SiiEm
Times
NEWS FOR AND ABOUT EPA EMPLOYEES
INSIDE:
~	Pay Schedule
~	New News Feature
~	Executive Exchange
VOLUME 1	NUMBER 15	June 22, 1984
A rainy day on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay failed to dampen the spirits of
Administrator Bill Ruckelshaus and the Governor of the State of Maryland during
ceremonies marking the Governor's signing of a package of bills to restore the bay.
The 10 bills are a major step forward in Maryland's initiative to address various
pollution problems that have seriously lowered the hay's ability to support marine
life and recreational pursuits. Standing before the Chesapeake Bay Bridge are: (left to
right J Benjamin Card in, Speaker of the Maryland House of Delegates, Ruckelshaus,
Governor Harry Hughes, and Melvin Steinberg, President of the Maryland Senate.
Fraud & Waste Prevention
Goal of New Committee
Seeking to close the barn door prior
to the escape of livestock, EPA has
formed a new committee on fraud,
waste and abuse. The committee's
task will be to identify vulnerable
areas and help develop management
approaches to limit opportunities for
theft and misuse of federal funds.
The committee consists of repre-
sentatives of each Assistant Adminis-
trator and Regional Administrator.
The Inspector General will chair the
committee to provide advice, tech-
nical assistance, and other support in
committee projects.
EPA Inspector General John Martin
said at the committee's initial meeting
that the goal of the new group should
be to put his office out of business.
More specifically, the Committee
will undertake projects and provide
recommendations on matters con-
cerning: (1) increasing EPA em-
ployees' awareness of their responsibi-
lities to detect and prevent fraud,
waste, and mismanagement in the
Agency's programs and activities; (2)
developing policies and goals, and im-
plementing strategies that minimize
the opportunities for the occurrence of
fraud, waste, and mismanagement; (3)
identifying the areas considered to be
sensitive to fraud, waste, and mis-
management; (4) identifying the man-
agement and internal controls best
suited for detecting and preventing
fraud; and (5) developing other fraud
related programs as necessary. ~
Pay Increase
Retroactive
To January 8
The 3.5 percent pay raise federal
white-collar employees received on
January 8, 1984, has been increased
retroactively to 4 percent.
President Reagan signed legislation
on May 23 authorizing the one-half
percent increase.
Your June 19 paycheck should have
reflected the increase (about $6.00 if
you earn $30,000 per year) plus the
retroactive amount (averaging about
$50.00).
See the back page for the revised
federal pay schedule. For more in-
formation or help contact the Custom-
er Assistance Section on 382-5116. ~
Veteran's Preference
Act Is 40 This Month
June 27th marks the 40th An-
niversary of the enactment of the
Veteran's Preference Act of 1944.
The Office of Personnel Man-
agement (OPM) is noting this history-
making event with several activities
including: a commemerative cancella-
tion stamp ceremony by OPM and the
U.S. Postal Service, the issuance of a
presidential proclamation and a joint
congressional resolution, veteran art
exhibits, receptions, cooperative pro-
jects with veteran organizations,
training sessions, and public forums
concerning the employment of dis-
abled veterans.
The federal government's con-
tinuing commitment to aid job-seeking
veterans is evidenced by the 39 per-
cent of the federal non-postal work-
force and the 52 percent of the postal
workforce who are veterans. ~
Signing in the Rain

