the fibers.
Ironically, Dahl saw hoses on the floor
that the workers could have used to wet
the asbestos. But he said a foreman
on the job said the workers were not
soaking the asbestos because there
were live electrical wires in the area.
"We don't view that as an excuse. They
can always shut off the electricity to an
empty building," Dahl said. Why wasn't
the work being performed safely? Dahl
said that possibly the contractor, who
was experienced in asbestos removal,
was trying to save time or money, or
was not supervising the job carefully
enough.
As part of his inspection, Dahl took
samples of the dry material to have
them analyzed at EPA's lab to deter-
mine whether the improperly handled
material was indeed asbestos. He also
took photographs. And he warned the
foreman (who had acknowledged that
the material being removed did contain
asbestos) that asbestos removal regu-
lations require wetting of asbestos
before, during and after asbestos
removal.
The names of the contractor and indus-
trial facility have not been included in
this story because the case is currently
in litigation and may result in signifi-
cant monetary penalties. Overall, con-
tractors removed asbestos at more than
7,000 sites in New England in 1987.
13
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Voicing environmental
concerns in
Washington, D.C.
10 am
Four top EPA officials, two from
Washington, D.C. and two from New
England, wound their way through the
corridors of the Pentagon to attend a
meeting with the Assistant Secretary
of the U.S. Air Force about his pro-
posal to permit all-night civilian "air-
freight" flights at Westover Air Force
Base in Chicopee, Mass.
Representing EPA's New England
Office were Regional Administrator
Michael Deland and Steve Ells,
director of the Office of Government
Relations and Environmental Review.
When the meeting began, Deland and
Ells explained their environmental
opposition to the air-cargo proposal.
They said the civilian cargo planes
were too loud for all-night operations.
They said calculations showed the
flights could potentially cause repeated
wake-ups to tens of thousands of
people in the Springfield-Chicopee
area. At the same time, Deland and
Ells did not object to the Air Force's
proposal to land military cargo planes
during the day. They said, however, it
was not acceptable to simultaneously
impose both new daytime military
flights and new all-night civilian air-
freight flights on the communities.
Ells described the discussion with Air
Force officials as frank, and noted that
the officials said they would review
the issue and inform EPA about their
conclusions.
While Ells flew back to Boston that
afternoon, Deland stayed in Washing-
ton to talk to four U.S. senators from
New England about several other
environmental issues. He joined Betsy
Home, Region 1's assistant director
for government relations, on Capitol
Hill. Within four tightly-packed hours,
they met with U.S. Senators George
Mitchell of Maine, John Chafee of
Rhode Island, Robert Stafford of
Vermont and Edward Kennedy of
Massachusetts. The issues they
discussed included groundwater,
hazardous waste, resource recovery
plants, acid rain, sewage treatment
plants and lead in soil.
Meetings with congressional leaders
are an important part of EPA's work.
Home said, "Congress passes the
laws that clean up the environment.
EPA carries out those laws. The
Senators have a concern about how
well the laws are working and how we
carry out the laws."
-------
ERA Boston Harbor
meeting.
Tackling pollution
in Boston Harbor
noon
Charles Conway, an environmental
engineer in EPA's Water Division,
drove to Winthrop to inspect the Deer
Island Wastewater Treatment Plant on
Boston Harbor. Conway knows the
huge plant well. He has checked it for
problems three or four times a year for
the past five years. On this visit, he
inspected the plant's pumps, engines
and generators; the clarifiers which
separate sludge from wastewater; the
digesters which break down the
organic material in the sludge and
make it less harmful; and the chlorine
building which feeds chlorine to purify
the wastewater.
Conway must ensure that the outmoded
plant is operating properly until a new
one is built. The facility daily treats
approximately 284 million gallons of
wastewater from 26 Boston-area
communities, and then discharges the
effluent and sludge into the harbor.
Neither the antiquated, ineffective
Deer Island nor the Nut Island plants
are adequate to treat the sewage. As a
result, Boston Harbor is one of the
most-polluted harbors in the nation.
However, federal, state and local
agencies have launched a massive
multi-billion dollar construction pro-
gram to stop the pollution. Conway's
inspection was a small part of EPA's
efforts in the cleanup. At the same
time that he was out inspecting the
Deer Island plant, about 20 EPA
employees, including lawyers, engi-
neers, scientists and administrators
were attending EPA's monthly Boston
Harbor meeting in a room overlooking
the harbor on the 19th floor of the JFK
Building in Boston.
During the meeting, the EPA staff who
sat around a large table informed each
other about the legal proceedings
in the harbor cleanup; the proposed
design and technology of the new treat-
ment plant; the selection of a tunnel
route to take the wastewater into the
ocean; the choice of piers from which
to launch workers and materials when
constructing the new plant; and the
selection of sludge technologies and
sites for sludge treatment.
"Is everything on schedule?" asked
Richard Kotelly, deputy director of
EPA's Water Division.
"We're working real hard on putting
together our Environmental Impact
Statement. The biologists are review-
ing the appendices," said Gwen
Ruta, chief of EPA's Environmental
Evaluation Section.
The conversation in the two-hour
meeting went back and forth as the
employees debated the merits of
potential solutions. People took notes.
Someone showed slides. Another
person handed out a new draft report.
Ruta said the monthly meetings are
essential to making the harbor cleanup
run smoothly. "By sitting down together,
we learn from each other. Somebody
knows something about this little
piece, and someone knows something
about that little piece and the whole
thing starts to make sense," she said.
15
-------
Preventing contamination
of drinking water
Deborah Cohen, a geographer, and
Ethan Mascoop, a cartographer, felt a
sense of accomplishment. They had
trekked all day long through brush in
eastern Barnstable on Cape Cod in
Massachusetts where they had suc-
cessfully located approximately 25
water monitoring wells. The wells,
which were 21/2-inch pipes sticking
above the ground a few inches to
several feet, were difficult to find. In
Barnstable, local water companies
had dug the wells years ago to deter-
mine how much water they were
drawing from their public water supply
wells. Cohen and Mascoop searched
for the wells to measure water levels
for another reason. The information
would reveal what direction and how
fast groundwater was flowing. With
that information, a prediction could be
made on whether contaminants from
a landfill, underground storage tank,
road spill etc. might pollute a public
water supply well. The data would be
particularly useful when a town wanted
to locate a new water well or situate a
potentially hazardous business.
