Winter 2003-2004
ISSUE #16
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
an environmental bulletin for federal facilities
Feds Embrace Pollution Prevention
A familiar adage asserts, "an ounce of
prevention is worth a pound of cure."
This certainly holds true for federal agen-
cies which use pollution prevention
(P2) and environmental stewardship
strategies in their facility operations.
The federal government is the nation's
largest consumer of raw materials, power,
water and other products, and also gener-
ates harmful wastes which may adversely
impact people and the environment. The
increasing costs and comprehensive regu-
latory requirements for managing waste
create incentives for federal facilities to
reduce the amount of hazardous materials
used and wastes generated.
Federal agencies have reduced their
environmental impacts and costs associ-
ated with managing wastes by incorporat-
ing P2 into facility operations and their
environmental management systems.
Some activities are voluntary, but many
are required by statute, regulation or
Executive Order.
Most recently, Executive Order 13148
requires federal agencies to "comply with
environmental regulations by establish-
ing and implementing...policies that
Inside
3 EMS and P2
6 Partnerships
9 Green Procurement
10 Healthcare
11 E-Cycling
13 Green/Alternative Power
14 P2
20 In the Spotlight
23 Selected P2 Internet Resources
24 Post-ROD Issues; Enforcement News
26 In Brief
27 Federal Agency Compliance Tracking
System (FACTS)
28 Upcoming Events
emphasize pollution prevention as a
means to both achieve and maintain
environmental compliance." Pollution
prevention therefore, can also be an effec-
tive compliance strategy by eliminating
or reducing pollution to begin with,
rather than having to store, treat, or oth-
erwise deal with it after it is created.
For instance, federal facilities which
minimize or eliminate RCRA waste will
not be responsible for treating, transport-
ing, and storing that waste. A facility that
avoids using chemicals found on the Toxic
Release Inventory will have nothing to
report to EPA. By implementing energy
saving strategies, a facility can lower its
electric bill and reduce pollution caused
by power generation. Pollution preven-
tion strategies are endless, but the over-
all benefit can be summed up as less
time, energy, and money spent on report-
ing, storing, and treating pollution and
waste.
The federal government is also in a
unique position to demonstrate leader-
ship by embracing and employing P2 and
environmentally sustainable strategies
in facility operations. By purchasing
"green" (less toxic and environmentally
"friendly" products and materials), the
government creates demand for goods
and products with recycled content stan-
dards in its procurement contracts.
P2 is a sound strategy to help facilities
avoid pollution control costs, reduce envi-
ronmental liability, and improve produc-
tion efficiency. In the last few years, fed-
eral agencies significantly increased their
P2 and environmental stewardship activ-
ities, cultivated new P2 partnerships,
and continue to look for new ways to
improve efficiency, reduce waste, and
build P2 strategies into facility operation.
We highlight a few of these activities in
this issue, and look forward to hearing
about more innovative practices in the
future.
Environmental
Spotlight
PARTNERING FOR
POLLUTION PREVENTION
By Ken Zarker, Chair, National Pollution
Prevention Roundtable
;enty years ago,
le federal govern-
ment helped popular-
ize the idea that "pol-
lution prevention
pays" and is the path
toward a more sus-
tainable and secure environmental
future. Today, more than ever, the fed-
eral government is in a leadership posi-
tion to help maintain and foster the
efforts of both public and private entities
alike. Key to continued success of many
pollution prevention programs is strong
partnerships between federal, state and
local governments, Continued on page 2
A
ABOUT THIS ISSUE...
Several months ago we asked our federal
facility partners, sister agencies, states and
others to tell us about pollution prevention
(P2) and stewardship activities being devel-
oped and implemented at federal facilities.
We received many responses and this issue
spotlights some of the innovative programs
and practices employed throughout the fed-
eral government. We've featured a few pol-
lution prevention and stewardship areas,
including recycling, environmentally prefer-
able purchasing, energy efficiency and
alternatives, partnerships, and healthcare.
Our goal is two-fold: to applaud and show-
case some of the good work being done
around the federal government; and pro-
mote and provide information to others inter-
ested in implementing similar programs or
strategies at their facilities.
Printed on Recycled Paper
-------
ENVIRONMENTAL SPOTLIGHT
Continued from page 1
community groups, industry and busi-
ness.
As chair of the National Pollution Pre-
vention Roundtable (NPPR), and P2 Sec-
tion Manager of the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality, I've watched the
genesis and growth of pollution preven-
tion programs here in Texas, and also
nationally. Many of these programs
evolved from partnerships among a vari-
ety of groups, whose collective experience
and dedication made impressive inroads
integrating pollution prevention into
facility and governmental operations.
Partnerships - especially those among
governmental entities - may be even
more critical now since many state and
local programs are facing significant bud-
get cuts and reductions to their core pol-
lution prevention programs.
Some of the best opportunities to part-
ner with federal facilities are through
national and regional pollution preven-
tion networks, such as NPPR. The
Roundtable is the largest pollution pre-
vention membership organization in the
United States, and provides a national
forum for promoting the development,
is published by EPA's Federal
Facilities Enforcement Office.
EPA#300-N-04-001
Marie Muller, FFEO, Editor
Kenny Jackman, Intern
Robin Foster,
Legin Group, Layout
Federal Facilities Enforcement Office
Office of Enforcement and Compliance
Assurance
U.S. EPA(2261A)
1200 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20460
Phone:202-564-2510
Fax:202-501-0069
Internet: www.epa.gov/compliance/
resources/newsletters/civil/fedfac/
index.html
The National Pollution Prevention Roundtable is the largest organization in the United States
devoted solely to pollution prevention. The Roundtable promotes the development, implementa-
tion, and evaluation of efforts to avoid, eliminate, or reduce pollution at the source. For more
information about the NPPR, and how you and your organization can get involved, visit
http://www.p2.org. To learn more about the NPPR Federal Facilities Discussion Group, visit:
http://www.p2.org/federal
The National Environmental Assistance Providers' Summit will be held April 17 - 22, 2004 in
Baltimore, Md. For more information visit: http://www.p2.org/summit2004
implementation, and evaluation of efforts
to avoid, eliminate, or reduce pollution at
the source.
The Roundtable's membership
includes state, local, tribal and federal
governments, non-profit organizations,
trade associations, academic institutions,
private industry, small business develop-
ment centers, and NIST-sponsored manu-
facturing extension programs. Public sec-
tor members, located in every state and
internationally, operate programs that
provide pollution prevention information
and technical assistance to thousands of
industrial, commercial, and agricultural
facilities each year. This information
helps many facilities reduce operational
costs and improve environmental compli-
ance. The result is improved efficiency,
increased competitiveness, and a better
environment.
Much of the Roundtable's work is done
through workgroups and discussion
groups. These groups focus on a variety of
P2 issues and strategies, including P2
policy and program integration, research
and technology transfer and innovation,
education and training, and small busi-
ness. Homeland security, energy effi-
ciency, healthcare, and environmentally
preferable purchasing are also specific
focus areas for discussion groups.
In 2003, NPPR formed a Federal Facil-
ities Discussion Group. The Federal
Facilities Discussion Group is exploring
ways to build closer relationships
between federal facilities and P2 commu-
nities, better integrate P2 into environ-
mental management systems, share best
P2 practices among federal facilities, as
well as develop and collaborate on P2 pro-
jects. I encourage environmental practi-
tioners at federal facilities to personally
get involved, and share your projects and
innovations with your colleagues.
