xvEPA
United Stales
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Pollution
Prevention and Toxics
Washington, DC 20460
March-April-May 1994
EPA 742-N-94-002
Pollution
Prevention
News
0
PRMNTION
Inside:
Special Focus:
Pollution Prevention
in EPA Programs
Reclaiming
the Houston
Ship Channel 3
Update from
EPA's Air Office.... 4-5
Guidelines for
Green Products 6
Saving Water and
Money in Denver 7
TSCA New
Chemicals Program.. 8
Green Chemistry 9
Resources 11
Calendar.. .12
TRI Releases Decline by 6.6% in 1992
But total amount of toxics generated increases slightly
Analysis of the latest Toxics Release
Inventory (TRI) data from 1992
shows a decline of 6.6% in the total
amount of toxic chemicals released into
the nation's environment over the previ-
ous year. The total amount released, 3.18
billion pounds, is 35% less than the toxics
released in 1988.
Nevertheless, the total amount of toxic
chemicals in waste generated by industry
increased by a half percent in 1992, to 37.33
billion pounds, representing an additional
170 million pounds of toxic chemicals in
waste managed by facilities. Projected data
provided by facilities indicate that re-
ported waste generation may also increase
slightly for 1993 and 1994.
The top five industry categories for
total TRI releases were chemical manufac-
turing, primary metals, paper manufac-
turing, plastics, and transportation
equipment. The top 50 facilities reporting
to TRI accounted for 42% of total TRI
releases; the total number of facilities
reporting was 23,630.
Reported off-site transfers increased
17% since 1991, largely due to increased
(Continued on page 10)
White House Conference Heralds Earth Day
A conference on climate change action
was sponsored by the White House
on April 21 as an important milestone in
the Climate Change Action Plan unveiled
in October 1993 by President Clinton. The
action plan is a comprehensive) national
strategy for reducing greenhouse gas
emissions to 1990 levels by 2000. It
specifies over 40 actions, that rely on
voluntary partnerships to create jobs,
bolster the economy, and reduce green-
house gas emissions and other harmful air
pollution.
The conference was kicked-off by Vice
President Al Gore. The Vice President
invoked an historical reference to the
famous ride of Paul Revere. In contrast to
the more traditional portrait of Revere as
a lone revolutionary, Gore suggested that
his ride was actually enabled by the
efforts of many supporters. He used the
famous ride as an analogy to how the
climate change issue must be addressed
— not by one person or one organization,
but through teamwork among many
partners. "The Climate Change Action
Plan," he said, "relies almost exclusively
on partnerships."
In her remarks, Department of Energy
Secretary Hazel O'Leary echoed the idea
that teamwork will make the climate
change plan a success. The night before
the conference, DOE secured a commit-
ment from 766 utilities to reduce green-
house gas emissions.
The conference included sessions on
state and local government mitigation
strategies, Climate Wise and Climate
Challenge initiatives and other pollution
prevention voluntary programs of various
federal agencies. (See page 4 for an article
on the Climate Wise initiative.)
Printed on Recycled Paper
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Pollution Prevention News - 2
Marc/i-April-May 1994
EPA News
Policy Shop Takes Unique Approach
to Pollution Prevention
W hat causes a company to invest
in less polluting technologies
and practices? The answer can vary
widely from company to company —
a visionary CEO, the promise of
economic gain, customer pressure or
impending tough regulations. Recent
studies provide general information
regarding incentives and barriers to
pollution prevention, but do not
address corporate decision-making
factors in specific industries.
EPA’s Office of Policy, Planning
and Evaluation is taking the next step
with its Sustainable Industry Project.
The goal of the Project is to develop
and demonstrate policies which
promote continuous environmental
improvement and remove barriers to
innovation in specific industries. The
project coordinators are collaborating
with industry representatives, govern-
ment and the environmental commu-
nity to identify a tailored set of
policies to promote innovation and
pollution prevention in the metal
finishing, thermoset plastics, and
photoimaging industries.
The project uses a “backward
mapping” approach to identify the
key factors that affect eco-efficiency in
each industry — first, the fundamental
characteristics of companies in the
industry; second, the most significant
incentives and barriers to “cleaner,
cheaper, smarter” environmental
protection; and third, the top policy
options for EPA, states and industry
to consider. By starting with a thor-
ough understanding of each industry,
including the factors that drive or
impede progressive environmental
performance in the industry, the
Agency will be able to develop policies
that are most likely to achieve long-
term environmental success. Industry
response has been supportive of the
project and has indicated a willingness
to develop partnership projects.
The Sustainable Industry Project
Team recently completed Phase I of
the Project, which entailed the identi-
fication of preliminary policy options.
In Phase II, beginning in Spring 1994,
the Project will develop implementa-
tion strategies.
For more information, contact Bob
Benson at 202-260-8668.
Pollution Prevention
Heads for the Border
T he US/Mexico Pollution Preven-
tion Work Group soon will release
a bilingual pollution prevention
manual directed to the wood finishing
industry in the border region. The
manual will be followed by a confer-
ence on the same topic. This is the
second such project for the Work
Group. In the fall of 1993, the Work
Group issued a bilingual pollution
prevention manual on metal finishing
and held a conference on that topic in
Juarez, Mexico. Other typical border
industries, such as electronics, will be
addressed with later manuals.
The Work Group was set up in
February 1992 pursuant to the La Paz
Agreement, by EPA and its Mexican
counterpart SEDESOL, because of the
huge potential for pollution preven-
tion along the border. The La Paz
Agreement was signed in 1983 by
Mexico and the United States, and it
empowers U.S. and Mexican authori-
ties to act in concert to protect,
conserve, and improve the environ-
ment of the border area. The mission
of the Work Group is to coordinate the
reduction of pollution via a range of
approaches, including technical
assistance, training, public and private
sector pollution awareness programs,
assessment of pollution prevention
opportunities, policy development,
and institutional support. The United
States members of the Work Group
include representatives of EPA
Headquarters, Region 6, Region 9,
Arizona, California, New Mexico,
and Texas.