For Cohen and Mascoop, the chance
to work outside was a rare opportunity.
They usually work in an office on EPA's
Geographic Information System (GIS),
which is a computer system with exten-
sive graphics capabilities costing
several hundred thousand dollars that
allows EPA to pull data and mapped
information. For example, when Cohen
and Mascoop returned to Boston from
Barnstable, they took the information
they gathered and typed and digitized
(traced) it into the GIS of the U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS). The well-
level information became one map-like
"layer" that was visible on a computer
screen. Other layers for the Cape Cod
project included profiles of land use,
aquifers, pollution sites and highways.
These layers were later overlaid with
each other and the data was manipu-
lated in order to think through water-
planning strategies and risks.
"You can ask the system to address a
number of sophisticated questions
about the mapped information. It's
much more than a pretty picture," said
Michael MacDougall, chief of EPA's
Information Management Branch. He
predicted there will be many more
uses in the future for GIS, such as
mapping of pollution problems in
coastal waters like Quincy Bay in
Massachusetts, analyzing other
groundwater issues in New England,
and mapping radon trouble-areas.
The GIS mapping on Cape Cod was
one part of the two-year Cape Cod
Aquifer Management Project (CCAMP).
Six branches of government worked on
the project, including EPA's New
England Office, the Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Quality
Engineering, the Cape Cod Planning
and Economic Development Commis-
sion, the USGS and the towns of
Yarmouth, Barnstable and Eastham.
Their goal was to better understand
how to manage groundwater protec-
tion at all levels of government through
an intensive study of a number of
activities around water supply wells.
Cartographer Ethan
Mascoop and geographer
Deborah Cohen.
16
-------
Talking and listening
to the public
8pm
Approximately 15 citizens, and local,
state and federal officials gathered in
the Town Hall in Groveland, Mass, for
an EPA public meeting about demon-
strating an innovative soil treatment
technology known as soil vapor vacuum
extraction at the Groveland Wells
Superfund site. The people came to
ask questions, support or criticize the
proposal, and learn about the new
technology. The meeting, mandated
by law, was one of many coordinated
by the Superfund Community Relations
Program in 1987 involving local citizens
in decisions about cleanup actions at
the 59 major hazardous waste (Super-
fund) sites in New England.
During the two-hour public meeting,
David Argyros, a local citizen interested
in the Groveland cleanup, asked, "Is
the SITE program, you call it a demon-
stration, but is it something that is
really going to clean up the problem?"
James Ciriello, an environmental
engineer in ERA'S Waste Division and
the project manager for the Groveland
site, replied, "This demonstration is
not intended to clean up the Valley
site, although that could potentially be
an advantage to it. The idea is to
demonstrate this technology and to
determine the feasibility and optimum
effectiveness of it."
The Groveland Wells site consists of
approximately 850 acres of land. Two
town wells which lie within the site have
been contaminated by cleaning sol-
vents and degreasers known as vola-
tile organic compounds (VOCs). EPA
has identified three sources of soil and
groundwater contamination within the
site. One of the sources lies below a
manufacturing building. EPA is evalu-
ating several cleaning alternatives for
the soil. Excavating and treating the
soil from underneath the building
would be difficult and relatively expen-
sive. EPA chose to pilot-test a treat-
ment system known as vacuum
extraction to clean the contaminated
soil. The project was conducted under
the Superfund Innovative Technology
Evaluation (SITE) program, a nation-
wide program to evaluate new and
promising hazardous waste treatment
technologies.
EPA public meeting
in Ashland, MA.
Engineers at the meeting explained to
the citizens that vacuum extraction
works as follows: Extraction wells are
constructed above the water table in
unsaturated soil. A vacuum pump is
used to extract soil vapor from the wells.
The vapors are treated by adsorption
onto activated carbon.
Ciriello said the public's reaction at the
meeting to the soil treatment proposal
was generally supportive. He noted
that citizens were mainly concerned
about the loss of their drinking water
supply and the schedule for the final
cleanup.
"I was in a positive frame of mind for
this meeting. Many of the meetings
are confrontational. This wasn't. A
good part of the meeting involved a
technical presentation and discussion,
and that appeals to me as an engineer.
The meeting wasn't political or emo-
tional. We had something positive to
offer. We were proposing solutions,"
Ciriello said.
\1
-------
A Look at an Environmental Engineer
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Kate Daly, a 27-year-old environmental engineer at EPA, is no
stranger to responsibility. She routinely supervises million-dollar federal
cleanups of hazardous waste spills and must simultaneously guard the
health and safety of dozens of workers as they handle toxic materials. One
slipup could be fatal. If workers are not properly dressed in safety uniforms,
they could be exposed to harmful substances. If spark-proof took are not
used in certain situations, an explosion could occur. If a bulldozer operator
at the cleanup is not alert, someone could be killed. If chemical drums are
not properly handled, they could release poisonous vapors into the air.
Despite the stress and risk
associated with her job, Daly says
she finds her government work chal-
lenging. "I worked for a chemical
company that was refining precious
metals. But it got discouraging to
see all the waste they were gen-
erating. I've always been interested
in environmental work. I knew that
it would be meaningful and inter-
esting," she says.
Daly has worked for three
years as an on-scene coordinator for
the Oil and Hazardous Materials
Section of the Environmental
Services Division in EPAs New
England Office. Her job is as
diverse and unpredictable as the
occurrence of chemical emergencies. In 1987, she directed the cleanup of
approximately six chemical spills or leaks from tank trucks, underground
storage tanks or manufacturing plants, and she supervised the $1.7 million
cleanup at the Tibbetts Road Hazardous Waste Site in Harrington, N.H.
She also conducted an extensive title search of the responsible parties con-
nected to the chemicals released or damaged in the fire and explosion at the
Putnam Fire and Chemical Spill Site in Putnam, Conn., and she managed
the multi-million dollar cleanup of 800 55-gallon drums of hazardous waste
and flammable materials at the Rolfite Canal Street Site in Shelton, Conn.