Federal facilities will be interested in
the NPPR's most recent P2 Policy Paper
on Homeland Security. This paper begins
to define the relationship between pollu-
tion prevention and homeland security,
explores roles the pollution prevention
community can play in improving home-
land security, and provides specific pollu-
tion prevention recommendations to the
federal government, state agencies,
industry, and other Continued on page 9
NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSISTANCE SUMMIT:
Prevent Pollution, Achieve Compliance and Innovate
for Environmental Results
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is co-sponsoring with the National Pollution Prevention
Roundtable a spring conference entitled "National Environmental Assistance Summit" to be held
April 19-22,2004, in Baltimore, Md. The Summit will convene individuals who work in the environ-
mental assistance arena. Industry, small business and trade association representatives are
encouraged to attend and provide their perspectives on environmental assistance. Sessions will
focus on pollution prevention, compliance assistance, environmental policy innovations, environ-
mental management systems, sustainability and best practices. Three EPA Offices, (Compliance,
Pollution Prevention and Toxics and the National Center for Environmental Innovation) have
worked with the National Pollution Prevention Roundtable. The goal of the Summit is for members
of the environmental assistance community — those who create, fund, deliver and receive it to
learn from each other how best to improve environmental performance. For more information or to
register for the conference, go to: http://www.p2.org/summit2004.
2 FEDFACS
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EMS and P2
How is an EMS Like a Christmas Tree?
went through the trouble of getting a tree
and left it as is. On the other hand, the
tree is the essential infrastructure for
ornaments and decorations, making it
unique to the home. Although these
adornments are what make the home fes-
tive, and add the most value to the tree,
without the tree itself, there is only a
messy, unorganized pile of ornaments.
The EMS, then is the framework upon
which a facility builds its environmental
management efforts. Although the EMS
model is the framework, it needs "orna-
ments" to serve the organization. Orna-
ments in
A commitment to preventing
pollution is a cornerstone of an
effective EMS and should be
reflected in an organization's
policy, objectives and other EMS
elements.
this context
are aspects,
objectives,
procedures,
etc., - basic
EMS ele-
ments. As
with the
Over the last few months, I've come to
realize that folks are always looking
for understandable, day-to-day analogies
to explain the environmental manage-
ment system (EMS) concept. Years ago,
when EMS was really coming on the
American radar screen, I used the anal-
ogy, "An EMS is like a Christmas tree" to
help explain an EMS. I'm resurrecting
this analogy here and hope it helps.
A Recognizable Image
When someone says "Christmas tree", an
image immediately comes to mind. Even
though there are many variations of tree,
differences are small enough that an
overall basic image comes to mind.
When one says, "EMS", a particular
approach to dealing with environmental
issues should come to mind, especially
when using a recognizable model such as
ISO 14001. Actually, ISO 14001 elements
are so well defined and used in the only
real globally recognized model, that say-
ing "ISO 14001" is equivalent to naming
the tree a Douglas Fir.
A Simple Framework
A Christmas tree itself is rather plain and
generic, and without adornment serves
no real purpose. You would be hard
pressed to find a home or business that
WE NEED YOUR INPUT!
EPA, in conjunction with the Executive Order 13148 Inter-Agency Workgroup, is developing a tool
to assist federal facilities incorporate green purchasing into the development and implementation
of their environmental management system (EMS). Many federal facilities are currently either
developing or implementing their EMS in anticipation of the December 2005 deadline set by Exec-
utive Order 13148. These activities are an excellent opportunity to assist in EMS development by
providing information on how green purchasing programs relate to the various elements of the EMS
framework. EPA expects this effort to result in: 1) greater interest by federal facilities in including
green purchasing in their EMS; 2) EMS-based management tools that can help federal facilities
maximize benefits of their green purchasing program; 3) case studies showing how federal facili-
ties are incorporating green purchasing into their EMS.
The last item is where you can help. EPA would like to learn how your facility integrated green
purchasing into its EMS. If you have examples and case studies about how your facility did this,
please send them directly to EPA contractor Tom Wallace at: wallacet@saic.com. For more infor-
mation, please contact: Holly Elwood, U.S. EPA at: elwood.holly@epa.gov, (202) 564-8854; Carole
Bell, SAIC, EPA Contractor at: bellca@saic.com, (401) 848-4756; or Tom Wallace (434) 293-8728.
ance procedures, operational controls)
and specialty items such as energy reduc-
tion objectives or NEPA applications. The
degree of complexity is driven by the
organization's goals and character more
so than the tree structure itself.
Performance vs. Process
The best decorated tree does not guaran-
tee a festive home, but it sure goes a long
way to helping that cause. And, without
ornaments, the tree doesn't have a chance
to succeed in this purpose.
An EMS will not guarantee improved
environmental perfor-
mance, but it will cer-
tainly help the facility's
chances. And, without
using the EMS to sup-
port activities and meet
specific goals, it is noth-
ing more than a frame-
work.
tree, with-
out the framework, the organization runs
the risk of having a messy, unorganized
pile of environmental programs and
efforts.
Ornaments vary from basic, typical
items such as lights and garland, to more
specialty and unique items such as spe-
cial ornaments and keepsakes. In an
EMS, there are basic elements (compli-
Lessons Learned
So what does this analogy tell us?
Without "personalizing" and actually
adding substance to and nurturing the
EMS model chosen, an organization can-
not expect notable performance improve-
ments.
If we want the EMS to do something
specific, we need to build those require-
ments into the elements. For example, if
we want a tree to fit a colonial theme, it is
up to us to add the right ornaments. If we
want an EMS to ensure proactive commu-
nity involvement, it has to be built in as a
specific requirement. The EMS element
prompt for an external communication
procedure alone will not do that.
The EMS infrastructure, even when
"decorated", does not guarantee perfor-
mance, but it surely goes a long way in
that direction. It is certainly better than
having nothing at all. But, unlike a tree,
if properly nurtured, the EMS, hopefully,
will not die every year!
Ed Pinero, Office of the Federal
Environmental Executive
FEDFACS 3
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EMS and P2
EMS and P2 Efforts Change Regulatory Status at
Defense Supply Center, Richmond
The Defense Supply Center, Rich-
mond's (DSCR) environmental man-
agement system (EMS) not only ensures
compliance with Executive Order 13148,
but also enhances mis-
sion performance,
reduces pollution, and
underscores its com-
mitment to environ-
mental stewardship.
DSCR's P2 efforts also
impacted their regula-
tory compliance
requirements under
the Clean Air Act.
DSCR is a 600-acre warehouse and
office facility located just south of Rich-
mond, Va. Residential communities sur-
round the Center. As part of the Defense
Logistics Agency, DSCR procures, stores,
and distributes aviation spare parts for
the Department of Defense. DSCR also
manages the Ozone Depleting Sub-
stances reserve and hazardous property
storage.
DSCR's P2 efforts also
impacted their regulatory
compliance requirements
under the Clean Air Act.
In past years, 58 commercial oil fired
boilers used at DSCR emitted 100 tons of
sulfur dioxide, and were regulated under
Title V of the Clean Air Act (CAA). Sulfur
dioxide is linked to
acid rain, a potential
detriment to local,
state, and regional
watersheds and
forests.