The Work Group has four major
Border Area Pollution Prevention
33/50 Program Initiative: This
encompasses outreach programs
such as the Maquiladora Confer-
ences, pollution prevention meet-
ings, and pollution prevention
evaluations.
• Technology Transfer: This includes
projects such as the pollution
prevention manuals for the metal
finishing and wood finishing indus-
tries, and the related conferences.
• Computer Database/Clearinghouse
Connection: EPA includes informa-
tion about accessing its databases in
the bilingual material. In addition,
SEDESOL is working to make its
computer system compatible with
EPA’s system.
• Border University Support: The
Work Group is reviewing research
proposals from the Southwest
Center for Environmental Research
and Policy for the implementation
of pollution prevention techniques.
For more information about the
Work Group, contact Robert Lawrence
at EPA at 214-655-6580.
To be added to our
mailing list, please write:
Pollution Prevention News
U.S. EPA
401 M Street SW (MC 7409)
Washington, DC 20460
Editorial Staff:
Ruth Heikkinen, Editor
Gilah Langner
Joshua Katz
initia ti es:
•
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March-April-May 1994
3 — Pollution Prevention News
Reclaiming the Houston Ship Channel
Demonstration Project Aims to Reduce Toxicity
by Donna Nickerson,
EPA Coastal Management Branch
V oluntary changes in industrial
process engineering and waste
handling are contributing to efforts to
clean up the Houston Ship Channel.
In 1992, the Galveston Bay National
Estuary Program (GBNEP) initiated a
demonstration project to reduce
toxicity in the channel by working
cooperatively with facilities having
the greatest potential to reduce water
quality problems. The Galveston Bay
program is one of 21 estuaries in the
National Estuary Program which uses
a consensus-based approach to
manage coastal ecosystems.
The Galveston Bay project was
implemented in two phases. During
the first phase, EPA’s Toxic Release
Inventory (TRI) was used to help
identify facilities discharging five
priority toxics in the Channel: cop-
per, lead, cyanide, dioxins and
furans, and chlorine. Facilities on the
TRI list discharging the priority
toxics were invited to participate in a
pollution prevention workshop. The
38 facilities that participated in the
workshops were introduced to
pollution prevention concepts, site
assessments, and methods for devel-
oping pollution prevention facility
plans as required by state law.
Participants received a custom-
designed workbook that included a
site assessment manual and pollution
prevention planning materials.
The workshop helped identify
four facilities that volunteered for
the second and more rigorous phases
of the project: the non-regulatory
technical assistance site visits (waste
audits). The site visits identified a
number of common pollution pre-
vention opportunities (wastewater
reduction schemes, product substitu-
tions, improvements in storing,
handling and tracking of waste.
improvements in maintenance and
operating procedures, and a range of
industrial recycling opportunities)
and made recommendations on how
to reduce releases. The options
identified may serve as the basis for
a basin-wide pollution prevention
The Galveston Bay
program is one of
21 estuaries in the
National Estuary
Program which uses a
consensus-based
approach to manage
coastal ecosystems.
management approach for the
Houston Ship Channel. Three of the
four facilities have pledged volun-
tars’ hazardous waste reduction
goals of 50% by 2000, and subse-
quently joined the Clean Texas 2000
voluntary source reduction program.
GBNEP will continue to work with
the facilities to monitor their
progress in implementing the recom-
mendations and the extent of their
pollutant reductions.
The project benefited from close
coordination with Clean Texas 2000, a
highly visible and successful program
of the Texas Natural Resource Conser-
vation Commission with industry
involvement. Pollutant loadings to the
Ship Channel are being steadily
reduced. In the early 1970s, dissolved
oxygen was non-existent in this
threatened water body. Pollutant
loading was extreme and miles of
channel were devoid of life. Today,
point source reductions as a result of
the Clean Water Act and voluntary
improvements by industry are restor-
ing the channel to a biologically
productive element of the estuary.
For more information, contact:
Russell W. Kiesling, GBNEP, at
713-332-9937.
The city of Houston looms in the background as a barge plies the waters of the Houston Ship Channel.
Photo courtesy of GBNEP.
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Pollution Prez’t’ntion News - 4
March-April-May 1994
Update from Air Office
__ H
Climate Wise is Climate Safe
C limate Wise is a joint EPA!
Department of Energy program
designed to encourage the reduction
of greenhouse gases. Climate Wise is
a foundation plan of the more than
50 voluntary greenhouse gas emis-
sion reductions under the
President’s Climate Change Action
Plan. The program is designed to
stimulate reduction actions across all
sectors of the economy, encourage
participation in the full range of
action plan initiatives, and foster
innovation by encouraging organiza-
tions to implement reduction pro-
grams and measures that they
identify for themselves.
Organizations that choose to
participate in the program will receive
public recognition for the actual
emission reductions they achieve.
Climate Wise also offers the opportu-
nity for organizations to join the
Climate Wise Pledge Program. The
Pledge Program provides participants
with early recognition and encourages
active planning and goal-setting to
meet and report the emission reduc-
tions necessary to be Climate Wise.
To be part of the Pledge Program,
organizations must agree to some
mandatory requirements. Organiza-
tions are required to identify the
actions they will take to reduce
greenhouse emissions. These may
include participating in one or more of
the Climate Change Action Plan
initiatives or other federal or state
emission reduction programs. The
Pledge Program participant can also
identify actions outside the plan, such
as fuel switching, process improve-
ments, use of renewable energy,
carbon sequestration activities, or
employee mass transit or carpooling.
In addition to the mandatory
requirements, participants are
encouraged to:
• Publish a corporate policy state-
ment that sets out the standards for
the organization. The policy should
note if energy efficiency and
greenhouse emission reduction are
already part of the company’s
environmental policy.