"The work is not boring. I'm not just pushing paper around. I know
what a site cleanup involves from investigating the site to cost recovery. The
field experience is very valuable. You are responsible for the whole site. And
there is a lot of cornradery among EPAs on-scene coordinators because you
share unique cleanup problems," Daly says.
18
-------
.
One of the most demanding jobs she performed in 1987 was the Rolfite
cleanup. The Rolfite owners had stored more than 800 chemical drums —
many of them leaking and deteriorating — at the site. They did not have a
permit to store the chemicals, and they apparently did not have the money
to clean up the site to protect human health and the environment.
That's when EPA became involved. As the on-scene coordinator at
Rolfite, Daly had to manage the cleanup and enforcement actions, had
to keep track of the daily costs and activities, had to write a work plan every
day and had to supervise the technical aspects of the job. She directed
workers who gathered the drams together into secure areas and who packed
leaking drums into larger drums. The workers also sampled each of the
drums to ascertain what they contained. Their contents would ultimately
determine whether the drams would be disposed, recycled or incinerated.
The cleanup employees had an extremely difficult time on the job
because the July temperatures hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit. To ensure
their health and safety, the workers had to wear two layers of protective
uniforms over their regular clothes and had to breathe through a face mask
connected by a hose to an air tank worn on their backs. "You get drenched
inside those suits. You feel wobbly and dehydrated. You feel like you're
suffocating unless you don't think about it and keep busy? Daly says. The
hot temperatures forced Daly to stop the cleanup during the day and begin
the operation at night. But even then the temperatures hovered around
80 degrees and there was no wind. Workers still encountered elevated
body temperatures and several had to take breaks after a short shift of
dram-sampling.
"I've always been
interested in
environmental
work. I knew that
it would be
meaningful and
interesting."
19
-------
"Once a site
is contaminated,
it is almost
impossible to
bring it
back to pristine
conditions.
We should avoid
polluting in the
first place."
"I had to constantly watch people in there and worry about their
health," Daly says, who dressed in the protective uniforms herself several
times. Wearing the safety gear has become routine for Daly. She says she
is as comfortable in the safety uniform as she is in a business suit, which
she wears when she is conducting the office side of her job.
Though frequently the only woman among men at the emergency
removal sites, Daly says she doesn't usually think about that. In fact, she
says the issue has only surfaced once when a male contractor recently tried
to cover up his incompetence by saving the problem was not his inability,
but rather that he had difficulty working with women.
Daly is one of several female professionals in her section, and she says
her 19 co-workers are supportive and understand the difficulties of working
as an on-scene coordinator. She earned a RS. in chemical engineering and a
RA. in liberal arts during a cooperative five-year program at the University
of Connecticut and Fairfield University, both in Connecticut. She is cur-
rently halfway through a master's program in environmental engineering at
Lowell University in Lowell, Mass. She says her family had a big influence
on her entering the environmental field. "Our family always recycled our
garbage. My parents always took it upon themselves not to be wasteful. We
always had a healthy respect for nature. If it's green, we let it grow? she says.
Since coming to EPA, Daly has further developed her own environ-
mental philosophy. She keeps her philosophical thoughts concise and direct.
For example, she notes, "Once a site is contaminated, it is almost impos-
sible to bring it back to pristine conditions. We should avoid polluting in the
first place."
A firefighter's protective
suit Is washed following
a simulated disaster
sponsored by EM in
Waterbury, CT.
20
-------
Legal Action Against Polluters
An eyewitness wearing a ski mask showed EPA officials where to dig.
He was only a couple of feet off the mark from where EPAs electronic
instruments indicated several large, electrical transformers containing toxic
PCBs had been illegally buried.
The anonymous eyewitness was one of dozens of people who helped
EPA win a criminal case in 1987 against Rhode Island boat builder, Robert
Derecktor and his corporation. The case involving air, water and land pol-
lution constituted one of EPAs most important criminal investigations and
prosecutions. Shipyard workers, state investigators, EPAs environmental
engineers, laboratory technicians and lawyers, the U.S. Attorney's Office
and the Justice Department marshalled forces to win the case. Peter Gerbino,
EPAs criminal investigator, said many people believed that the case could
not be won because Derecktor was a large employer in the community.
"Well, we proved the system works," Gerbino said.
The Derecktor case was unusual because it was a criminal case, not
a traditional, civil pollution case. As a criminal case, the lawyers were able to
prosecute an individual, not just a "faceless" corporation. Michael Deland,
EPAs New England Regional Administrator, said, "When there is know-
ing and willful disregard of federal environmental laws, as there was in the
Derecktor case, it makes sense from a deterrent standpoint to put the
responsible individual on trial. People sit up and take notice when a peer is
in trouble with the law. We are ready, willing and able to use the criminal
justice system to enforce environmental laws."
The probe into Derecktor's activities began when criminal investi-
gators from Rhode Island and EPA, who were acting on anonymous tips,
discovered serious environmental violations at the Derecktor Shipyard in
Middletown, R.I. As the investigation progressed, a history of flagrant
disregard for the environment evolved, including asbestos violations and the
discharge of up to 4,000 tons of pollutants into Narraganset Bay. Also, the
investigators discovered that Derecktor had transported six old electrical
transformers from his shipyard to his nearby farm where he had them buried
in an alfalfa field. Later, Derecktor constructed a large steel barn at the sice
with a thick concrete floor, allegedly to prevent the transformers from being
found. However, Derecktor miscalculated and the barn was built alongside,
but not over, the six giant transformers, three of which were laden with
hundreds of gallons of toxic PCBs. Witnesses to the illegal burial, combined
with the skilled use of sophisticated sensing equipment by EPA technicians,
located the evidence.
21
-------
The Derecktor Shipyard in
Middletown, Rl.
In late 1987 in the federal district court of Rhode Island, Derecktor
and his corporation pleaded guilty to certain portions of EPA's indictment.
Derecktor was fined §75,000 and placed on probation for five years.