DSCR's P2 efforts
shifted them from a
major source subject
to CAA Title V permit
requirements, into the
CAA's Synthetic Minor category. As a syn-
thetic minor, DSCR agreed to limit and
control the number of hours it ran its
boilers and generators. Emissions from
the same boilers were reduced to slightly
over seven tons.
This reduction in air emissions has
allowed the Virginia Department of Envi-
ronmental Quality (VADEQ) to issue
DSCR one operating permit to cover the
operation of all the boilers, instead of the
multiple ones previously needed.
DSCR was able to achieve these
results by retrofitting the boilers to burn
#2 fuel oil and natural gas, both having
a lower sulfur content than the previous
fuel source. Also, boiler operation was
reviewed and modernized to ensure
maximum operating efficiencies. The
compliant control and operation of these
boilers are part of DSCR's evolving
EMS.
The Center's pollution prevention
efforts have benefited the local and
regional environment and its communi-
ties, saved taxpayer dollars by saving
operational and material costs, and freed
both DSCR and VADEQ to spend time
and effort on other more pressing envi-
ronmental and mission related matters. A
win-win all around.
Questions about this initiative may be
addressed to Jimmy Parrish, DSCR Envi-
ronmental Office, 804-279-6949, Jimmy.
Parrish@dla.mil.
San Antonio Missions Receive ISO Certification
San Antonio Missions National Histori-
cal Park recently became the first unit
of the Department of Interior's National
Park System (NFS) to have an environ-
mental management system (EMS) in
place in accordance with Executive Order
13148, and registered under the ISO
14001.
San Antonio Missions has been
involved in environmental protection and
committed considerable time and
resources to correct regulatory problems
found in park-wide audits. In 2001, the
park volunteered to participate in an EPA
environmental management review. Joyce
Stubblefield of EPA Region 6 served as the
on-site coordinator for the review. The
resulting report offered several recom-
mendations including the selection of an
EMS framework for the park. After con-
sultations with Dr. Michael Schene, Envi-
ronmental Officer for the NFS Inter-
mountain Region, the ISO 14001
standard was adopted to guide future
park EMS efforts.
Dr. Schene and a contractor assisted
the park in the implementation process.
A Compliance Improvement Manage-
ment System (CIMS) multi-disciplinary
team consisting of Dan Steed, Chief
Ranger and team leader; Gloria Gonza-
les, Administrative Officer; Elizabeth
Dupree, Chief of Interpretation; David
Vekasy, Chief of Maintenance; Michael
Johnson, Acting Chief of Professional Ser-
vices; and Kurt Schoenberger, Park
Safety Advisor was established. Initially,
an Environmental Policy Statement was
developed and signed by Superintendent
Stephen E. Whitesell and the members of
the CIMS Team. This policy guides all
environmental initiatives in the park and
was distributed to all employees, part-
ners, and interested parties. San Antonio
Missions was certified as ISO 14001 com-
pliant on June 5, 2003.
This past August, Federal Environ-
mental Executive John Howard visited
the park with members of his staff and
EPA representatives to learn more about
the park's EMS, its importance to protect-
ing human health and the environment,
and its role in improving overall park
management.
For additional information contact
Joyce Stubblefield at: stubblefield.joyce®
epa.gov.
4 FEDFACS
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EMS and P2
P2 at Brookhaven National Laboratory
Since Brookhaven National Labora-
tory initiated its pollution preven-
tion (P2) program at its Upton, Long
Island site in 1991, it has saved money
and reduced waste from its routine lab-
oratory operations by 70 percent. Its
environmental stewardship policy, the
keystone of Brookhaven's environmen-
tal management system, integrates P2
into all work planning. In 2001,
Brookhaven became the first national
laboratory to be ISO 14001 certified.
Brookhaven's P2 Council is a lab-
level committee, and is essential in the
development, management, and promo-
tion of laboratory-wide P2 initiatives
and waste minimization policies and
programs. It is chaired by a P2 Coordi-
nator, and has representatives from
each of Brookhaven's nine directorates.
Top-level management participates in
P2 decision-making. This broad, partici-
patory approach has resulted in
improved awareness and participation
by all employees from a variety of
offices. Participation of scientific staff
especially has increased.
The P2 Council also manages
Brookhaven's Return-On-Investment
(ROI) program, which is key to demon-
strating continued improvement of
Brookhaven's EMS. Annually, the Coun-
cil reviews and ranks lab-wide P2 pro-
posals according to established criteria
and funding allocations. The criteria
support Laboratory goals, regulatory
requirements, and DOE orders. Key cri-
teria include: 1) reduction or elimina-
tion of priority waste streams; 2) toxics-
use reduction; and 3) good return on
invested funds as measured by the pay-
back period. Each year, the criteria are
reviewed and modified as necessary.
Proposals are submitted on a standard
form, which allows comparison of differ-
ent P2 proposals, and requires cost-sav-
ings calculated using a conservative
payback period method.
Cost savings are starting to accumu-
late. In FY '01, Brookhaven funded
seven P2 ROI projects, investing
approximately $113,000. The annual
cost savings is calculated at $155,000.
In FY '02, the P2 Council allocated
approximately $120,000, with the ROI
calculated at $268,000, and an average
payback period of five months. In FY
'03, P2 projects cost $96,055 to imple-
ment, but savings are estimated to be
$88,069 per year.
P2 programs have included projects
to improve facility operations (such as
retrofitting hydraulic hoses with steel-
braided hoses and using vegetable-
based hydraulic oils), and aid scientific
researchers (such as the purchase of a
digital-imaging system to minimize the
generation of hazardous, industrial and
radioactive wastes).
In FY '03, projects included the
installation of double-walled oil-storage
tanks to replace 55-gallon drums, which
permitted the purchase of recycled oil
for the Lab's fleet. The initial $4000 cost
will have a payback period of one and a
half years. Brookhaven's Medical
Department is also using a sealing
shroud to isolate cooling water from air
in the Brookhaven Linac Isotope Pro-
ducer exhaust system. The shroud is
expected to reduce radioactive airborne
emissions and lower off-site exposure.
The project improves environmental
compliance, lowers monitoring costs and
has a payback period of approximately
one year.
Brookhaven is a U.S. Department of
Energy laboratory and conducts
research in the physical, biomedical,
and environmental sciences, as well as
in energy technologies. It also builds
and operates major facilities available
to university, industrial, and govern-
ment scientists.
For more information, please contact
Lab staff: Peter Pohlot (631) 344-5660;
George Goode (631) 344-4549; or John
Selva (631) 344-4549; or visit the Lab's
P2 Website at: http://www.bnl.gov/
esd/pollutionpreve/
P2 Quicknotes
EPP TEAM TO
CREATE MODULE FOR
FEDERAL EMS
In accordance with Executive Order 13148,
all federal facilities are required to have
environmental management systems in
place by December 2005. EPA's Environ-
mentally Preferable Purchasing Team is
developing a guide for federal agencies on
how to integrate green purchasing into
their EMSs. This guide will be posted on
EPA's EPP and EMS Website and included
in training provided to federal facilities by
the Office of the Federal Environmental
Executive. For more information on the
guide or Federal EMS, please contact
Holly Elwood at: elwood.holly@epa.gov or
202-564-8854.