• Establish a team to develop and
oversee greenhouse gas emission
reduction projects.
(Continued on next column)
Energy Star Powers Down Computers
C omputer equipment is the fastest
growing electricity load in the
commercial sector. It already accounts
for 5 percent of commercial electricity
consumption — and it could increase
to 10 percent by the year 2000. Con-
ventional computers run at full power
during the day, and as many as 30-40
__ percent are left
running at night
and on weekends.
To combat this
(PAPOLLUTmU PUVENTEI wastefulness, EPA
has formed a voluntary partnership
with leading computer, monitor, and
printer manufacturers. By introducing
energy-efficient computer equipment
to the marketplace, the Energy Star
Computers program will cut nearly 52
billion from ratepayers’ annual
electricity bills by the year 2000 —
saving enough electricity to power
Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont
for an entire year.
The vast majority of computer
companies that sell products in the
United States have joined the Energy
Star Computers program, accounting
for 70 percent of all U.S. sales of
desktop computers and 90 percent of
the laser printer market. Equipment
that qualifies for the EPA ENERGY
STr\R ’ logo can “sleep” or “power-
down” when not in use, and can
awaken with a simple touch of the
keyboard or mouse.
The savings potential of these
more efficient products is significant.
Depending on computer usage, the
Energy Star sleep feature can cut a
computer’ . electricity use by 50-75
percent. As an added benefit, these
efficient sv tems give off less heat
while sleeping, reducing the amount
of electricity needed to cool a build-
ing b 5-10 percent. By the year 2000,
Energy Star Computers and other
campaigns to promote energy-
efficient computer equipment will
lead to annual savings of 26 billion
kilowatt-hours of electricity and
substantial reductions in air pollu-
tion emissions.
Because Energy Star computers,
monitors, and printers cost the same
as their less efficient counterparts,
buying them to replace old equip-
ment is highly profitable. President
Clinton has directed the U.S. Govern-
ment — the largest buyer ot com-
puter equipment in the world — to
purchase only Energy Star equipment
where it’s available and meets
performance needs. This Executive
Order took effect in October 1993 and
will save taxpayers 540 million
annually. EPA alone will save enough
money using the new equipment to
fund the Energy Star Computers
program several times over. For more
information about Energy Star
Computers, call 202-775-6650.
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Marc/i-April-May 1994
5 — Pollution Prevt’,,f ion News
Update from Air Office
Model Standards Address Radon Problem
• Set performance improvement
targets as an incentive for
reductions.
• Monitor and evaluate performance
to establish appropriate targets and
assess progress. DOE soon will
release Voluntary Greenhouse gas
Emissions Reporting Sy’ tcm
Guidelines to help companies
design and record emission reduc-
tion achievements.
• Increase awareness of energy
efficiency among employees and
report performance changes and
improvements to employees and
shareholders. Publicizing improve-
ments boosts morale and helps
maintain the program’s focus.
For more information, contact
Pamela Herman at EPA at 202-260-
4407, or Gerald Kotas at DOE at 202-
586-9220.
T he environmental quality of
houses is on the minds of many
homeowners these days. Air quality is
affected by natural elements, as well
as by gases emanating from manufac-
tured materials.
One such naturally occurring
indoor air problem is radon gas.
Radon is an invisible, odorless,
tasteless gas that comes from the
breakdown of uranium in soil, rock
and water. Because radon gas cannot
be detected by human senses, it can
unknowingly accumulate within a
structure, posing serious health risks.
If radon gas is inhaled into the body,
it can cause lung tissue damage and
may lead to lung cancer.
Because of this health risk, EPA has
taken a major step in preventing radon
buildup in new homes. EPA is encour-
aging the adoption of Model Standards
which focus on the use of passive radon
control systems for all new homes in
Zone I areas. Zone I areas are those
parts of the United States where there is
a high potential for elevated radon
levels in homes. Approximately 33
percent of the United States is a Zone I
area. The implementation of the Model
(Continued on page 10)
EPA Seeks
Showcase Buildings
T he United States spends approxi-
matelv S70 billion annually to
operate commercial and industrial
buildings, and much of this sum is
spent on wasteful and inefficient
technologies. In 1993, EPA introduced
the voluntary Energy Star Buildings
program to help building owners take
advantage of the wide variety of cost
and energy-efficient technologies that
exist for buildings. These technologies
can cut a building’s energy use by more
than 40 percent — which amounts to
$28 billion that can be reinvested into
the economy each year. In addition,
profitable and efficient use of energy
translates into less air pollution.
To demonstrate the savings poten-
tial of the Energy Star Buildings
program, EPA is working to identify
approximately 20 buildings nation-
wide that will showcase comprehen-
Si VC energy-efficient upgrades over
the next 1-2 years. Showcase building
owners will work closely with EPA to
perform a series of accelerated,
profitable, and state of the art energy-
efficient upgrades. The EPA strategy
is designed to maximize savings,
prevent oversizing, and minimize
equipment costs. It begins with a
complete Green Lights upgrade,
followed by a comprehensive survey
and tune-up of existing building
systems. It then calls for investments in
technologies that will indirectly reduce
heating and cooling loads, including
energy-efficient office equipment and
improved insulations and glazing. The
next step is to improve the perfor-
mance and operating efficiency of fans
and air-handling systems.
To participate in the showcase, your
facility should contain at least 25,000
square feet of office space and should
include energy-usage monitoring
systems that allow for regular reporting
of successful upgrades. While Energy
Star Buildings Partners have 7 years to
complete 90 percent of their upgrades, a
showcase building owner must agree to
complete all upgrades in I to 2 years,
with the goal of cutting electricity use
by up to 50 percent.
