Recycling the Ultimate Resource
Retired Professional Assistance
in Waste Reduction Programs
in Region IV
-------
Since 1970, EPA has been charged with the task of
establishing and enforcing this country's environmental laws.
Many individuals do not require regulations to be convinced of
the need to protect their surroundings. They understand the
importance of keeping their world clean. However, it is not
clear to all of them what actions to take. EPA recognizes the
value in providing a helping hand to those in need of
information about pollution prevention.
That is wny we are so proud ot the technicalassistance
centers across the Southeast, which are there to assist
businesses seeking to fill the information void about cleaner
technologies and processes. EPA is especially grateful for the
expertise provided by the many Retired Associates who staff
these assistance centers. Their decisions to contribute their life
and work experiences to the pollution prevention effort give it
instant credibility and make the: whole venture possible.
we hope to strengthen waste reduction technical assistance -
Retired Associates are an important part of this effort.
- Thomas L. Nessmith, Chief
Policy, Planning and Evaluation Branch
EPA Region TV
-------
Contest!
PAGE
Introduction 1
State Waate Reduction Assistance Programs 3
Alabama 3
Florida 3
Kentucky
Mississippi
North Carolina
South Carolina
Tennessee
Tennessee Study
Tennessee Valley Authority
BPA Region IV Clearinghouse 8
Retiree Conference g
Guidelines for Starting a Retiree Program 8
Figures, Tables
-------
Introduction
Efforts by various levels of government to promote sound waste
management and environmental protection—typically through laws and
regulations—have often been less effective than desired and more costly
to enforce than expected. Understandably, industry has often been
more concerned about reducing compliance costs and their effects on
profits than about reducing wastes and their effects on the environment.
The threat of penalties has produced suspicion of inspections and
assessments, resistance to almost any prescribed changes, and, at best,
only grudging, minimal compliance with the letter of the law.
Many states have instituted Waste Reduction Assistance (WRA) or
Pollution Prevention Programs to address these problems and the
unserved need they represent. In contrast to regulation and
enforcement, the WRA approach is based On voluntary cooperation
among industries, University industrial extension programs, and state
and federal agencies. Only those small industries that request to
participate in these joint projects receive waste management
assessments. Most of the state programs offer this assistance as free,
nonregulatory, nonbinding, and confidential. It is not the threat of
enforcement penalties but the opportunity for significant cost savings
that motivates industries to make any changes that may be. suggested.
In EPA Region IV state WRA programs, assessments are specifically
made outside the context of regulatory and enforcement processes, and
the results are held strictly confidential to protect proprietary interests.
Also, industries are under no obligation to implement any of the
suggested changes. However, most industries are not only willing but
even eager to implement some or all of the changes recommended
because they want to take advantage of the associated opportunities for
cost savings.
While this approach has obvious benefits for private industries, it is
also an effective and economical way for public agencies to accomplish
their goals of reducing production of hazardous and other wastes while
Pagel
-------
at the same time helping produce both environmental and economic
benefits in the region, including such significant benefits as reduced
needs for future waste disposal capacity and environmental effects
monitoring.
The WRA approach does not compete with private enterprise. Such
assessments are not commonly available from private consulting firms
in the region, nor would many small industries be likely to make the
speculative investment of contracting for such services even if they were
available, because the extent of any potential saving cannot be
identified until after the survey has been completed.
On the other hand, the project may actually stimulate demand for
commercial services. WRA assessments do not include designing or
constructing any facilities or equipment that may be needed or
modifying any processes or techniques as may be recommended.
Industries must either implement the waste reduction suggestions on
their own or contract with private consulting firms, construction
contractors^ or other commercial services.