P2 AND NATIONAL
SECURITY
Homeland security is a national priority
and what better wayto achieve real secu-
rity than to reduce or eliminate potentially
harmful chemicals? AnewP2Rxtopic hub,
produced by the Great Lakes Regional Pol-
lution Prevention Roundtable, covers the
what, why, and how pollution prevention
projects within a facility add value to
national and local security efforts. For
more information please visit: http://www.
g lrppr.org/hubs/toc.cfm?hub=505&sub
sec=7&nav=7
FEDFACS 5
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Partnerships
EPA, DoD, and States Find Common Ground through
Partnerships
Regional EPA offices are increasingly
joining state regulators and military
installations to form voluntary environ-
mental partnerships, reinforcing the idea
that working collaboratively can be more
productive than working independently.
Formal EPA-DoD-State partnership
agreements with charters backed by state
governors, regional officials and military
installation commanders now exist in
more than half the 50 states.
Designed to promote sustainability
and pollution prevention as the best way
to protect and conserve resources, part-
nerships pool ideas, best practices, lessons
learned and sometimes even funds to
address environmental problems. The
partners agree by their charters to meet
regularly and support the pollution pre-
vention and sustainability missions of all
participants.
Partnerships open communication
among regulators, DoD and EPA in a col-
laborative, non-threatening way. They
attract participation by senior decision-
makers, leverage scarce resources by
sharing funding, training and technical
assistance, and recognize civilians, sol-
diers, sailors and airmen for their contri-
butions to pollution prevention and envi-
ronmental stewardship. Partnerships also
Estabtished DOD-State-EPA
Partnerships
PI RMtnorxhtps |Gj
LJitdBf Davdapment |1|
Partnpritilpi i' MMary
help DoD installations develop EMSs that
improve regulatory compliance, and
reward environmental performance
through state performance-based incen-
tive programs.
Texas was among the first to charter a
pollution prevention partnership with
DoD and EPA in 1997 (see related article
on TXEP on page 7). In July 2002, the Illi-
nois/DoD P2 Partnership officially became
an environmental partnership to reflect
its expanded focus. The shift enables part-
DEFENSE ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK AND
INFORMATION EXCHANGE (DENIX)
DENIX is the central platform and information clearinghouse for environment, safety and
occupational health (ESOH) news, information, policy, and guidance. Serving the worldwide
greater Department of Defense (DoD) community, DENIX offers ESOH professionals a vast
document library, a gateway to web-based environmental compliance tools, an interactive
workgroup environment, a variety of groupware tools and an active membership community
numbering thousands. DENIX provides ESOH professionals an up-to-date, multi-functional
resource to assist in preserving and protecting the natural environment, achieving greater
energy efficiency, providing a safer and healthier work environment and meeting readiness
and compliance needs of Congressional and DoD ESOH requirements. Visit DENIX at:
https://www.tlenix.ostl.mil/
ners to discuss
state environ-
mental regula-
tion and amend-
ments early in
the defining
stage. In some
cases, states ask
for input from
their environ-
mental partners
before they circu-
late drafts for
wider public com-
ment.
Formally
chartered in
2000, the Vir-
ginia-EPA-DoD
P2 Partnership has become a model for
others considering their own state part-
nering arrangements. Maryland followed
by signing its agreement with EPA and
DoD in 2002. Pennsylvania and now the
District of Columbia are planning formal
agreements of their own.
In the Great Lakes Region, all six
states in EPA Region 5 (Chicago) are part
of DoD and EPA partnerships on various
levels. All but Minnesota, without a large
military presence, have formal partner-
ship charters.
In addition to the nearly 30 states
which have formal charters with DoD and
EPA, other types of partnerships have
enjoyed success. The Southeast Natural
Resource Leaders Group (SENRLG), a
regional partnership, is committed to
resolving natural resource conservation
and sustainability issues. A guiding SEN-
RLG principle is to "ensure responsive,
coordinated Federal processes and deci-
sion-making, thereby demonstrating a
standard for 'good government' that pro-
duces better overall results for our citizens
and their environment." SENRLG is a col-
laboration of regional federal environmen-
tal agency executives and regional DoD
military service leaders in the southeast.
Continued on page 12
6 FEDFACS
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Partnerships
The Texas Environmental Partnership:
Where Purple is Green
The termpurple refers to "joint-ness" or
cooperation between military
branches. When colors run together -
blue (Air Force), green (Army), and brown
(Navy) - it is said that purple is the
result. The Texas Environmental Part-
nership (TXEP) is proud to be purple.
TXEP promotes environmental stew-
ardship and enhances mission readiness
through pollution prevention, reduction
and conservation. Representatives from
all DoD installations in Texas, and fed-
eral facilities such as NASA Johnson
Space Center, Veterans Administration
Hospitals, Strategic Petroleum Reserve,
Pantex and others meet quarterly to dis-
cuss environmental issues and develop
proactive joint strategies where possi-
ble. Critical to TXEP is membership of
the Texas Commission on Environmen-
tal Quality (TCEQ) and EPA Region 6 in
Dallas.
In 2002, the Texas Pollution Preven-
tion Partnership (TXP3) expanded its
mission to include environmental and
compliance issues that might affect DoD
installations and other federal facilities.
TXPS's past efforts were rewarded with
White House "Closing the Circle" and
former Vice President Gore's "Hammer"
awards. The TXEP was chartered in
August 2002 as an extension of TXP3.
Involvement and leadership from Texas,
DoD and other federal facilities defines
the Partnership by focusing on environ-
mental performance and implementa-
tion. It is co-chaired by Israel Anderson
(TCEQ) and Dr. Thorn Rennie (Air Force
Center for Environmental Excellence
Central Region Environmental Office
and DoD REC Region 6.)
While P2 remains a core focus of
TXEP, EMSs, sustainability, encroach-
ment, air and water quality, and natural
and cultural resources are part of its
holistic approach. Recently, TXEP
formed two subgroups to address air
and EMS implementation issues. The
EMS group partners with TCEQ and
the Multi-State Working Group on
Environmental Management Systems
to develop a performance-based
approach to EMS.
This partnership has created train-
ing opportunities, developed a joint
auditing strategy, and conducted mock
EMS audits, which help installations
meet their chosen EMS standard. More
than 120 TXEP members and installa-
tion staff participated in TCEQ spon-
sored performance-based EMS training.
Camp Mabry, Texas Army Guard and
Naval Air Station, Corpus Christ! par-
ticipated in Texas EMS mock audits to
both prepare for actual audits, and to
train auditors.
This past October, TXEP member
Fort Hood hosted an environmental
summit where community leaders from
regional governments, businesses and
non-governmental organizations dis-
cussed how to balance training needs
with habitat and environmental protec-
tion. In 2002, NASA Johnson Space
Center partnered with TCEQ on a Con-
sumer Pollution Prevention workshop.
Attendees learned to change driving,
energy consumption, and purchasing
habits to lessen environmental impact,
and save money - which ultimately
saved $10,000, 200 kilowatt hours of
energy, 124 gallons of gasoline, 3000
pounds of CO2, and reduced solid waste.
The P2 program at Randolph Air Force
Base, led by Michael Redfern, has
achieved resource savings of $2.4 mil-
lion, while diverting 38 percent of the
base's waste.
P2 is a key to building strong and
effective partnerships. The reductions
and cost savings realized by a strong
commitment to P2 programs increases
the enthusiasm to tackle issues such as
habitat protection and natural and cul-
tural resources preservation. Perhaps
these issues can also be addressed by
understanding that there are both envi-
ronmental and economic benefits
involved in each.