By taking part in the first phase of
the Energy Star Buildings program,
showcase buildings reap benefits that
go beyond the resulting energy and
cost savings. EPA supports its show-
case buildings participants with an
array of helpful resources such as
objective technology information,
savings analysis software, and survey
and analysis guidance. Owners of
multiple buildings choose just one
building to showcase, but can see the
potential savings from upgrading all
their facilities. In addition, EPA
provides showcase building owners
with positive public recognition for
their part in preventing pollution and
caring for the environment.
For more information on participat-
ing, call 202-775-6650.
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Pollution Prevention News - 6
March-April-May 1994
Focus On: The Federal Government
by Eun-Sook Goidel
EPA Pollution Prevention Division
T he Linited States government is
the nation’s largest consumer,
purchasing over $200 billion worth of
goods and services annually. One of
the goals of Executive Order 12873,
signed by President Clinton on October
20, 1993, is to use the government’s
purchasing power to jump-start the
markets for “greener” products and
services. Section 503 of EO 12873
requires EPA to “issue guidance that
recommends principles that Executive
agencies should use in making deter-
minations for the preference and
purchasing of environmentally prefer-
able products.”
The Executive Order defines “envi-
ronmentally preferable” to mean
“products that have a lesser or reduced
effect on human health and the envi-
ronment when compared with compet-
ing products or services that serve the
same purpose.” EPA’s goal is to
translate that general intent into a
usable and implementable set of
guiding principles that Executive
agencies can use to identify, select, and
purchase products and services that
have fewer environmental burdens.
EPA issued a concept paper in
January, setting out its preliminary
thinking on the subject. EPA received
over 50 sets of written comments on
the concept paper, and a public
meeting was held in February to
discuss the issue.
No Consensus Yet
The process of creating guiding
principles to selecting environmentally
preferable goods and services high-
lights a number of challenges. First,
the existing acquisition process, which
often adheres to rigid specifications
and prioritizes low-cost, is not condu-
cive to incorporating environmental
considerations. Second, there is no
general consensus on what “environ-
mentally preferable” means. For
example, can one product be consid-
ered environmentally preferable to
another if it utilizes recycled materials
but uses more energy to produce?
Often, selecting the environmentally
preferable product means making
choices concerning trade-offs; e.g., less
toxic materials for more energy or
material use, or less water pollution at
the expense of more air pollution.
These difficult choices illustrate the
importance of looking at products and
services in terms of their life cycle.
Rather than focusing on a single aspect
or single impact, the life cycle ap-
proach stresses improvements in as
many stages of the life of the product
or service as possible. This includes
(Continued on page 10)
Executive Order 12902:
Energy Efficiency and Water
Conservation at Federal Facilities
U nder the new energy efficiency
executive order 12902 signed
by President Clinton in March 1994,
federal agencies are required to:
• Reduce overall energy use in fed-
eral buildings by 30% by the year
2005 from 1985 energy use levels.
• Increase overall energy efficiency
in industrial federal facilities by
20% by 2005 using 1990 as the
baseline year.
• Minimize use of petroleum prod-
ucts at federal facilities by switch
ing to less-polluting alternative
energy sources.
• Significantly increase the use of
solar and other renewable energy
sources.
• Designate one major building as a
showcase for energy or water ef-
ficiency.
• Design and construct new facili-
ties to minimize life-cycle cost
through energy efficiency and wa-
ter conservation technologies, and
utilize passive solar design and
active solar technologies wher-
ever cost-effective.
Each agency must undertake a
prioritization survey of its facilities
leading to the development of a 10-
year plan to conduct comprehen-
sive energy and water audits at each
facility. Recommendations resulting
from each audit for the installation
of energy efficient, water conserva-
tion, and renewable energy tech-
nologies must begin to be imple-
mented within six months of
completion of the audit.
EPA to Issue Guidance for Green Products
Government Officials “TEEM” Up
to Implement Pollution Prevention
O n the morning of March 8, the
General Services Administration
(GSA) kicked off TEEM 94 — an acro-
nym for “The 1994 Energy and Envi-
ronmental Management Conference.”
This conference was attended by 500
officials of federal, state, local, and tribal
governments who came to learn about
successful energy and environmental
solutions and to network with public
and private sector professionals in the
field of energy and environmental con-
servation. GSA, in cooperation with
DOE and EPA, sponsored this confer-
ence as a means of forwarding the goals
of the Clinton Administration’s
Climate Change Action plan.
A highlight of the conference was a
town meeting hosted by GSA Admin-
istrator Roger Johnson at which Vice
President Al Gore presented a new
executive order on energy conserva-
tion (see inset on this page). Also
present was Secretary of Energy Ha-
zel O’Leary who spoke on implement-
ing the executive order.
GSA will sponsor more conferences
for government officials around the
country with the same goals as TEEM
94 over the coming ‘car. Interested in
participating? Contact Mike Ziskind
at 202-501-0498.
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March-April-May 1994
7 - Pollution Prevention News
Denver Helps Water Users Save Money
I n the early 1980s, Denver, Colorado
found itself in a difficult position—
despite increased demand for water,
long-term supplies were limited. In
addition, Denver Water, the local
water utility, was under pressure from
environmental groups to implement
water conservation programs. Denver
Water responded initially with a
number of residential programs that
resulted in significant but insufficient
water conservation.
In 1990, recognizing the significant
role that the non-residential commu-
nity could play in water conserva-
tion, Denver Water created a pilot
program to identify areas where
commercial facilities could conserve
water. The overall objective of the
program was to identify, evaluate,
and disseminate information relating
to specific water uses and water
conservation opportunities for non-
residential users. Denver Water
supplies approximately 80 billion
gallons of water annually to the City
and County of Denver, and to subur-
ban areas outside the city. Approxi-
mately 1 to 20 percent of the total
water supply is used by industrial
and commercial facilities.