Derecktor's corporation was fined $600,000, $200,000 of which went to
the state's Hazardous Waste Response Fund. The corporation was also
placed on an EPA list banning the firm from bidding on any federal govern-
ment contracts for almost half a year until all of its Clean Water Act and
Clean Air Act violations had been corrected.
EPA attorney Susan Studlien
said Derecktor's violations were "a
result of hubris, a case of overween-
ing pride." She said Derecktor is an
"extremely self-reliant, intelligent
and hard-driving man" who showed
utter disdain for environmental reg-
ulation. It is unlikely that Derecktor
or his shipyard will continue to
violate environmental laws in the
future. The shipyard today is being
"watched like a hawk," according
to Bernard Sacks, an EPA environ-
mental engineer in the Water Divi-
sion. He said, "We have one of the
tightest water permits in New
England in place at the shipyard. It
requires extensive monitoring."
The Derecktor case was one of nine criminal cases that EPA referred
to the Department of Justice in 1987. EPA enforcement actions against
polluters in 1987 increased dramatically from previous years. EPA's New
England Office also filed a record 27 civil cases to the Department of Justice
and issued a record 208 administrative orders, according to Deputy Regional
Administrator Paul Keough. Among those numbers were some important
firsts: the first property lien under Superfund to recover costs and damages;
the first two fines against companies for improper installation of under-
ground storage tanks; and the nations first federal criminal wetlands case
against a Massachusetts firm for violating wetlands laws while developing a
shopping mall.
In addition, large amounts of EPA's resources went toward the enforce-
ment of clean air laws, particularly those chemicals that contribute to the
Northeast's smog problem and asbestos regulations. Also, EPA continued
to play an important role as plaintiff and regulator, both in court and behind
the scenes, in keeping the Boston Harbor cleanup on track.
n
-------
One of the largest fines EPA collected across the country in 1987
was the result of a routine inspection made in New Bedford, Mass. Dan
Murray, an EPA environmental engineer in the Water Division, said that
after inspecting the water pollution treatment system at a plant in New
Bedford, he noticed the USM Corporation plant across the street.
Murray said, "I knew from reading reports from the city that they
(USM) were in the metal finishing business, an industry' that under the
Clean Water Act must treat its wastes before pumping them into the sewer
system. Inspections are always unannounced, so I contacted the city's
engineer, and one of our guys from the lab, Gary Lipson, and we went back
to take a look." He said, "The company's maintenance engineer gave us a
tour that ended with his pointing to a drain in the floor. I expected him to
tell us that from there it was pumped into a treatment room, but it went
directly into the city's sewers."
Back in Boston, EPA's attorneys initiated legal action, demanding that
USM, a subsidiary of the Emhart Corporation of Farmington, Conn., turn
over their historical records and that the company begin submitting weekly
waste sampling data to EPA. A review of the company's files showed that it
had been aware since 1983 that it was required to meet federal pretreatment
requirements. Andrew Lauterback, an EPA attorney on detail at the U.S.
Attorney's Office, believed that if it could be proven beyond a reasonable
doubt that the Clean Water Act was violated "negligently or willfully," then the
USM civil case could be bumped up to a criminal case.
Deland agreed. He said, "Our thinking was that a criminal case would
provide larger penalties; it would allow us to seek jail terms if warranted; and
we could send a strong signal to the regulated community that these vio-
lations can no longer be considered just a cost of doing business." The case
went on to bring the largest fine since EPA's criminal enforcement program
began — more than $1 million.
Workers dig up electrical
transformers containing
toxic PCBs at Derecktor's
farm.
''The company's maintenance engineer gave us a
tour that ended with his pointing to a drain in
the floor. I expected him to tell us that from there
it was pumped into a treatment room, but it went
directly into the city's sewers."
23
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A STATE ANO FEDERAL PARTNERSHIP
At the McKin site. Left to right: ERA Deputy
Regional Administrator Paul G. Keough, US State
Senator George Mitchell, Maine DEP Commissioner
Dean Marriott, State Senator Robert Dillenback,
citizen activist Cathy Hinds and former senator
Bill Diamond.
Charles River,
Cambridge, MA.
Environmental protection is not just a federal responsibility. When the
public sees government officials cleaning up a Superfund hazardous waste
site, building a new sewage treatment plant or saving wetlands from destruc-
tion, they will likely see environmental employees from many levels of
government-federal, state and local-working on the projects.
Paul Keough, deputy regional administrator of EPA's New England
Office, says protecting the environment in New England requires a "part-
nership" between the states and EPA.
The partnership is intricately interwoven. EPA funded approximately
half of the states' major environmental programs in 1987 with $23 million in
program grants. The grants pay for a wide variety of services, including
personnel to carry out cleanups, equipment to monitor air and water quality
and lawyers to help carry out enforcement actions. Keough says EPA's role is
generally to provide technical assistance and overview, while the states,
which have many more employees than EPA, are often involved in "hands-
on activities," such as inspections and monitoring. Also, EPA often delegates
the primary responsibility for federally-mandated environmental programs
to the states.
For example, with Timely and Appropriate Enforcement Agreements,
state and federal officials cooperate to prosecute polluters. Under the
Intergovernmental Personnel Act Exchange Program, EPA sends federal
employees to work in state agencies.
In the Superfund program, the nations program to clean up abandoned
hazardous waste sites, EPA pays 90 percent of the cleanup and the states
pay 10 percent. Top EPA and state officials hold quarterly meetings and
monthly conference calls. In addition, EPA and the states work together on
special projects, such as the Cape Cod Aquifer Management Project, the
Narragansett Bay Project, and the Merrimack River Watershed Protection
Initiative.
Hyannls Harbor
on Cape Cod, MA.
-------
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Vermont Farm.
"All of the New England states are environmentally aware. They have
good laws and dedicated people," Keough says.
However, the dealings between the states and EPA can become
strained and controversial, as occurred with the cleanup of Boston Harbor
when EPA filed a lawsuit in 1985 against Massachusetts to obtain a firm
cleanup schedule under the direction of the Federal District Court in
Massachusetts. On the other hand, there have been instances when states
have sued EPA. Such suits were filed in the ozone and visibility areas.