For more information, please contact:
Rob Borowski Clean Texas Coordinator,
TCEQ, rborowsk@tceq.state.tx.us; or
Dr. Thomas Rennie, AFCEE Central
Region Environmental Office,
thomas.rennie@brooks.af.mil
JOINT SERVICE P2 OPPORTUNITY HANDBOOK
The Joint Service P2 Opportunity Handbook identifies "off-the-shelf" P2 technologies, manage-
ment practices, and process changes that reduce hazardous and solid waste. The handbook
was prepared jointly by the Naval Facilities Engineering Service Center (NFESC), underthe direc-
tion of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO-N45) and the Naval Facilities Engineer-
ing Command (NAVFAC), the Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence (AFCEE), the Army
Environmental Center (AEC), Headquarters Marine Corps (HQMC), the Defense Logistics Agency
(DLA), and the Coast Guard (USCG).
There are more than 250 individual data sheets represented in 15 waste and emission areas,
including air pollution, bio-based products, hazardous material and waste management, petro-
leum, oils, and lubricants, solid waste management, solvent alternatives, storm and waste water,
and sustainable development. Each entry provides, among other details, an overview of the
product and regulatory compliance impacts, suggested alternatives and their advantages and
disadvantages, economic analysis of product usage, and vendor information.
This tool can be found at: http://p2library.nfesc.navy.mil/p2_opportunity_handbook/
introduction.html
FEDFACS 7
-------
Partnerships
DoD-EPA Region 4 Partnership Opens Up Communication
EPA's Region 4 (Atlanta) comprises the
southeastern states and has the
largest concentration of military installa-
tions in the United States. It is the only
EPA region where a DoD P2 partnership
exists in every state, and to a great
extent, installations and states rely on
and benefit from these partnerships.
The DoD Region 4 P2 Partnership
took form when the region's states, DoD
facilities and EPA recognized each branch
of the military was independently tack-
ling P2 problems and looking for solu-
tions which already existed. Coordinating
efforts and sharing ideas was crucial.
Established in 2000, the partnership
is a military and civilian working group
focused on P2 and related issues. Repre-
sentatives are from each military instal-
lation within the eight states of Region 4,
Army and Air National Guard, Army
Corps of Engineers, Army Reserves,
Defense Logistics Agency, Air Force Cen-
ter for Environmental Excellence, Army
Southern Regional Environmental Office,
Southern Region Naval Facilities Engi-
neering Command, and Marine Corps
Regional Environmental Coordination
Office. EPA Region 4, each state and envi-
ronmental regulatory agency, state
research universities and providers of
technical assistance are also members. A
steering committee provides ongoing
guidance and direction.
The military installations, in meeting
their environmental challenges while
maintaining combat readiness, ironically
had too much P2 information for the
small environmental staffs to sift
through. One of the partnership's first
objectives was to develop, distribute, and
analyze a needs survey to determine
regional P2 priorities. Once these needs
were narrowed down to about a dozen
manageable and fundable projects, the
partnership sought universities to con-
duct the needed research and training.
These projects—EMS training and
implementation, optimization of build-
ing deconstruction, a watershed advi-
sory board, prescribed burning on
military facilities, and in-vessel bio-
treatment systems among others, have
been underway or completed in the past
two years. Their results have been or
will be disseminated to the appropriate
Region 4 installations.
Many issues can be addressed region-
ally through technology transfer and
idea-sharing forums. The Partnership's
quarterly newsletter, RESOURCES,
describes partnership activities and suc-
cessful strategies. Web resources, list-
serves, and e-mail also help disseminate
information. EPA, DoD, universities, and
the Waste Reduction Resource Center are
also resources for Region 4 states. All of
these resources cost the user virtually
nothing.
The regional partnership takes pride
in its achievements. In its priority survey,
the Partnership identified and prioritized
pressing areas of state and regional con-
cern, obtained DoD funding, and imple-
mented solutions accordingly. Partner-
ship goals have also evolved; after
focusing on P2 in all media areas, the
Partnership realized that P2 was ulti-
mately just one way to reach the primary
goal of sustainability The Partnership
will continue to reevaluate priority areas
to ensure that installation needs are met.
For more information, contact Chris-
tine Steagall, Program Coordinator, Env.
Research and Service Unit; U. of S.C.
(803) 777-7463 or visit: http://wrrrc.
p2pays.org/DoDPartnership.
Georgia honors DoD for P2 Partnership
The Georgia Pollution Prevention Divi-
sion (P2AD) and Department of
Defense (DoD) are celebrating the fifth
anniversary of the Georgia P2AD/DoD
Pollution Prevention Partnership.
The Partnership advances P2 as a pri-
mary environmental compliance tool, is a
model for other partnerships, and was a
catalyst in creating the first regional DoD
P2 partnership in the country (see related
article above). Members include the Army
Southern Regional Environmental Office,
regional environmental coordinators
(RECs) from each military service, repre-
sentatives of the military installations
and commands in Georgia, U.S. EPA
Region 4 (Atlanta) and P2AD.
As a result of this collaboration, innov-
ative waste reduction initiatives have
been developed and implemented at
installations, and communication
between the military and state govern-
ment has improved.
For example, Fort Stewart in
Hinesville, Ga. recycles over 17 different
types of materials totaling approximately
2,750 tons, and generates approximately
$190,000 in revenue per year. The site
also accepts recyclables from several
neighboring communities.
Naval Submarine Base (SUBASE) in
Kingsbay, Ga. recycles lime sludge (a
water treatment plant waste by-product)
as a soil conditioner. In 1997-8 it diverted
52 percent of all non-hazardous waste to
recycling or other beneficial use.
Robins Air Force Base (Warner Robins
Air Logistics Center (WR-ALC)), the
largest industrial complex in Georgia,
reduced in flightline vacuum waste from
approximately 125 tons to 84 tons, and
disposal costs from $204,000 to $97,000
per year.
With support from EPA Region 4,
P2AD provides free and confidential envi-
ronmental technical assistance for P2,
resource conservation, waste reduction,
by-product reuse and recycling. P2AD's
clients include manufacturing industry,
commercial businesses, agriculture, pub-
lic institutions, and federal facilities.
8 FEDFACS
-------
Green Procurement
Making Green Procurement Work For You
With hundreds of "green" product cat-
egories across the supply spectrum,
purchasers are thinking "green", buying
"green" and saving green. Now the tools
exist to make "green purchasing" an inte-
gral and normal part of your purchasing
process.
Federal, state and local governments
purchase the majority of their products
and services through contracts - and
together spend over 600 billion dollars a
year. Collectively, government entities
have, and can continue to create a cata-
lyst for more green products in the mar-
ketplace. Purchasing "green" products
through contract mechanisms also
enables governments to specify product
attributes - including "green" or environ-
mentally preferable — and require bid-
ders and contractors to find and provide
the products matching these require-
ments.
For instance, when the Pentagon
wanted to build a new parking lot, con-
tract officers told bidders they would
receive a price deferential for each envi-
ronmental attribute they added to the
parking lot, such as recycled-content
asphalt and low levels of volatile organic
compounds (VOCs). The winning contrac-
tor found these materials and other prod-
ucts that fit Pentagon specifications.
The point of this example is that once
you know what to ask for, contractors,
and their suppliers, will find what you
need. The following tools will help you
identify what environmental attributes to
ask for and what products and services
will meet your price, performance and
environmentally preferable criteria.