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People
Letters
Congratulations on 30 years of federal service to: Paul
Elliot, Region 2 . . . William Woodrow and Willie New-
kirk, Policy, Planning and Evaluation . . . Mary Cusato,
Research and Development . . . Beatrice Kaplan, Water . . .
Richard Moore, Office of the Inspector General . . . Matt-
hew Simms, Administration and Resources Management . . .
Gerald Stern, Cincinnati . . . Melvin Warnock, Region 6.
Robert Dixon, toxicology expert and author of dozens of
scientific papers on environmental toxicology, appointed
director of the Office of Health Research. Prior to joining
EPA, Dixon served with the National Institute of Environ-
mental Health Sciences as chief of the Laboratory of Re-
productive and Developmental Toxicology.
Appointments in Region 8: Alexandra Smith will be-
come Deputy Regional Administrator in July. Smith is di-
rector of the Air and Waste Management Division in Re-
gion 10 . . . Doris Sanders, a senior program manager with
JRB Associates, is selected to head the Denver Office of
External Affairs.
Douglas Blazey appointed Regional Counsel for Region
2. Since 1971, Blazey has served in various capacities, in-
cluding Chief Counsel, for the Pennsylvania Department of
Environmental Resources.
Continued Superior Performance awards to: Pamela
Harris, Pesticides and Toxic Substances . . . Edith Minor,
Policy, Planning and Evaluation . . . Deidre Thomas, Ad-
ministration and Resources Management.
Special Act awards presented to: Kenneth Rowe, Faith
Samples and Charlotte Northern, Administration and Re-
sources Management . . . Albert Heier and Wesley Lynn,
External Affairs . . . William Coniglio, Penelope Fenner-
Crisp, Edward Ohanian, Jitendra Saxena and Peter Las-
sovszky, Water . . . Wanda Sturdivant and Georgene
Boiling, Solid Waste and Emergency Response.
Quality Step Increases awarded to: Yvonne Countee,
Office of the Administrator . . . Janet Workcuff and Patri-
cia Keitt, Administration and Resources Management. ~
Dear Editor:
I read with interest the article about the EPA runners
who participated in the Xerox Corporation Marathon (Vol.
1, No. 13, May 84).
I appreciate their effort and applaud them for their activ-
ity to keep fit, but I question the times reported for them
to run 26 miles. A 2:01:39 time would mean 4:41 miles or
12:11 for each individual's 2.6-mile interval. If this was
the 36th best time, the 35 faster teams were really
smoking!
The article makes me feel like a slowpoke. My first
marathon (run at age 42) was in 3:06:35. Oh well. Guess
I'll just have to train harder.
Yours in running
(and writing),
Rod Parrish
Gulf Breeze
Ah, the vagaries of telephone communications, wherein
the words "two-oh-one-three-nine" could be mis-
transcribed as 2 hours 1 minute 39 seconds instead of 201
minutes 39 seconds. Could this all have been a sinister
plot to reinforce our bureaucratic reliance on paper-copy
communications? Surely not! ~
Agency Activities
The U.S. District Court of Oregon hands down the first
convictions that include jail sentences in a hazardous
waste case. The president of Drum Recovery, Inc., sent-
enced to a year in jail, five years probation, and prohibited
for life from involvement in the hazardous waste business.
Two other officials in the firm also sentenced.
EPA asks for penalty of $20,000 against Environmental
Waste Control, Inc., Inkster, Michigan, charging that the
facility violated federal regulations for storage and dis-
posal of hazardous waste . . . Four of six companies which
sent hazardous materials to the Greenup, Illinois, site
agree to conduct a surface cleanup. The Aluminum Com-
pany of America and the other three companies also agree
to reimburse the federal government $340,000, and the
state $40,000, for prior cleanup actions.
The largest Superfund contract yet, $168 million over
four years, awarded to the Boston firm of Camp Dresser &
McKee for provision of technical assistance and resources
in various long- and short-term cleanups . . . Two
hazardous waste site investigation and feasibility studies
are initiated in Louisiana: one at the Cleve Reber site near
Sorrento (costing $363,000), the other at the Bayou Bon-
fouca site in Slidell ($310,000).
Final approval given to a new process for destroying
PCBs. A pyrolysis reactor developed by the Huber
Corporation of Borger, Texas, thermally destroys con-
taminated soil without using oxygen. Temperatures exceed
4,000 degrees Fahrenheit . . . Approval also given for op-
eration of the PCB incinerator at the Los Alamos National
Laboratory to dispose of waste generated by the De-
partment of Energy.
Recommended maximum contaminant levels (RMCLs)
for nine chemicals, including benzene and carbon tetrach-
loride, proposed as a first step in setting standards.
Although the final standards will have to be higher, seven
of the nine RMCLs are set at zero . . . EPA establishes con-
sistent national procedures and criteria for determining
funding of advanced treatment for municipal wastewater.
Superior to secondary or biological treatment, advanced
treatment now accounts for about 20 percent of EPA con-
struction grants.