With little knowledge of how the
non-residential sector used water and
how it could conserve, Denver Water
decided to conduct extensive research
through commercial and industrial
water audits. The main incentive for
companies to participate in the
voluntary audits was the quick
payback realized from water savings.
Although some cities have required
participants to pay a portion of the
cost of the audit, Denver Water
decided to provide the service for free
in order to ensure a high rate of
participation.
Denver Water wanted to audit
companies with the potential for the
highest water reduction, vet also
realized the importance of the pilot
program containing a diverse group of
The main incentive for
companies to partici-
pate in the voluntary
audits was the quick
payback realized from
water savings.
users. In order to satisfy those criteria,
Denver Water reviewed the list of its
100 largest users of water and selected
companies in a range of industries.
The 36 participants in the first audits
fell into eight basic categories: manu-
facturers, food processors, schools,
beverage processors, health care
facilities, laundries, restaurants, and
office space.
The audits were conducted con-
sultants who visited each facility and
met with plant managers and engi-
neers in order to gather background
information, learn about an ’ existing
water conservation programs, inspect
specific water uses, and tour the
plant. The consultants divided water
use into 11 categories: domestic,
heating/cooling, once through
cooling, washing and sanitation,
laundry, kitchen, process uses,
landscape irrigation, leaks, miscella-
neous, and unaccounted water use.
Based on the information collected
during the visit to each facility, the
consultants developed site specific
findings and recommendations, such
as the following:
• Domestic: Install ultra low flush
(ULF) toilets, flow restrictors for
faucets and showers.
• Cooling/heating: Increase cooling
tower and boiler cycles of concen-
tration. Reuse and optimize
hiowdown requirements. Minimize
flash-mixing and repair leaks in
condensate return system.
• Once-through cooling: Eliminate
once-through cooling by using
existing cooling tower systems.
Replace water-cooled equipment
with air-cooled. Once-through cooled
water can be reused for irrigation,
make-up water or irrigation.
• Laundry: Use continuous-batch
washers with full loads and elec-
tronic control systems to optimize
water use. Reuse final rinse water.
• Kitchen: Minimize electric garbage
disposal use. Replace water-cooled
ice machines with air-cooled
models. Recycle final rinse water to
initial cycle.
• Purification: Improve equipment
efficiency by minimizing backwash
duration and recycling backwash.
• Process: Recycle water from rinse
baths and use counter-current
systems. Use solenoid valves and
water level sensors to maximize
efficiency.
• Landscape irrigation: Decrease
overall turf watering and eliminate
daytime irrigation. Use automatic
timers for the irrigation system.
Follow xeriscape guidelines and
Denver Water evapotranspiration
recommendations.
Facts
• Of non-agricultural water use in the United States, business and industry
use 32 percent of publicly supplied water.
• A study by Denver Water indicated that about 48 percent of the water
supplied to manufacturers is used for heating and cooling purposes.
• The same Denver study indicated that health facilities potentially could
save 42 percent of their annual water use through a variety of conservation
measures.
• An investment of $3050 in faucet aerators by a Denver college has the
potential to save more than two million gallons of water per year valued at
$11,000 — a payback period of less than four months.
(continued on pac. ’e 11)
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Pollution Prevention News - 8
March-April-May 1994
TSCA New Chemicals Program
Embodies Pollution Prevention
E PA’s New Chemicals Program,
mandated under Section 5 of the
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA),
plays an important role in preventing
pollution. TSCA requires that EPA
review new chemicals for the risks
they may pose to human health and
the environment before they enter the
market. The TSCA §5 statutory
authority covering chemicals “from
cradle to grave” and across all envi-
ronmental media embodies the
pollution prevention paradigm.
EPA has reviewed more than 20,000
chemicals since the New Chemicals
Program started in 1979. The program
has identified close to 1,700 cases where
action taken as part of the program has
prevented pollution or risks to human
health that otherwise might have
resulted from the manufacture, process,
use and disposal of the chemicals.
The program works as follows.
Anyone who plans to manufacture or
import a new chemical substance must
provide EPA with a pre-manufacture
notice (PMN) at least 90 days prior to
the activity. To determine whether a
substance is “new,” the company must
consult EPA’s Inventory of Chemical
Substances (commonly known as the
TSCA Inventory). If the substance is
not listed, it is a “new” chemical.
EPA scientists from various
disciplines work together to predict
the potential risks to humans or the
environment from each new sub-
stance. The evaluation uses data
submitted on the PMN form, other
information available to EPA, and
exposure and release modeling.
Companies are encouraged to pro-
vide information on the PMN form
about steps taken to prevent pollu-
tion and to reduce exposures to, or
environmental releases of, chemical
substances.
After reviewing the PMN, EPA
might suggest the use of “benign by
design” chemistry (see article page 9)
to help the company identify alternate
synthetic pathways that will help
reduce toxicity and pollution. If EPA
determines that a new chemical may
pose an unreasonable risk, EPA can
enter into a consent order permitting
the company to manufacture or
import the new substance under
certain restricted conditions intended
to control exposures and releases of
the substance. As part of this process,
EPA may require a Pollution Preven-
tion Plan for the chemical either
before production begins or when a
certain production volume is reached.
To further promote pollution
prevention, EPA has begun to look for
PMNs worthy of formal recognition for
new chemical substances that may
constitute safer substitutes or be
developed via pollution prevention
processes (see box below).
Additionally, EPA has proposed a
new Low Exposure/LowRelease
(“LoREX”) Exemption Rule that
provides an abbreviated 30-day
review period for substances that
meet specified criteria for negligible
exposures and releases (58. Fed. Reg.
7646; Feb. 8, 1993).
For more information on pollution
prevention in the New Chemicals
Program, contact Roy Seidenstein at
EPA at 202-260-2252.