U.S. EPA's Environmentally
Preferable Purchasing (EPP)
Homepage
http://www. epa.gov/opp1/epp
This website answers purchaser ques-
tions about what EPP is and how they
can find the best product or service that
benefits both human health and the
environment. From case studies, to a
glossary of environmental purchasing
terms, to a complete tool suite that can
help purchasers "green" everything
from meetings to cafeterias, EPA's EPP
web site should be a purchaser's first
stop on the road to purchasing "greener"
products and services.
U.S. EPA's Database For
Environmentally Preferable
Goods and Services
http://www. epa.gov/opp1/epp/
database.htm
This database contains information or
links to: 1) contract language and specifi-
cations created and used by federal and
state governments and others to buy
environmentally preferable products and
services; 2) environmental guidelines and
standards for products; 3) vendor lists of
product brands that meet these stan-
dards; and 4) other useful sources of
information on the environmental prefer-
ability of products and services (e.g., U.S.
E.P.A. Environmentally Preferable Pur-
chasing Updates, guidance documents,
fact sheets, case studies, and miscella-
neous information useful to government
purchasers).
Center for a New American
Dream Procurement Strategies
Website
http://www.newdream.org/procure
The site provides general information
about environmentally preferable pur-
chasing and specific information about
how state and local governments can
reduce the environmental impacts of
their purchasing decisions.
Green Meetings
http://www. epa.gov/oppl/green
meetings/index.htm
"Green" meetings minimize negative
impacts on the environment. By using
EPA's green meeting planning site, you
can access information to assist you in
organizing your conference to be
"greener".
ENVIRONMENTAL SPOTLIGHT
Continued from page 2
groups whose work impacts homeland
security.
I would also like to encourage the fed-
eral facility community to develop new
networks and partnerships by meeting
with P2 colleagues at NPPR annual con-
ferences and events. These forums pro-
vide members an opportunity to
exchange the latest in P2 research, policy
funding opportunities, and technical
expertise. One such upcoming opportu-
nity is the National Environmental Assis-
tance Providers' Summit in April 2004 -
the first event of its kind hosted by the
U.S. EPA and NPPR. The summit will
convene government, industry and non-
governmental organizations which work
on pollution prevention, compliance assis-
tance, environmental policy innovations,
environmental management systems,
and sustainability
As we move forward on several fronts,
federal facilities will play a key role in new
and innovative environmental programs.
Developing "performance-based" regula-
tion will take a collective commitment to
produce better environmental results.
Many of the tools exist today, including
sectoral pollution-prevention "covenants,"
environmental performance indicators,
market trading of emissions permits,
third-party certification of environmental
performance, regulatory flexibility, and
frameworks for sustainability.
Many P2 leaders advocate these
approaches on grounds not just of eco-
efficient cost reduction, but of the poten-
tial for introducing more environmentally
benign innovations in production
processes and products - for a "greening
of business" and even a long-term term
shift toward "sustainable enterprise."
Federal facilities play a critical role in
this effort and the P2 community will
commit to making this happen.
FEDFACS 9
-------
Healthcare
NIH Going Mercury Free
rt-wf.fi
The National Institutes of Health
(NIH), an agency of the Department
of Health and Human Services, is the
primary federal agency dedicated to
medical research. Its main campus,
located in Bethesda, Md., is the largest
biomedical facility in the world, consist-
ing of over 4,000 laboratories, a 325-bed
research hospital
(the Clinical Center),
and a large Ambula-
tory Care Research
Facility.
In 1995 the NIH
began a voluntary P2
program that included an initiative to
eliminate mercury in medical devices
used in the Clinical Center. Key to the
success of this initiative were early
efforts to inform medical professionals
and researchers about mercury hazards
and convince them of the suitability and
availability of mercury-free devices in
clinical applications and research.
Arrangements were then made to pro-
cure mercury-free thermometers and
blood pressure devices, and collect and
recycle the mercury from the discarded
items. This led to the removal of over
1,500 devices without a single spill or
interruption in patient care and
m • f-F« fiitfft
research activities. The Clinical Center
is now considered virtually "mercury-
free."
In 2001, an expanded effort - the
"Mad as a Hatter?" Campaign for a Mer-
cury Free NIH, was initiated to extend
the mercury reduction program to all
NIH laboratories and facilities in the
U.S., and increase
employee awareness
through a new web
site and volunteer
pledge program. This
ongoing campaign led
to the replacement of
several thousand additional mercury
thermometers and substitutions of mer-
cury in biomedical reagents. Mercury
contamination in facility infrastructure
is also being addressed by development
and implementation of improved proto-
cols for assessment and remediation of
mercury in laboratory decommissioning
projects.
NIH employee volunteers also car-
ried the campaign to homes, schools and
communities via exhibits, presenta-
tions, health fairs and other outreach
efforts. This outreach activity was one of
several P2 programs that resulted in
the NIH receiving the Significant
VA BECOMES PART OF HEALTHY HOSPITALS INITIATIVE
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the largest integrated healthcare network in the
country, committed to reducing its environmental impact by becoming a "Champion for Change"
in the innovative Hospitals for a Healthy Environment (H2E) program. The VA is now the first gov-
ernment-owned healthcare system to commit to the proactive goals of the voluntary H2E pro-
gram. The program is designed to help health care facilities reduce their environmental impact
while saving money, reducing liability and increasing compliance. The H2E program has set
ambitious goals of eliminating the use of mercury in health care by 2005, cutting health care
waste in half by 2010 and reducing the use and production of toxic and hazardous substances.
To date, more than 460 H2E Partners and 55 Champions, representing nearly 1,800 health care
facilities, have signed on to help achieve these goals. In the program, "Partners" are individual
hospitals and healthcare facilities, while "Champions" are larger, multi-facility healthcare net-
works and associations. Operating nearly 170 hospitals across the country, the VA is also one of
the largest healthcare systems to become an H2E Champion. Hospitals for a Healthy Environment
is a joint program of the American Hospital Association, EPA, Health Care Without Harm and the
American Nurses Association.
For more information about H2E, go to http://www.h2e-online.org/
Achievement Award for a Federal Facil-
ity from Businesses for the Bay, a vol-
untary pollution prevention organiza-
tion made up of more than 500
businesses, industries, government
facilities and other organizations in the
Chesapeake Bay watershed. In recog-
nizing this award, Governor Parris N.
Glendening, then Governor of Mary-
land, specifically cited the NIH's mer-
cury reduction campaign as setting "a
high standard for environmental out-
reach and education."
Other federal facilities are welcome
to join the mercury-free campaign.
Generic versions of campaign graphics
and promotional materials can be made
available by contacting Captain Edward
Rau, NIH, (301) 496-7775, raue@mail.
nih.gov.
Campaign Web site: http://www.
nih.gov/od/ors/ds/nomercury/
WHY SHOULD FEDERAL
FACILITIES FOCUS
ON MERCURY
ELIMINATION?
• Mercury is a "bad actor". Exposure to
mercury can cause potentially serious
damage to the nervous system and
other adverse health effects. In the
environment it is considered a Persis-
tent, Bioaccumulative and Toxic (PBT)
chemical - a high priority for pollution
prevention.
• Elimination is feasible. Suitable alter-
natives are available for almost all uses
of mercury and its compounds.