"Sometimes there is a love-hate relationship when the states feel we
intervene in areas that should be left to the states. There are going to be
disputes and disagreements. But we have to focus on what die real issue is
— and diat's protecting the New England environment. The fact of die
matter is, EPA needs die states, and die states need EPA. That's where the
partnership aspect is so important," Keough says.
EPA's usefulness to the states is often seen in its implied presence, or
what is referred to inside EPA as die "gorilla in die closet."
Keough says, "EPA is a backup. If die states are having difficulty
bringing a polluter into compliance, they can turn to EPA to bring in the
heavy artillery."
Regardless of die differences or difficulties between EPA and the
states, Keough notes that the public should be reassured that die two
branches of government do work together cooperatively, and diat dieir
partnership will continue in die future.
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Connecticut
Department of
Ejjvironmental
Protection
Commissioner
Leslie Carothers
New Commissioner
Foremost among the environmental
developments in Connecticut dur-
ing 1987 was the recruitment and
appointment of Leslie Carothers as the
Department's fifth commissioner. A
former deputy administrator of EPA's
New England Office, Ms. Carothers
was most recently employed as senior
counsel in the Environmental Law
Section of PPG Industries, Inc. of
Pittsburgh, Pa. She joined the
Connecticut DEP on July 1. The
chairman of the search committee
responsible for recruiting Leslie
Carothers was former EPA Admin-
istrator Douglas Costle.
Connecticut officials pro-
claimed July as Recreation
and Parks Month. Left to
right: Robert Sousa, Susan
Cooper, Gov. William A.
O'Neill, DEP Commissioner
Leslie Carothers and Robert
Olugolenski.
Dioxin Standards
One of the most widely reported stories
of 1987 dealt with the development of
standards for dioxin emission levels
from resource recovery plants and an
ambient standard to limit the amount
of dioxin in the air from all sources.
The one picogram per cubic meter (1.0
pg/m3) ambient standard is the first
anywhere. The point source limits
require the use of Best Available Con-
trol Technology (BACT) and will result
in levels of from .009 to .037 pg/m3.
Recycling
Public Act 87-544 of the Connecticut
General Assembly mandates the
development of regional and/or local
recycling programs, sets a target of a
25 percent reduction of solid waste
through recycling, requires the DEP to
establish regulations designating
recyclable materials and prohibits the
acceptance of recyclable materials at
landfills or resource recovery facilities
after January 1,1991. Two grants have
been provided for the development of
model regional recycling programs in
southeastern Connecticut and the
greater Bridgeport area. Planning
activities are now taking place that will
cover the remainder of the state.
Long Island Sound Study
A comprehensive Long Island Sound
Study involving cooperation among
two states and numerous federal
agencies and crossing a variety of
disciplines is collecting extensive data
on such subjects as oxygen deficiency,
quantification of toxics and the defini-
tion and evaluation of living resources.
The joint study, established under the
estuaries provisions of the Clean
Water Act, will generate geological as
well as biological information and
provide the supporting data for plans
to deal with some of the state's most
urgent problems.
Superfund
Another significant action of the
Connecticut General Assembly
established a fund of $10 million for
state Superfund activities. Public Act
87-561 provides for the inventory and
evaluation of hazardous waste dis-
posal sites, the containment or removal
of hazardous waste from, and the
mitigation of the effects of hazardous
waste on such sites. The basic pur-
pose of this legislation is to mesh with
federal Superfund provisions and
other funding sources to assure that
all significant waste sites are dealt with
effectively.
-------
H
7
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Solid Waste
The Maine Legislature culminated a
year-long study of solid waste man-
agement programs by passing a com-
prehensive revision of the state's waste
management laws. The legislation
resulted from a combination of wide-
spread public concerns, including
worries about the impacts from incin-
erators and the growing presence of
commercial landfill operations
attracting out-of-state waste. Under
this law, those responsible for new
incinerators and landfills must
demonstrate that the facilities are
needed to meet Maine's solid waste
volumes; recycling is given major
emphasis; and the closure of polluting
dumps is assisted by an $8 million
bond for municipalities.
Shellfish Areas
Maine's coastal waters and shellfish
areas received significant new
protection in 1987 when the Maine
Legislature prohibited new overboard
discharges of domestic wastewater.
More than 3,000 licensed discharges
from sources other than municipal
treatment plants result mostly from
single family residential housing. The
Legislature decided that these dis-
harges, combined with the probability
of significant increases in their number
due to booming coastal development,
represented an unacceptable threat to
the environment.
Sand Dunes
Controversial sand dune regulations
were adopted by the Board of Environ-
mental Protection using a predicted
rise in sea level as the basis for setting
regulatory standards. New sea walls
were prohibited and their repairs were
limited to the protection of existing
buildings or structures that supply the
public with transportation, sewer and
water. In addition to outlawing new
buildings in regularly flooded areas
and on frontal dunes, the Board made
the difficult decision to similarly prohibit
reconstruction of existing structures.
Waste-Energy Incinerator
As the first of Maine's three approved
state-of-the-art incinerators came on
line in 1987, concerns about the threat
of dioxin from plant emissions were
paramount. Although not perceived as
much of an issue when the Maine
Energy Recovery Company (MERC) of
Biddeford first applied for a permit,
dioxin became a major focus during
public hearings for similar plants in
Portland and Orrington. Finally, tests
conducted for MERC late in the year
showed dioxin emissions totaled less
than one percent of the allowable
licensed limit.
Department of
Ejruironmental
Protection
Commissioner
Dean C. Marriott
April Fools' Day Flood
Melting snow and heavy rains syn-
chronized perfectly to create the worst
flooding in Maine in the past century.
The DEP's Oil and Hazardous Mate-
rials Response teams answered more
than 60 reports of spills caused by the
flood that resulted in more than
160,000 gallons of various products
entering the environment. The flood
wreaked havoc throughout western
and central Maine causing at least one
death and over $60 million of damage.