Chemical synthesis software
I n an effort to help chemists identify
theoretical reaction pathways that
are environmentally safer,J. Dirk Nies
of Chemical Information Services,
Rockville, MD, and EPA staffers Paul
Anastas and Stephen C. DeVito are
evaluating computer-based software
tools for synthesis design. Such com-
puter software has been under devel-
opment for the past 25 years. Its pur-
pose is to help chemists identify new
syntheses for target molecules from
the myriad potential routes and to
suggest novel chemical reactions that
might be investigated.
Most of these software tools are
retrosynthetic — that is, they gener-
ate syntheses for target molecules by
working backwards from the target
to candidate starting materials. Other
programs are synthetic — they iden-
tify side reactions, by-products, and
the effects of varying conditions on
reaction outcomes. However, none
of them was built with the explicit
objective of identifying environmen-
tally benign chemical synthesis
routes.
Out of some 20 software packages
examined, several programs appear
to have potential to provide theoreti-
cal alternative synthesis pathways in
support of EPA’s pollution preven-
tion initiatives.
Applying retrosynthetic and syn-
thetic programs in sequence permits
optimal routes to be identified, and
their associated condition, by-prod-
ucts, estimated costs, and potential
hazards to be compared. Future de-
velopments in computer-assisted
synthesis design tools will include
features to make them function as
true expert systems in support of pol-
lution prevention and benign-by-de-
sign goals.
Recognizing Promis-
ing New Chemicals
Besides regulating risky chemi-
cals, EPA’s TSCA §5 PMN
Program will now recognize new
chemical substances that may be
safer substitutes for chemicals cur-
rently used, or that will be created
via pollution prevention processes.
Criteria include actual test data on
the PMN substance itself, less toxic-
ity associated with the chemical or
with related chemicals, reduced ex-
posures and releases, conservation
of energy and water, and environ-
mentally beneficial uses.
EPA will issue a letter to the
manufacturers of these substances,
noting their contribution to pollu-
tion prevention. The letter also will
ask the company to inform EPA of
the commercial success of the prod-
uct over time, and of any toxicity
data that become available.
-------
March-April-May 1994
9 — Pollution Prevention News
Green Chemistry: Benign By Design
DfE
T he moment chemists put paper
to pencil, or fingers to keyboard, to
design a synthetic chemical, they also
make decisions about the use or
generation of hazardous substances
that may require treatment, recycling,
transportation or disposal. The goal of
green chemistry and green technolo-
gies is to reduce or eliminate the toxic
substances used or generated in the
process, as well as the associated costs.
Traditionally, organic chemists
have been trained to identif reaction
pathways that maximize yield as the
fundamental evaluation criteria for a
reaction scheme. This approach tends
to discount the potential problems
associated with hazardous feed-
stocks, solvents, catalysts, by-prod-
ucts and impurities. Because of the
rising costs of waste treatment, waste
disposal, regulatory compliance, and
liability insurance, chemists must
consider the environmental impacts
of a given synthetic method on the
overall economic equation.
EPA’s Design for the Environment
(DIE) program has created the Green
Chemistry: Benign By Design ap-
proach which offers a new intellec-
tual challenge to organic chemists.
Through the National Science
Foundation’s (NSF) university grants
program, EPA and NSF will award
approximately $2 million in grants
annually in chemical engineering and
a comparable amount in chemistry
over the next several years.
Targets of the grants vill include
research advances in aqueous-based
solvent systems, ambient-tempera-
ture reactions, just-in-time in-situ
generation of toxic intermediates,
chiral catalysts, artificial enzymes,
built-in recyclabilitv, and molecular
manufacturing. EPA expects that
advances in environmenta liv benign
chemistry in time will become an
integral part of the education and
training of future chemists.
OPPT will co-sponsor the third
ACS National Meeting on pollution
prevention in Washington, D.C. on
August 21-25, 1994. The program,
DfE: The Environmental Paradigm for the
Twenty-First Century will afford an
opportunity for discussion and
exchange of ideas on implementation
F ollowing are some examples of
the Green Chemistry: Benign h ’
Design approach to chemical engi-
neering:
• Biocatalysts and benzene
substitutes
Chemistry professor John W. Frost
of Michigan State University applies
a biotechnology approach in his
search for a new route to industrial
chemicals. Frost uses microbes to
convert D-glucose into industrially
important compounds, with the goal
of replacing benzene as a starting
ma ten 1.
Benzene, used in the manufacture
of a variety of chemicals, is a carcino-
gen and must be derived from
nonrenewable fossil fuels. Frost
points out that about 12 billion
pounds of benzene are produced in
the U.S. each year, and that 98
percent of all organic chemicals are
currently manufactured from
petroleum feedstocks.
D-Glucose is abundant and
inexpensive in the U.S. because it can
be derived from numerous agricul-
tural products, as well as from waste
streams from food products process-
ing. Frost says using genetically
engineered microbes and D-glucose
as starting materials not only pro-
vides a more benign synthesis route,
hut also may improve the long-term,
global competitiveness of U .S.
industry.
of pollution prevention as an integral
part of national environmental and
economic policies.
For more information, contact Dr.
Paul Anastas at 202-260-2257.
• Photochemistry
Harnessing the energy of visible
light to bring about desired chemical
transformations without using or
generating toxic compounds is the
aim of two different research groups.
Gary A. Epling, professor of chemis-
try at the University of Connecticut,
Storrs, is exploring the use of non-
toxic food dyes as catalysts in
oxidation reactions that previously
could only be carried out with toxic
compounds of metals such as
cadmium, lead, mercury, nickel, and
chromium.
In demonstrations, Epling’s 120-
watt spotlight, available at hardware
stores for about $5.00, has reacted
20 g of material in 12 to 24 hours of
illumination. He speculates that with
more powerful sources, or by using a
solar collector for sunlight, it should
be feasible to perform reactions on
the kilogram scale, particularly if
improvements of efficiency result
from additional research.
Chemistry professor George A.