Costs are kept low because most assessments are conducted by retired
senior-level engineers, who are specially recruited and given intensive
supplemental training to identify and report opportunities for waste
reduction. Although these retirees are reimbursed for travel expenses
and are paid a modest hourly honorarium to supplement their
retirement income, essentially, they volunteer their services as a means
of passing on to the next generation the benefit of their specialized
expertise and experience. Because the pool of available assessors
contains specialists with mariy years of experience in almost ,every
possible Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code it is usually
possible to choose expertise that closely matches the needs of any
particular industry. Because, the pool is large, it is usually possible to
reduce travel costs by selecting well-qualified retirees who live in the
vicinity of almost any industry scheduled for assessment.
Pun 2
-------
State Waste Reduction Assistance Programs
The services of the retirees are coordinated in many different ways in
Region IV. Each state WRA program has adopted the method that best
fits its own unique situation. This document briefly describes each
method now being used.
Ill Alabama a nonprofit 501(3)c corporation, the WRATT
Foundation, has been formed. It is a consortium of regulated and
regulator, private and public. It includes on its board of directors the
Tennessee Valley Authority, the Environmental Protection Agency, the
Business Council of Alabama, the Alabama Chemical Association, and
the Alabama Department of Environmental Management. It is
administered by retired professionals rehired full time or part time
under contract to the Foundation. Preassessments are done by the full-
time retirees. The WRAs are performed by the part-time retirees. The
WRA team drafts the report. The full-time retirees polish it and issue
it. Followup is the prerogative of the full-time retirees. A study by
Auburn University showed that the industries that have used this
program have praised its professionalism and service. The Foundation
Outreach Program has provided direct assistance in recruiting,
training,marketing, and total program development/implementing to
the other states^ plus overseas assignments. Published commendations
have stimulated strong national and international interest in the
Alabama model and foundation approach. Contact the Executive
Director, John Shields, at205-386-3633fearadditionalmformati
-------
Program which makes use of the pool of retirees in Florida. Contact
John Scarboro at904-488-0300for additional information about the Florida
Program and Lori Cunniffat305-372-6828for further informs tion about the
Dade County Program.
Ill OGOrglft the WKA program is called the Pollution Prevention
Assistance Division (P2AD). It is administered by it nonregulatory arm
of Georgia's Department of Natural Resources. The preassessment is
performed by a team from the P2AD and Georgia Tech Research
Institute (GTRI). The assessment is done by a retiree, sometimes with
the assistance of a graduate intern. The retiree drafts the report. GTRI
provides technical review. P2AD adds the final editorial changes and
distributes the report. Contact Bob Donaghue, Assistant Director, at 404-
651-51^ for further information.
the WRA program is called Kentucky Partners. It is
administered at the University of Louisville under an agreement with
the State of Kentucky . The program staff perform the preassessments,
and the retirees accompany the staff in the assessment and in drafting
the report. Contact Joyce St.C3air, Executive Director, at502-852-7260for
further information.
Ill Ml8SlS8ippi the WRA programs are called the Mississippi
Technical Assistance Program (MSSTAP) and the Mississippi Solid
Waste Reduction Assistance Program (MSSWRAP). They are
administered at Mississippi State University under an agreement with
the state of Mississippi's Waste Reduction and Minimization Program.
The retirees are assigned a company that has requested a WRA. They
perform the entire WRA and copy the report to MSSTAP. Contact
Caroline or. Donald Hill, Directors, at601-325-8454for further information.
In North Carolina the WRA program is the Office of Waste
-------
Reduction, a nonregulatory arm of North Carolina's Department of
Environment, Health, and Natural Resources and the oldest state
program in the country. Since it is physically centered in Raleigh, at
the eastern end of the state, additional resources were needed at the
western end of the state. The state program provides technical
oversight for retiree assisted WRAs in western North Carolina. The
Land-of-Sky Regional Council (LOS) in Asheville provides
administrative services. The Tennessee Valley Authority provided
funding for the initial program. A preassessment is performed by the
state. Retirees conduct the assessment and submit a draft report. The
state completes the report and sends it to the company. The retirees
also conduct "water only media1* assessments under an agreement
between LOS and the Asheville-Buncombe Water Authority.. Contact
Gary Hunt, Director, at919-571-4100for farther information about the state's
program. Contact Tom Elmore at 704-254-8131 for farther information about
the LOS.