Hazardous Wastes
Maine citizens reported 154 suspected
hazardous waste disposal sites last
summer as part of an EPA-funded
project to locate threats to public health
and safety. Citizens were requested to
notify the DEP using an "800" phone
number if they knew of chemicals,
barrels or other suspicious substances
being dumped, buried or abandoned.
April Fool's Day Flood in
Maine caused spills of oil
and hazardous materials.
-------
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Massachusetts
Executive
Office of
Environmental
Affairs
Secretary
James S. Hoyte
Legislation
State officials proclaimed 1987 the
"The Year of the Environment" for
Massachusetts with the passage of
an historic legislative package that
provided:
$500 million for the purchase and
protection of open space in the
Commonwealth.
$260 million to clean up landfills,
protect water supplies and launch an
aggressive recycling and composting
program.
A cradle-to-grave system for managing
low-level radioactive waste generated
in the Commonwealth.
Massachusetts Division
of Fisheries and Wildlife
workers.
Hazardous Wastes
The Massachusetts State Legislature
received a state plan for implementing
an accelerated Department of Envi-
ronmental Quality Engineering
(DEQE) hazardous waste clean-up
plan. The Legislature responded by
approving an $81 million package,
including $21 million for DEQE to hire
460 additional workers and $60 million
to replenish the state Superfund.
Programs
Massachusetts' environmental pro-
grams were ranked among the top ten
in the country by the Fund For Renew-
able Energy, a Washington-based envi-
ronmental group which surveyed state
programs in air quality, solid waste,
land use, energy and other areas.
Acid Rain
Gov. Michael S. Dukakis, EOEA Secre-
tary James S. Hoyte and several
Canadian officials met in Boston to
press for quick action on a U.S.-
Canadian accord to reduce the impact
of airborne pollution on both countries.
Hoyte later travelled to Quebec to wit-
ness the impact of acid rain on Canada.
Boston Harbor
Paul Levy was named the executive
director of the Massachusetts Water
Resources Authority. Weeks later, Levy
announced the purchase of the
General Dynamics Shipyard in Quincy
as a staging area for the Boston Harbor
cleanup plan.
Pollution Penalties
DEQE announced its first-year results
of its "Pollution Penalties" Program —
200 companies and individuals were
fined a total of $2 million without the
traditional need for lengthy court
sessions.
Otis Air Force Base
Massachusetts requested that Otis Air
Force Base on Cape Cod be placed on
the federal Superfund list due to threats
from a variety of pollution sources.
DEQE also issued an administrative
order calling for improvements at the
Otis Sewage Treatment Plant.
Route 2 Plan Abandoned
It was announced that a proposal to
rebuild Route 2 through Wendall State
Forest in north-central Massachusetts
would be abandoned due to environ-
mental considerations.
-------
New Hampshire
,
In January 1987 four of the state's envi-
ronmental agencies were consolidated
within a new "umbrella" department,
the N.H. Department of Environmental
Services. This has served to improve
coordination among the state's air,
waste, water quality, and water man-
agement agencies, each of which is
now a division within the department.
Benefits of this reorganization have
included the improvement of permit
coordination, long-range planning,
enforcement activities, public edu-
cation, and data management.
Resource Recovery
A new refuse-to-energy facility in
Claremont, permitted by the Depart-
ment, became operational. It will serve
more than two dozen New Hampshire
and Vermont towns. The facility con-
verts 200 tons of solid waste per day
into 4.5 megawatts of electric power.
Associated with this facility is an active
and growing recycling element, spon-
sored by the project, which involves
solid waste recycling operations in a
number of the project's member towns.
The project also participates in the
state's household hazardous waste
collection program.
In 1987 the Department also issued a
permit for a refuse-to-energy facility
in Concord that will receive solid waste
from more than two dozen towns and
cities in the central New Hampshire area.
Drinking Water
In a joint federal/state effort involving
EPA Superfund monies and state
Hazardous Waste Cleanup Funds, an
emergency drinking water supply and
distribution system was initiated for
residents near the Tibbetts Road
Hazardous Waste Site in Barrington.
Another notable groundwater-related
accomplishment included the state's
use of its Oil Pollution Control Fund to
initiate remediation efforts for several
major leaking underground storage
tank situations in Meredith Center,
Lochmere, and Northwood. These
efforts consisted of supplying potable
water to affected residents and ini-
tiating state-funded studies designed
to find suitable alternative water supply
sources for the affected residents.
Wastewater Plan
Enforcement actions were initiated
against 12 New Hampshire towns and
cities for failing to meet wastewater
treatment requirements mandated
under the Clean Water Act. The State
of New Hampshire, through the
Department in conjunction with the
N.H. Attorney General's Office,
assumed responsibility from EPA for
issuing court-ordered consent
decrees. In light of recent federal
funding cutbacks, the state also made
a commitment to continue providing
state grants for helping these com-
munities meet their obligations.
Department of
Environmental
Services
Commissioner
Alden H. Howard
Air Toxics
A comprehensive program to address
the issue of air toxics was initiated by
the Department as a result of the
enactment of a state Air Toxic Control
Act. The Department is developing a
thorough emission inventory of the
types and amounts of toxic air pol-
lutants released into the air which
could result in acute and chronic
public health problems. The Depart-
ment is also establishing a permit
system for sources that release toxic
contaminants into the ambient air and
a program to monitor ambient con-
centrations of these pollutants.
A groundbreaking ceremony
for the construction of an
emergency water supply
system at the Tibbetts
Road Superfund Site in
Barrington, NH.
29
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•
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Rhode Island
Department of
Environmental
Management
Director
RobertL. Bendick
Drinking Water
The Department continued a major,
statewide drinking water well-study
intended to evaluate impacts of vari-
ous land uses on private drinking
water. The study is detecting early
contamination with resultant remedi-
ation, and will form the basis for
directing future groundwater pro-
tection regulations. At the same time,
DEM received a record 5,781 water
table applications representing 15,000
to 18,000 individual water table tests
for ISDS installations, resulting from a
construction boom generated by the
growth of the state's economy.
Rhode Island conservation
officers checking lobster size.