• High return on P2 investment. Eliminat-
ing use of mercury prevents potential
spills and contamination of plumbing
systems and other facility infrastruc-
ture. The costs of carrying out a facility-
wide mercury elimination campaign
can be far less than cleaning up a sin-
gle spill.
1O FEDFACS
-------
E-Cycling
Federal Electronics Challenge: Putting Electronic
Products in Their Place
Tie Federal Electronics Challenge
PEC), launched in May 2003, is in a
year-long pilot phase and is setting the
stage for purchasing and end-of-life
strategies that will encourage environ-
mentally sound electronics manage-
ment at all federal facilities and agen-
cies.
Electronic waste (e-waste) is the
most rapidly growing waste problem in
the world, and is posing new environ-
mental and human health threats. E-
waste includes used and obsolete elec-
tronics, such as computers, printers,
mobile phones, and fax machines. As
one of the largest consumers of electron-
ics products, the federal government
has a unique opportunity to set the pace
for environmentally sound electronics
procurement and end-of-life manage-
ment.
The Federal Electronics Challenge is
a purchasing, operations, and end-of-life
management challenge issued for fed-
eral facilities or agencies that want to:
1) purchase greener electronics prod-
ucts; 2) manage their electronic assets
in an environmentally sound manner;
3) receive assistance to change their
current practices; and 4) gain national
recognition for their efforts.
The Challenge is open to all federal
agencies and facilities. FEC is spon-
sored by the Office of Federal Environ-
mental Executive (OFEE), U.S. EPA,
Department of Defense, General Ser-
C 0111 g
Rccvclto
vices Administration, and Federal Net-
work for Sustainability, with additional
agencies likely. FEC "Partners" learn
the importance of applying environmen-
tally sound electronics management
principles throughout a product's life
cycle stages—from the acquisition and
procurement of environmentally prefer-
able products to the operations and
maintenance phase to end-of-life man-
agement of those products.
After completing a baseline survey,
Partners set realistic goals to improve
the management of their electronic
assets and will track their progress.
Depending on a Partner's commitment
level and achievements, Partners can
qualify for a bronze, silver, or gold
GET INVOLVED!
The FEC Steering Committee is seeking partner facilities in Washington, D.C., Great Lakes and
West Coast regions for the pilot phase. FEC welcomes information from the electronics industry,
recyclers, and non-government organizations.
For more information on how you can sign up to become a partner, get involved as a stake-
holder in the Federal Electronics Challenge, or to learn more about reducing your electronic
waste impact, visit: http://www.federalelectronicschallenge.net or contact Charles Johnson at:
johnson.charles@ofee.gov, or Christopher Kent at kent.christopher@epa.gov.
y\IICJlfrAwEMHrfFT!N5fl[
award. The more the partners do, the
higher the recognition they will receive;
Gold Partners receive White House
recognition. Partners will also receive
technical assistance, networking oppor-
tunities, and additional tools and
resources as they work to reduce their
environmental footprint.
WHAT'S IN ELECTRONIC
PRODUCTS?
Electronic products are made up of a com-
bination of precious and other metals, engi-
neered plastics, glass, and other materi-
als—all valuable resources that are all too
often sent to landfills without a second
thought. Some electronic products contain
hazardous or toxic substances. Products
containing cathode ray tubes (CRTs), circuit
boards, batteries, and mercury switches
can contain lead, mercury, cadmium,
chromium, and some types of flame retar-
dants, which can pose serious environmen-
tal risks if not properly managed. This grow-
ing, changing product stream presents new
challenges and responsibilities in designing
and managing electronic products to
reduce their life-cycle environmental
impacts.
FEDFACS 11
-------
E-Cycling
P2 Quicknotes
FLOURESCENT LAMP
RECYCLING
Flourescent lamps can help facilities
reduce energy consumption -they use one
quarter the energy of incandescent lamps
and last as much as ten times longer. How-
ever, flourescent lamps contain the toxic
element mercury, and when broken or
improperly disposed of can release mer-
cury into the air, water and soil. Recycling
spent-mercury lamps offers an environmen-
tally sound alternative to expensive haz-
ardous waste disposal. Hospitals for a
Healthy Environment (H2E) outlines a
process for flourescent lamp recycling. You
don't have to be a hospital to take advan-
tage of these guidelines. Visit them at:
http://www.h2e-online.org/tools/mercury.
htm
AMERICA RECYCLES DAY
As part of the annual America Recycles Day
initiatives in the Washington, D.C. Metro
area, the Office of the Federal Environmen-
tal Executive in conjunction with several
other federal agencies. District of Columbia
Recycling Program, private industry, and
non-governmental organizations sponsored
a two-day electronics collection and recy-
cling event. The event, which was open and
free of charge to all residents and govern-
ment employees in the D.C. metro area, was
held at the Carter Barron Amphitheatre in
Rock Creek Park on Friday, November 14,
2003 and Saturday, November 15,2003. The
purpose of the event was to educate con-
sumers about the environmental benefits of
electronics recycling, and to encourage
them to recycle electronics by providing
them with an opportunity and outlet to do
so. More than 66,700 pounds of electronics
were collected by 75 local citizens and vol-
unteers from the federal agencies, D.C. gov-
ernment, private businesses and not-for-
profit organizations.
NIH Sets E-cycling Record
As part of a regional pilot project to
improve collection and recycling of
electronic equipment, the EPA and the
Maryland Department of the Environ-
ment (MDE) were looking for an agency
to host and publicize an electronics recy-
cling (e-cycling) event. The National
Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of
the Department of Health and Human
Services, volunteered and subsequently
scheduled the event as part of its Earth
Day celebrations in April 2003.
Open to government employees and
the local community, the event provided
an opportunity to recycle all types of per-
sonally owned electronics - from cell
phones to televisions and computers. The
operators of White Flint, a nearby shop-
ping mall, generously offered the use of
one of their parking lots for the collection
site and provided free advertising for the
event on their website and electronic
marquee sign at the mall entrance. Vol-
unteers also distributed posters and fly-
ers to advertise the event.
The first indication of success came
well before the event's scheduled start as
"e-junk" began arriving by car, truck, bike
and from pedestrians. Two additional ser-
vice lines were opened to handle the
increased volume of material, which con-
tinued throughout the event, and after
drop-off areas were closed. An estimated
670 deliveries of electronics were made
that day, totaling 34 tons of equipment.
According to Jim Richmond, MDE repre-
sentative, this set a new statewide record
for the largest amount of e-cyclable mate-
rials collected in a single day event.
Most equipment collected will be dis-
assembled in facilities located in the U.S.
and recycled. Some equipment in work-
ing condition will be refurbished and
donated or sold. For example, 103 of the
collected cell phones and related acces-
sories will be given to the Wireless Foun-
dation and reconfigured as emergency
call phones, or used in abuse prevention
programs.
Lessons learned from this event will
also be "recycled" by other federal and
state agencies for application at future e-
cycling events. The NIH e-cycling event
publicity website is still on-line at
http://www.nih.gov/od/ors/ds/ecycle/. Its
content may be copied without permis-
sion. Contact Captain Ed Rau at the NIH
(301) 496-7775 for additional information.
EPA, DOD, AND STATES FIND COMMON GROUND
THROUGH PARTNERSHIPS
Continued from page 6
(Also see related article on the DoD
Region 4 Pollution Prevention Partner-
ship on page 8)
In the west, the state of Washington
Environmental Forum (WEF) is a group
of senior military commanders and lead-
ers from regional and state environmen-
tal agencies which play significant roles
in each other's environmental progress.