Kraus at Iowa State University,
Ames, is developing a photochemical
alternative to certain Friedel-Crafts
reactions, by eliminating toxic Lewis
acids, such as aluminum chloride,
and avoiding toxic solvents com-
monly employed in such syntheses.
Both strategies use visible light as the
reagent to provide the driving force
for chemical transformation.
Benign by Design Examples
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Pollution Prevention News - 10
March-April-May 1994
Guidance for
Green Products
(Continued from page 6)
design, raw material and natural
resource use, and energy consumption,
through manufacture, distribution, use,
maintenance, and disposal.
Even with a life cycle approach,
there will not be a universal ranking of
environmental preference. Local
conditions will affect the “greenness”
of a product or service. For example, a
process that uses large amounts of
water may not be appropriate in dry
regions such as the Southwest, and a
process. that generates large amounts of
solid waste may not be desirable in the
Northeast where landfill space is
scarce. Even with certain basic assump-
tions such as these, companies may
alter the equation by, for example,
using recycled waste water for indus-
trial processes in the Southwest or
recycling waste in the Northeast.
In implementing Section 503, EPA is
trying to ensure that all government
employees who make purchasing
decisions, from paper to satellites, add
environmental criteria to their deci-
sions, along with price, performance,
health and safety. To accomplish this,
the guidance will emphasize the
importance of providing environmen-
tal information of a product or service
along its life cycle to purchasers. In
addition, EPA wants the guidance to
help federal consumers go beyond
merely substituting one product for
another, to thinking more broadly
about whether, and how, a process
needs to be performed. EPA will strive
to create guidance that is flexible and
creates incentives for continuous
improvement in the environmental
performance of the goods and services
the government purchases.
EPA plans to have the draft guide-
lines ready by this summer, at which
point they will be published in the
Federal Register, and at least one public
meeting will be held to solicit additional
comments. The guidelines will then be
issued in final form. There also are
plans for developing outreach, training
and pilot programs with other federal
agencies to meet their specific needs.
(Continued from page 1)
transfers for recycling. Reported
air releases declined 9.4% since
1991, largely due to decreased
emissions of solvents, ammonia
and chlorine. Surface water
discharges increased 12.2% due
to increased run-off and one
accidental release of phosphoric
acid from fertilizer facilities in
Louisiana and Texas. Land
releases declined 18.6%. (See
graph.)
Second year of
prevention reporting
In the second year of waste
management information
reporting, 36% of all facilities
reported that they implemented
at least one source reduction
activity, down from 37% in
1991. Recycling on or off-site
accounted for disposition of
52 , of the toxic chemicals
generated in waste, the same
percentage as in 1991. —
National and state-specific TRI
data are available through the EPCRA
Hotline at 800-535-0202. The complete
TRI database is available to the public
through the National Library of
(Continued from page 5)
Standards will result in significant risk
reduction as about 145,000 of the one
million new homes built each year are
in Zone I areas. It is estimated that
over 200 lives will be saved.
A passive radon control system
can be installed in a newly con-
structed home easily and relatively
inexpensively. The system uses
standard building materials and costs
between $350 and $500, depending on
the size, structure and location of the
house. There are five parts to a
passive radon control system: a layer
of gas permeable material such as
gravel, a layer of polyethylene
sheeting, sealing and caulking all
openings in the foundation floor,
installation of a polyvinyl chloride
1992 Releases of T Chemicals
Bilion Pounds
I a IS
.,
05
C
-
I_
_}9.4%
M ion
Pounds
0
50
100
ISO
200 250
300
Medicine’s TOXNET system (call 301-
496-6531 for access information) and
the Right-to-Know Network (contact
the Unison Institute at 202-797-7200).
(PVC) vent pipe, and a roughed-in
electrical junction box for the future
installation of a fan, if needed.
Before the foundation floor is
poured, the gravel is laid down,
covered by the polyethylene sheeting,
and the PVC vent pipe is installed.
When the floor is in place and all
openings are sealed, a physical barrier
to radon entry is created. In addition,
the vent pipe draws air from under the
foundation, preventing gas from
seeping into the house. If the radon
level remains above four picocuries per
liter (piC/L), then a fan is added to the
vent pipe to improve its performance.
For more information about radon-
resistant new construction, contact
Jennifer Keller at EPA at 202-233-9338.
TRI Releases Show Modest Decline in 1992
hi
hi
l,,I
“I
‘!
ji:
l I
.12.2%
Million Pounds
0 00 200 300 400 5 sj
1.18.6%
MiHion Pounds
0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
+2.2%
Billion Pounds
00 05 10 1.5 20 25 30
1-64%
EPA Addresses Radon Problem
For more information, contact Eun-
Sook Goidel at 202-260-3296.
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March-April-May 1994
Ii — Pollution Prevention News
EPA Resources
New Pollution Prevention
Spreadsheet Software
p2/FINANCE is a new spreadsheet
software tool that helps companies
collect and analyze data essential to a
clearer financial evaluation of product
or process costs and pollution preven-
tion costs. The software offers a
valuable starting point for introducing
a Total Cost Assessment (TCA) ap-
proach to companies and is available
free of charge to any federal, regional,
state or local government employee
from the Pollution Prevention Informa-
tion Clearinghouse (PPIC).
TCA differs from conventional
practices in four key ways: a broader
inventory of costs and savings; alloca-
tion of all costs and savings to specific
process and product lines rather than
to overhead accounts; expanded time
horizons for the capture of long term
benefits; and the use of profitability
indicators which incorporate the time
value of money.
Users of the software input capital
and operating costs for their product!
process and an alternative option, and
the program outputs a fifteen-year
cash flow analysis and a profitability
analysis. The analysis calculates three
financial factors: net present value;
internal rate ot return; and simple
payback. P2/FINANCE comes with a
Denver Saves Water
(Continued from page 7)
Based on the audits, the consultants
also created checklists which can be
used to identify water conservation
opportunities in a variety of settings.