Wastewater Plants
In fiscal 1987 the Rhode Island Depart-
ment of Environmental Management
reached an important point in its waste-
water cleanup effort when it held the
annual public hearing on its priority list
for federal and state grants to munici-
palities for wastewater treatment plant
construction. The 1987 list documented
the Department's intent to award grants
allowing the completion of secondary
treatment at every one of the state's
municipal wastewater treatment plants.
Eleven new secondary treatment facil-
ities have been completed, seven con-
struction projects were underway, and
five more projects were about to begin.
The priority list made Rhode Island
one of the first states in the nation to
schedule completion of secondary
treatment facilities throughout the state.
Air Toxics
The Department's Division of Air and
Hazardous Materials developed air
toxics regulations setting standards for
40 pollutants. The substances were
chosen on the basis of toxicity and
use-in-quantity in the state. The regu-
lation sets the acceptable ambient
levels of the substances at ground level
that individual sources may emit into
the air. Monitoring procedures were
also developed. The regulations are
expected to have significant impact on
dry cleaners or degreasers using per-
chloroethylene, trichloroethylene, or
methylene chloride as a solvent; indus-
trial or medical facilities using ethylene
oxide sterilizers; and chrome platers.
Legal
The Rhode Island Department of
Environmental Management's
Investigative Unit was praised by the
U.S. Department of Justice in the
prosecution of Robert E. Derecktor
and his shipyard following a joint
investigation by DEM and EPA. The
Justice Department said the case
"should serve as a model for the
successes which are possible when
there is a joint team effort by the
states, EPA, and prosecutors." The
chief of the investigative unit also
received EPA's highest award for his
work in the case. The cases brought
as a result of the unit's actions on haz-
ardous waste in fiscal 1987 resulted in
charges being brought against five
individuals and four firms, as well as
$681,045 in fines, and brought $202,000
into OEM's Hazardous Waste Emer-
gency Response Fund.
Open Space
In fiscal 1987, as the construction
boom continued, the Rhode Island
Department of Environmental Man-
agement continued to emphasize the
acquisition of open space and farm-
land preservation. A total of 1,230
acres of land were acquired. Major
acquisitions included the 835-acre
Nicholas Farm in Coventry, Olivo's
Beach in Narragansett, 33 acres along
the Blackstone River, and 140 acres
on Prudence Island. The Farmland
Purchase of Development Rights
(PDR) program resulted in the pur-
chase of the development rights to
three farms, totaling 180 acres.
-------
> C
Vermont
Solid Waste
Legislation enacted in 1987 requires
the promulgation of a comprehensive
state solid waste management plan
designed to achieve the maximum
feasible reduction in waste disposal
through reduction, reuse and recycling.
Each community is required to par-
ticipate in the development of regional
solid waste management plans con-
sistent with the state plan.
The bill also mandates the develop-
ment of new environmental standards
for solid waste facilities, including liners
and leachate collection for all landfills
and a permitting and tracking system for
waste handlers that enables the states
to assure that the waste is handled
consistent with state and local plans.
Housing and Conservation
This program is designed to serve the
"dual goals of creating affordable
housing and the protection of Vermont's
agricultural land, historic properties,
important natural areas and recrea-
tional lands..." The legislation estab-
lished a board to review applications
from community, conservation or
housing groups for assistance in
acquiring property based on urgency
of need, availability of funding else-
where and other criteria.
Growth
During the recent five-year period of
national growth, Vermont's economic
growth ranked among the highest in
the nation. The strong environmental
ethic in the state helped maintain
qualities which continued to attract
investment in land and business in
Vermont. In response to rising
concern on the part of Vermonters
about protection of the values of
Vermont in the face of rapid growth,
Gov. Madeleine Kunin launched the
"Governor's Commission on Ver-
mont's Future: Guidelines for Growth"
in September. The Governor asked
Vermonters for their ideas. Thousands
of residents attended regional public
hearings and hundreds more wrote
letters to the Governor and to the
commission. Primary problems per-
ceived were loss of agricultural land,
affordable housing, the planning
impediment of the property tax, and
deficiencies of the current planning
process. The commission recom-
mended state guidelines to be used in
planning for all future growth and
provided detailed recommendations
for each of the problem areas.
Land Speculation
Revisions were made to several stat-
utes to close "loopholes" exploited by
corporate land speculators. Included
were changes to the 15-year-old
Vermont Land Gains Tax to add a hefty
disincentive to buying, subdividing
and selling land in the short term.
Graduated rates are set by the per-
centage profit gained and how soon
the sale occurs after purchase. For
example, the tax rate for a gain of more
than 200 percent if the land is held for
less than four months is 80 percent.
Agency of
Natural
Resources
Secretary
Jonathan Lash
Permit Fees
The Legislature approved compre-
hensive legislation to increase devel-
opment permit fees in order to provide
funding for staff increases. The addi-
tional staff has allowed an improved
level of service to development
applicants, and the establishment of
performance standards for the permit
review process, incentives to improve
compliance with regulations and
commitment to improved enforcement.
Governor's Commission on
Vermont's Future: Guide-
lines for Growth hearing.