In South Carolina the WRAis called the Center for Waste
Minimization. It is a nonregulatory arm of South Carolina's
Department of Health and Environmental Control.. The program is
staffed by retired professionals rehired full time or part time as state
employees. Contact Ray Guerrein at 803-734-4715for further information.
InTennessee the WRA program is called the Waste Reduction
Assistance Program. It is administered by the University of Tennessee's
Center for Industrial Services under a contract with Tennessee's
Department of Environment and Conservation. This was the first
retiree-assisted WRA in the country. The retirees assist the full-time
staff (several of whom are rehired retired professionals) to conduct the
WRAs. Some of the retirees conduct the entire assessment by
themselves and submit a draft report to the staff to be finalized. Others
assist the staff in conducting assessments and in training. See the
"Tennessee Study" below for the benefits of retiree-assisted WRAs.
Con tact George Smeher, Director, at615-532^912 for fw&erinformation.
-------
Tennessee Study
The Tennessee Study was the first project to document the benefits of
using retirees for WRA work. The services of retirees were coordinated
and administered under the oversight of the Waste Reduction
Assistance Program (WRAP) at the University of Tennessee Center for
Industrial Services, which coordinated the joint pilot project in
Tennessee. The Tennessee Valley Authority supplied the funding and
oversight for this pilot program in Tennessee beginning in 1989. The
study reviewed and documented results of assessments for 32 industries
that volunteered to participate.
In 1992, the study requested followup information from the 32
industries involved in the pilot project. Five of the 32 industries
declined to participate in the study. The remaining 27 industries agreed
to allow publication of their results as anonymous case studies.
These 27 industries documented a combined annual saving of almost
$2,400,000 (table 1) from changes based on these assessments.
Rounded, that equals an average saving of almost $90,000 per industry
per year.
In this pilot project^ retirees conducted about 75% of the total
assessment work; staff from the Center for Industrial Services provided
the remaining 25%. Therefore, the portion of the total annual saving
for the 27 reporting industries that was attributable to retiree
assessments was about $1,800,000, or an average annual benefit of
almost $67,000 per industry.
Retiree assessment costs were hot available on a directly comparable
basis, that is, for just the 27 reporting industries. However, the
assessment services provided by retirees for the 32 industries contacted
for the follow up study totalled $59,000, or an average cost of $1,844
per industry.
Even on that basis, if the resulting rate of saving had. been realized for
only a single year, there would be a 36:1 ratio between the average
-------
benefits and average costs for the pilot project (table 2 and figure 1). In
otherwords, $36 was saved for every $ 1 spent, including not only the
direct costs for assessment time and associated travel reimbursement
but also all the costs for program development, training, overhead, and
reporting. In fact, however, the benefitrcost ratio is continually
increasing, because the costs were one-time costs while incremental
savings continue accumulating year after year.
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a regional federal agency that
assisted (along with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and
the University of North Carolina - Asheville) in starting the first
retiree-supplemented Waste Reduction Assistance program. A
significant goal of TVA's Waste Reduction Assessment and Technology
Transfer (WRATT) program is to assist state and local governments in
developing similar programs. The recognition the program has received
in several national publications has resulted not only in many
additional requests for industrial assessments but also in requests to.
assist state and local governments in developing and implementing
similar waste reduction programs. Such programs have now been
adopted not only in Region IV by the states of Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and
Tennessee (figure 2) but also by Iowa, New Hampshire, Vermont and
the city of Los Angeles, California. Several other state programs have
either started retiree-assisted programs or are contemplating doing so.
Contact Carroll Duggan at615-751-4574for further information.