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Environmental News
A selection of noteworthy lines culled from the 300-400
newspaper and magazine articles on environmental mat-
ters which we receive every two weeks.
) "A majority of Denver residents consider air pollution to
be the city's single most pressing issue and a surprising 81
percent of them say they would pay more in taxes if it
would help clear the air."—The Denver Post, 5/13.
"Is living near the ocean hazardous to your health? . . .
initial research has shown that under some conditions, salt
air and a common air pollutant, nitrogen dioxide, unite to
form a toxic, corrosive gas called nitrosyl chloride [which],
when it hits your lungs, reacts and forms hydrochloric
acid."—Los Angeles Times, 5/28.
"Richard Radt, president of the Rhinelander Paper Co.,
said the firm's mill will close by June 30 and 146 people
will be laid off because the firm cannot afford to comply
with Department of Natural Resources water quality stan-
dards by the state's July 1 deadline."—The Milwaukee
Journal, 5/22.
"The chemical industry, with backing from some en-
vironmentalists, yesterday launched an effort to speed
cleanup of the nation's hazardous waste dumps through an
unusual private company that will negotiate with dumpers
independently of the EPA. The new venture, a nonprofit
organization called Clean Sites Inc. drew an immediate
endorsement from EPA Administrator William D.
Ruckelshaus."—The Washington Post, 6/1.
"When Russell E. Train was introduced ... as chairman
of Clean Sites Inc. ... he was described as 'Mr. Conserva-
tion.' The title is merited."—The New York Times, 6/4.
"State officials wanted people to think about toxic waste
'disposal, go to their garages and maybe dig up a few half-
filled paint cans. Little did they know that midway
through their waste roundup, 500 Dade residents would
have dragged in I21/z tons of hazardous pollutants."—The
Miami Herald, 5/12.
Petitions by rum distillers asking for Agency
reconsideration of requirements for treatment of liquid dis-
tillation waste are denied. Three Puerto Rico and Virgin
Island companies must submit schedules of compliance
with control technology mandated by the Clean Water Act.
A new Memorandum of Understanding between EPA
and the Department of the Interior provides for coordina-
tion of environmental permits for oil and gas drilling ac-
tivities on the Outer Continental Shelf. The measure is de-
signed to make the permit process more responsive to en-
vironmental concerns and eliminate needless delays.
EPA proposes to set a definitely ascertainable time when
rules will be considered officially issued for purposes of
judicial review. The goal: greater fairness in "races to the
courthouse" (aimed at gaining a sympathetic venue), and
elimination of use of walkie-talkies, human signaling
chains, and open long-distance lines previously used by
potential litigants to signal the moment of signing. ~
"Fire ant venom, stored in our soil, permeating our
water supply, even being ingested by animals and finding
its way into our food supply, could be the next ethylene
dibromide-type health scare. It is too bad that federal reg-
ulatory agencies never seem to mobilize as rapidly, or with
as much zeal, to deal with a pest like the fire ant ... as
they do against a substance found in trace residual
amounts in certain foods."—Farm Bureau News, 5/21.
"Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park, said to be
the most extensive cave system in the world, is being
threatened by sewage that nearby towns flush into
groundwater flowing into the caves."—Engineering News
and Record, 5/17.
"Prospects suddenly look much brighter for U.S. pesti-
cide manufacturers. Sales, which fell to $3.9 billion in
1983 are expected to reach $4.5 billion this year. Man-
ufacturing costs are steady and prices are starting to
climb."—Business Week, 5/28.
"Atlantic Research Corp. of Alexandria announced
yesterday that it is abandoning its work on a patented
process for destroying highly poisonous PCBs ... it has
decided there is an inadequate market for the product."—
The Washington Post, 6/1.
"Despite more than a decade of get-tough policies by
half the nations of the earth, illegal trafficking in wild an-
imals and wildlife products is flourishing. According to
experts at the World Wildlife Fund, the annual global
trade of live animals, ivory, and skin-covered objects such
as shoes and handbags runs between $2 billion and $5
billion."—Time, 5/25.
Around EPA
Clients of the Headquarters Accounting Operations
Branch may experience some difficulty reaching the
proper personnel or delays in receiving responses this
summer; however, all services will continue. The potential
difficulties are the result of a relocation and shifting of
personnel as the office space undergoes renovations. If
you are unable to reach accounting personnel at their
listed number, call the Customer Assistance Section on
382-5116.
EPA, in cooperation with the U.S. Information Agency,
is seeking candidates qualified to work in Germany under
an executive interchange program. Any employee who
proposes a particular program of work in a priority area of
Agency programs and who has the requisite language skill
will be considered. Proposals should be submitted through
your Assistant Administrator or Regional Administrator.
For further information contact David Strother on 382-
4892.
GSA announces that Region 2 will serve as a pilot re-
gion for reducing telecommunications costs throughout
EPA. Their current telephone station equipment (rented
from AT&T) will be replaced with competitively procured
private-vendor equipment. ~