31
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THE ORGANIZATION
Robert OiBiccaro
Acting Regional Council
Air and Toxic Substances
Water, Grants and General Law
Waste
Michael R. Deiand
Regional Administrator
Brooke Chamberlain-Cook
Director of Public Affairs
Paul G. Keough
Deputy Regional
Administrator
Harley F. Laing
Director of Planning and
Management
Comptroller's Office
Human Resources
and Support
Information Management
Program Planning
and Coordination
Stephen f. Ells
Director of Government
Relations and
Environmental Review
Louis F. Gitto
Director of Air Management
State Air Programs
Technical Support
Pesticides and Toxic
Substances
Merril S. Hohman
Director of Waste
Management
Superfund
Waste Regulation
Edward J. Conley
Director of Environmental
Services
Surveillance
Technical Support
David A. Fierra
Director of Water
Management
Compliance
Municipal Facilities
Water Quality
Groundwater Management
and Water Supply
33
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FINANCIAL OVERVIE
Personnel Compensation
and Benefits
Travel
Operating Expenses
Interagency Agreements
Program Contracts
Cooperative Agreements
Grants to States
Wastewater Treatment
Construction Grants
Total
Salaries
and Expenses
$14,674,100
$494,600
$2,826,900
$17,995,600
Superfund
$4,738,500
$269,800
$1,743,700
$29,166,100
$21,166,100
$8,794,900
$66,463,800
Leaking
Underground
Storage Tank
$193,800
$7,300
$28,800
$895,500
$1,125,400
Abatement
Control and
Compliance
$1,597,600
$21,143,000
$22,740,600
Wastewater
Treatment
Construction
Grants
$156,000,000
$156,000,000
Total
EPA Region 1
$19,606,400
$771,700
$4,599,400
$29,166,100
$23,348,400
$9,690,400
$21,143,000
$156,000,000
$264,325,400
Construction Grants 59%
Abatement Control
and Compliance 8.6%
Leaking Underground
Storage Tank 0.4%
Superfund 25.1%
Salaries and Expenses 6.8%
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REGION ONE WORK FORCE
Engineers
Environmental 163, Chemical 8
Total: 171
MMMMMMt 30%
m
$
^iwl
35
Scientists i x
Aquatic Biology 15, Micro Biology 2, Ecology 1 f f
Total: 18 I I
Physical Scientists 1111111 1 TO/
Environmental 55, Geology 9, III fill *\/r\
Chemistry 11, Hydrology 7 I I I I I I I I U / (J
Total: 82
Attorneys and Paralegals 1111
Attorneys 35, Law Clerk 1, Paralegal 1 ||||
Total: 37 III I
Environmental Protection 1111 ~1O /
Specialists 37 |||| I //~\
Total: 37 III! / /O
Technicians x
Environmental Assistants 13, Engineering I
Technician 1, Physical Science Technician 1 I
Total: 15
Administrative Support 111111 10O/
finance 16, Grants 10, Personnel 11, |||||| 1 />N
Office Service 6. Computer 12, I I I I I I I U /U
Management and Program Analysis 11,
Public Affairs 7, Other 4
Total: 77
Secretarial and Clerical 1111111111 0 O O /
•—-^BSJ Mtt (tt f f f. ZZ7o
Total Number of Employees: 561
-------
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
If you would like additional information
about specific EPA programs, please
visit or write the Office of Public Affairs,
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
John F. Kennedy Building (22nd Floor),
Cambridge Street, Boston, Mass.
02203, or call (617) 565-3420.
The office maintains a limited supply of
EPA publications, operates an informal
speakers' bureau and coordinates
regional distribution of environmental
films and videos. There is no charge to
the public for the services.
For extensive research, EPA also has
an environmental library on the 15th
floor (Room 1500) of the JFK Building
in Boston which is open to the public,
Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to
4:30 p.m. The library contains books,
documents, EPA reports, journals and
microfiche reports about air, water and
solid and hazardous waste issues. For
further information, call the library at
(617) 565-3300.
If you encounter an environmental
problem, report it first to your local, and
then your state pollution control agency
at the phone numbers which follow. For
specific information about EPA pro-
grams, call the following EPA phone
numbers:
U.S. EPA New England Office
(Region 1) (617)565-3715
Asbestos (617) 565-3744
Air Division (617) 565-3800
Automobile Complaints
Massachusetts 1-800-631-2700
Other New
England States 1 -800-821 -1237
Chemical Spills
24-hour number (617) 223-7265
Lexington Lab (617) 86O4300
Pesticides (617) 565-3744
Pesticides Hot Line 1-800-858-7378
Personnel (617)565-3719
Regional Counsel (617) 565-3451
Superf und (617) 573-9610
Underground
Storage Tanks (617) 573-9604
Waste Division (617) 573-5700
Water Division (617) 565-3478
Permit Compliance (617)565-3493
Surface Water
Quality (617)565-3531
Drinking Water (617) 565-3610
Groundwater (617) 565-3600
EPA's laboratory in
Lexington, MA.
Environmental Agencies
of New England
Connecticut Department of
Environmental Protection
165 Capitol Ave.
Hartford, Conn. 06106
(203)566-5599
24-hour spill number:
(203) 566-3338
Maine Department of
Environmental Protection
State House, Station 17
Augusta, Maine 04333
(207) 289-7688
24-hour spill number:
1-800-482-0777
Massachusetts Executive Office
of Environmental Affairs
100 Cambridge St., 20th Floor
Boston, Mass. 02202
(617) 727-9800
24-hour spill number:
(617) 292-5648 (Business hours)
(617) 566-4500 (After business hours
State Police Communications Center)
New Hampshire Department
of Environmental Services
Health and Human Services Building
6 Hazen Drive
Concord, N.H. 03301
(603) 271-3503
24-hour spill number:
1-800-346-4009
Rhode Island Department of
Environmental Management
9 Hayes St.
Providence, R.I. 02908
(401) 277-6800
24-hour spill number:
(401) 277-3070
Vermont Agency of
Natural Resources
103 South Main St.
Waterbury, Vt. 05676
(802)244-7347
24-hour spill number:
1-800-641-5005
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This report was written
and edited by ERA'S
Office of Public Affairs.
Director
Brooke Chamberlain-Cook
Editor
Greg Supemovich
Graphic Design
Flanders & Associates, Boston
Production
Chris Jendras
Writers
Greg Supemovich
David Struhs
Assistants
Mary Anne Gavin
Martha Vidal
Photography Credits
Coven Greg Supemovich
The Boston Globe: p. 6 top.
Harry Brett: p. 3
Donald Cousey: pgs. 12,20.
PattyD'Andrea:p. 17.
Greg Supemovich: pgs. 6-10,
13,15-16,18,19,24,3d
James Taylor, p. 4.
DaveTomey.p.5.
CT Department of Environmental
Protection: p. 26.
NH Department of Environmental
Services: p. 29.
Maine Department of Environmental
Protection: pgs. 11,24 top, 27.
MA Executive Office of Environmental
Affairs: p. SB.
Rl Department of Environmental
Management: p. 30.
VT Agency of Natural Resources:
pgs. 25.31.
Washington Area Convention and
Visitor's Bureau: p. 14.
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