Called the Waste Reduction Resource Center of the Southeast
(WRRQ, it is housed with the NC state WRA program in Raleigh. It
provides free waste reduction information to anyone requesting it in
Region IV. It is staffed by previously retired professionals rehired full
-------
time through EPA, Bicentennial Volunteers Incorporated (a 501 (3)c
non-profit corporation), and the National Caucus and Center on Black
Aged - Senior Environmental Employment. The WRRC is funded by
EPA Region TV and TVA. Contact Vic Young, Director, at800-476-8686
for further information.
Conference
Co-hosted by TVA and EPA Region IV, its purpose is to provide
networking and training opportunities for retired professionals working
in WRA programs in the Southeast. All retired professionals assisting
state WRA programs in EPA Region TV are invited. It was initiated to
help keep these retirees current on waste reduction issues and
advancements. All of the retirees are also kept on the mailing list for 17
publications related to waste reduction.
Guidelines for Starting a Retiree Program
Listed below are suggestions that should be tailored to accommodate a
specific situation.
Pick the brains of programs that operate similarly to the way you
plan to function.
Place a classified advertisement in the newspapers in the locality
where you wish to attract retirees. It could read :"Retired
engineers to work part time helping companies save money by
reducing their wastes. Industrial experience required. Training,
small hourly honorarium, and expenses provided. Send resume to
hgei
-------
Interview the applicants with the skills you require. Especially
look for ability to interact, write reports, and pick up new ideas.
Decide if you want the retirees to be iiiider contract or
employees of your organization. If they are contractors, considei
how you need to handle social security and income tax
'withholding, expenses (what is covered, limits), and workman's
compensation.
Provide general training in waste reduction techniques. Be
prepared to provide additional specialized Waste Reduction
training. The Tennessee program offers excellent generalized
training for a reasonable cost. Through the Alabama Outreach
Program, the WRATT Foundation offers total program
development and implementation to other states and overseas
organizations.
Keep your retirees busy . If you do not meet their expectations,
they will become disillusioned and drop out of your program.
Always let them know that you appreciate their efforts.
-------
-------
Table 1. Documented Annual Savings for TVA-Funded
Waste Reduction Projects in Tennessee. 1989-1992
TVA
Documented
project
annual
No.
savtaiwft)
8
240,000
9
8,000
10
7,560
11
14,800
12
95,000
14
68,500
15
0
16
65,000
17
8,000
18
20,000
19
3,480
20
10,000
21
49,000
22
15,000
23
3,000
24
0
27,28
960
29
0
31
179,019
33
19,000
34
4,500
35
4,382
36
1,800
37
15,600
40
1,298,025
a
250.000
27 projects
2,380,626
No data were available for 5 projects
-------
Table! BenefifcCost Analysis For TVA-Funded
Retiree-Assisted Waste Reduction Assessments
Given:
Total cost of retirees for 32 audits — $59,000
Total documented Annual savings for 27 audits = $2,380,626
Fraction of audit work done by retirees = 3/4
Results:
$2,380,6261/27 audits = $88,171 average annual benefit/audit
$88,171 average annual benefit/audit x 0.75 audit/benefit from retirees =
$66,129
$59,000/32 audits = $1,844 average retiree cost/audit
$66,129 average «nww»l benefit from retiree/$ 1,844 average direct retiree cost
= benefit:cost ratio = 36 : 1
-------
-------
$66,130
ANNUAL
BENEFIT
TO INDUSTRY
AVERAGE ANNUAL
BENEFIT :COST RATIO
$1,644
ONE TIME
COST OF
ASSESSMENT
FIGURE 1. AVERAGE ANNUAL BENEFIT: COST RATIO FOR
TVA FUNDED RETIREE ASSISTED WASTE REDUCTION
ASSESSMENT PROGRAM IN TENNESSEE 1989-1992
-------
FIGURE 2. WASTE REDUCTION PROGRAMS
WITH RETIREE ASSISTANCE
-------
by Steve Hillenbrand
Tennessee Valley Authority
Knoxville, Tennessee
January, 1994
------- |