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Revised Pay Schedule
For Federal White Collar Workers
Step-
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
GS- 1
$09,023
$09,324
$09,624
$09,924
$10,224
$10,400
$10,697
$10,995
$11,008
$11,283
2
10,145
10,386
10,722
11,008
11,129
11,456
11,783
12,110
12,437
12,764
3
11,070
11,439
11,808
12,177
12,546
12,915
13,284
13,653
14,022
14,391
4
12,427
12,841
13,255
13,669
14,083
14,497
14,911
15,325
15,739
16,153
5
13,903
14,366
14,829
15,292
15,755
16,218
16,681
17,144
17,607
18,070
6
15,497
16,014
16,531
17,048
17,565
18,082
18,599
19,116
19,633
20,150
7
17,221
17,795
18,369
18,943
19,517
20,091
20,665
21,239
21,813
22,387
8
19,073
19,709
20,345
20,981
21,617
22,253
22,889
23,525
24,161
24,797
9
21,066
21,768
22,470
23,172
23,874
24,576
25,278
25,980
26,682
27,384
10
23,199
23,972
24,745
25,518
26,291
27,064
27,837
28,610
29,383
30,156
11
25,489
26,339
27,189
28,039
28,889
29,739
30,589
31,439
32,289
33,139
12
30,549
31,567
32,535
33,603
34,621
35,639
36,657
37,675
38,691
39,711
13
36,327
37,538
38,749
39,960
41,171
42,382
43,593
44,804
46,015
47,226
14
42,928
44,359
45,790
47,221
48,652
50,083
51,514
52,945
54,376
55,807
15
50,495
52,178
53,861
55,554
57,227
58,910
60,593
62,676
63,959
65,642
16
59,223
61,197
63,171
65,145
67,119
69,093
71,067
73,041
75,015

17
69,376
71,689
74,002
76,315
78,628





18
81,311









In most cases the maximum salary payable is $66,000.
Executive Exchange Program Begins
The recent recommendations of the
National Academy of Public Adminis-
tration included the development of
an executive exchange program. The
first Agency action on this recom-
mendation involves a job switch be-
tween Steven Schatzow, Director of
the Office of Water Regulations and
Standards, and Edwin Johnson, Direc-
tor of the Office of Pesticide Programs
Administrator Bill Ruckelshaus ex-
plained that: "These two executives
have been chosen for the initial ex-
change because of their long experi-
ence with EPA and their com-
prehensive knowledge of agency pro-
grams and policies."
"Ed Johnson has had a dis-
tinguished 26-year career in the feder-
al government, and his accomplish-
ments in pesticide regulation over the
past nine years have been recognized
nationally and internationally," Ruck-
elshaus noted. Johnson will continue
for the next year or so to represent
Edwin
Johnson
Steven
Schatzow
EPA in international pesticide activi-
ties.
"Steve Schatzow's work has also
been exemplary," the Administrator
pointed out. "Over his nine years in
EPA he has become recognized, both
inside and outside the Agency, as one
of the nation's foremost experts on the
legislative aspects and the im-
plementation of the Clean Water
Act." ~
The EPA Times is published 24 times per
year to provide news and information for
and about EPA employees. Readers are en-
couraged to submit news of fellow em-
ployees, letters of opinion, questions, com-
ments, and suggestions to: Miles Allen, Edi-
tor, The EPA Times, Office of Public Affairs
(A-107). Telephone 382-4379. Information
selected for publication will be edited as
necessary in keeping with space available.
All letters of opinion must be signed and ac-
companied by submitter's office location and
telephone number.

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