One year after the audits, Denver
Water completed detailed evaluations
of nine companies that had imple-
mented at least some of the recom-
mendations. The nine companies had
cut water consumption from 3 to 28
percent, saving approximately 63
million gallons of water annually.
Savings are expected to grow as more
recommendations are implemented
and as equipment is replaced with
more water efficient models. In
user manual and free access to a user
hotline.
For more information on how to
obtain P2/FINANCE, contact PPIC at
202-260-1023.
New Pollution Prevention
Case Studies
E PA has made available two new
documents on pollution prevention
case studies. Summary of Pollution
Preven tioii Case St zidies With Economic
Data (by SIC Codes), (EPA 742-S-Y4-
001), was created in response to the
need for more economic information
on pollution prevention projects. This
document offers a spreadsheet of over
300 pollution prevention projects
implemented by companies from a
variety of Standard Industrial Codes
(SIC). The document also provides
references to more detailed data on
each case study.
The second document, Abstracts of
Pollution Prevention Case Study Sources,
(EPA 742-B-94-001), is a reference
guide for locating pollution prevention
case studies. To enable the reader to
locate the source of each case study,
the Abstract is cross-referenced with
the Summary document. For each
source, the Abstracts document
contains a short description of the
content, a contact name and telephone
addition to demonstrating the poten-
tial for savings among non-residential
users, the program has provided
detailed water conservation plans for
nine major industries in the Denver
areas. Denver Water is now marketing
the water conservation program to
industrial and commercial facilities
throughout its service area.
This case study is excerpted from
“Water Audits for Business and J,:dus-
try,” published as part of the Global Cities
Project Building Sustainable Coniniun i—
ties Water Efficiency Series. For informa-
tion on the Global Cities Project, call 415—
775—079l. For information on tire Denver
Water conservation program, contact
Edwin Hernandt’: at Denver Water at
303-628-6563.
number, and price information.
For copies of either document,
contact PPIC at 202-260-1023.
Green Lights Fax Line
T he Green Lights/Energy Star
automatic fax line is up and
running. Callers can receive by fax the
latest information on Green Lights,
Energy Star Buildings, Energy Star
Computers, and the Methane Pro-
grams. Available information includes,
for example, the most recent Green
Lights participant list, a list of qualify-
ing Energy Star computer products,
and specific product and technical
information. To access, dial 202-233-
9659 from a touch-tone phone or
directly from a fax machine.
Business Guide to Reducing
Solid Waste
E PA’s Office of Solid Waste and
Emergency Response has devel-
oped a Business Guide for Reducing
Solid Waste, (EPA 530-K-92-004). The
Guide offers step-by-step instructions
designed to assist medium and large
businesses, governments, and other
organizations establish a waste
reduction program. Although it is not
specifically designed for smaller
companies, they may find the Guide
useful as well. While employees at all
levels can benefit from the Guide, it is
directed to members of a waste
reduction team.
For more information, contact the
RCRA Hotline at 800-424-9346.
State of Federal Facilities
E PA’s Office of Federal Facilities
Enforcement has released The State
of Federal Facilities, (EPA 300-R-94-001).
The document provides a comprehen-
sive overview of environmental state of
affairs at federal facilities through the
end of FY 1992. This is the first attempt
to collect and present data regarding
the major program activities tracked by
EPA Headquarters. For more informa-
tion contact the Office of Federal
Facilities at 202-260-9801.
-------
Pollution Prevention Neivs -12
March-April-May 1994
Calendar
Title
Innovative Environmental
Strategies for the 90s
Promoting Pollution Prevention
by Voluntary Initiatives
Pollution Prevention: Putting a
P2 Spin on Regulation
Laboratory Waste Minimization
Workshop
New England Resource Recovery
Conference and Exposition
Air & Waste Management Assn.
87th Annual Meeting & Exhibition
Laboratory Safety and
Environmental Management '94
32nd Annual International
Solid Waste Exposition
Design for the Environment:
The Environmental Paradigm
of the 21st Century
Second lnt'1 Symposium on
Environmental Contamination in
Central and Eastern Europe
Environmental Alliance for Senior
Involvement Leadership Conf.
Florida Environmental EXPO
Sponsor
National Association of Local
Gov't Environ. Professionals
Hampshire Research Institute/
EPA
EPA/Managed by the
Wastewatch Center
American Chemical Society
New Hampshire Resource
Recovery Association
AWMA
Env. Testing and Analysis
AIHA/National Safety Council
Solid Waste Association
of North America
American Chemical Society,
EPA
Budapest '94
EASI
Fla. Dept. of Env. Protection,
AWMA, EPA, others
Date/Location
June 1-3
Washington, D.C.
June 1-3
Williamsburg, VA
June 15- 17
Woods Hole, MA
June 16
Anchorage, AK
June 13 - 14
Portland, ME
June 19 - 24
Cincinnati, OH
June 20 - 23
Alexandria, VA
August 1 - 4
San Antonio, TX
August 21 - 25
Washington, D.C.
Sept. 20 - 23
Budapest, Hungary
Sept. 22 -24
Chevy Chase, MD
October 11 - 13
Tampa, FL
Telephone
Sandra Garbrecht or
Stephanie Marrone
202-638-6254
703-684-5588
703-548-0426 (fax)
508-470-3044
Bill Gray
202-872-4467
603-224-6996
Pam McCalla
412-232-3444
Vicki Martin
818-575-6858
301-585-2898
Dr. Joseph Breen
202-260-1573
202-260-0981 (fax)
John Moerlins
904-644-5524
703-253-5821
703-253-5811 (fax)
813-725-8202
Moving? Please enclose mailing label!
United States Environmental
Protection Agency (MC7409)
Washington, DC 20460
Official Business
Penalty for Private Use $300
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