Members from Fort Lewis served on the
Washington Governor's advisory panel to
formulate the Washington State Sustain-
ability Plan, published in March 2003.
Partners are now transforming WEF into
a Washington sustainability forum,
reflecting its new direction.
The Pennsylvania/DoD Cooperative
Multi-Site Agreement (CMSA), com-
prised of the Pennsylvania Department
of Environmental Protection, the Depart-
ments of Army, Navy, Air Force, and the
Defense Logistics Agency, agreed in 1998
to assess, remediate and resolve Pennsyl-
vania's contaminated Formerly Used
Defense Sites. A CMSA goal was to rem-
edy or resolve issues for all covered sites
by 2010. In 2003, hundreds of sites need-
ing further study were resolved, and
CMSA members feel that agreement
terms are being exceeded.
For more information about state
partnerships, contact Adrian Miller of
the Army Northern Regional Environ-
mental Office, 410-436-2427, or visit
http://aec.army.mil/usaec/reo/nreoOO.
html
12 FEDFACS
-------
Green/Alternative Power
Alternative Fuels Clear Air at NASA Glenn Research Center
Tie NASA Glenn Research Center
tRC) in Cleveland is reminiscent of
a small town from the 1940s. Rows of
small brick buildings and crabapple
tree-lined roads are interspersed with
odd metal structures for propulsion
research. In this small, confined town,
exhaust constantly emits from delivery
trucks and personnel shuttles, from
forklifts in enclosed warehouses, and
even from propulsion testing facilities.
Several years ago, these exhaust
emissions were mostly from unleaded
gasoline and diesel. In addition to their
long-term impact on global warming
and acid rain, fossil fuel emissions also
cause bad odors, and stop workers in
their tracks. The odor issue propelled
an alternative fuel project to quick com-
pletion at GRC.
JP-8 (a kerosene-based fuel in mili-
tary and airline use) replaced the costly
hydrogen fuel in NASA's Aero-Acousti-
cal Propulsion Lab (AAPL). When AAPL
staff lit JP-8 to run hot tests, com-
plaints would flood in from surrounding
buildings, depending on the wind direc-
tion. According to the facility engineer
at AAPL, the odor was a noxious barbe-
cue-type smell, like lighter fluid, and
gave people headaches. AAPL was faced
with the prospect of shutting down or
finding an alternative fuel.
At its next normal maintenance
interval, the AAPL combuster was
changed out to accomodate lighter-than-
air, odorless compressed natural gas
(CNG). CNG is also a fossil fuel, but
emits 90 - 97 percent less carbon monox-
ide, and 35 - 60 percent less nitrogen
oxide than gasoline. In over nine
months of operation, AAPL has not
received a single complaint.
Other fuels were also considered.
Propane was rejected because it is heav-
ier than air and creates a fire hazard if
fumes escape. Two renewable alterna-
tive fuels are being used or studied at
GRC: bio-diesel from soybeans and
ethanol ("E85"), a corn product.
Biodiesel replaced diesel in a difficult
to re-start truck whose batteries were not
charging properly and kept running when
parked and making deliveries. A nine-
month pilot program at GRC studied one
vehicle using various diesel to biodiesel
percentages. Fuel-line freeze-up is a big
concern in northeast Ohio winters, so a
widespread Midwest formula - 20 percent
biodiesel to 80 percent low-sulfur diesel
(called "B20") - was chosen. The winter's
coldest weather conditions were no prob-
EPA POWERS UP THE GREEN WAY
EPA recently announced the acquisition of "green" power for the EPA Headquarters facilities at
Federal Triangle in Washington, D.C. The power will come from wind farms and landfill gas facili-
ties in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Maryland. EPA's Federal Triangle facilities use 40 million
kilowatt hours of electricity per year.
This is EPA's largest green power purchase to date and reflects its continuing efforts to reduce
the environmental impact of EPA's facilities. With this purchase, EPA will have green power at nine
locations: Richmond, Calif.; Golden, Colo.; Manchester, Wash.; Chelmsford, Mass.; Cincinnati,
Ohio; the New York Regional Office; Edison, N.J.; Houston, Texas; and the Federal Triangle Build-
ings in Washington, D.C. Soon, EPA will also have green power at its new laboratory in Research
Triangle Park, N.C. GSA's National Energy Center assisted EPA with this procurement.
More information on Green Power at EPA facilities can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/
greeningepa/energy/greenpwer.htm or http://www.epa.gov/greeningepa
For more information on the EPA's Green Power Partnership Program, visit: www.epa.gov/
greenpower
lem for this fuel mix. During warmer
weather, a test vehicle was able to run on
100 percent biodiesel with no problem,
except making the driver hungry. He said,
"It smelled like French fries."
Drivers say the truck runs just as well,
or better, on biodiesel. Biodiesel acts as
a solvent, cleaning out the lines. The
fuel filter clogs the first time biodiesel is
run through, but once the contaminants
are cleared out by the biodiesel, there
are no more filter problems. Biodiesel
also reduces emissions, and is
biodegradable and nontoxic.
GRC also uses biobased fuel E85.
E85 is 85 percent ethanol blended with
15 percent gasoline. Ethanol is 100 per-
cent grain alcohol produced by ferment-
ing plant sugars, primarily corn, since it
is most easily converted to sugar. Com-
pared to gasoline, E85 emits 40 percent
less carbon monoxide and 80 percent
less sulfate. In the 1880s, Henry Ford
designed a car that ran only on ethanol,
and the Model T was designed to run on
either ethanol or gasoline. 120 years
later, there are over 160 fueling stations
offering E85 in 24 states.
GRC recently converted a 10,000 gal-
lon underground storage tank to E85,
and installed an E85 dispenser. The
Center uses E85 in twelve E85-compat-
ible vehicles, and will replace older vehi-
cles at future intervals.
Over half of GRC's owned and leased
fleet of 145 vehicles uses some form of
alternative fuel. All 36 diesel vehicles,
stationary diesel storage tanks, and all
equipment using the tanks, like genera-
tors, use B20 biodiesel. Thirty-eight
vehicles use CNG: shuttle buses, cargo
vans, passenger vans, pick-up trucks,
and passenger cars. One forklift will be
used for a CNG emissions study, with a
goal of converting several forklifts from
propane to CNG to improve indoor emis-
sions for workers.
To learn more about alternative fuel
usage at NASA/GRC, please contact
their P2 Team at: 216-433-8441.
FEDFACS 13
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P2
TVA and Environmental Stewardship
The Tennessee Valley Authority
I (TVA) is a public power company, but
it does much more than generate power.
It supports economic development and
manages the natural resources of the
Tennessee River Basin through inte-
grated resource management. TVA
strives to balance and optimize the com-
peting demands of river navigation,
flood control, power supply, land use,
water quality and recreation.
TVA's eleven watershed teams are
striving to maintain good environmental
stewardship practices throughout the
290,000 acres of public lands, including
11,000 miles of shoreline in the Ten-
nessee River Basin. Watershed teams
have a broad mission: improve and pro-
tect water quality, guide shoreline devel-
opment and improvement, provide recre-
ational opportunities, while ensuring
both economic development and envi-
ronmental protection.
Watershed teams communicate with
stakeholders when developing and
implementing land management plans
for TVA reservoirs. These plans direct
where development and environmental
protection is most appropriate in order
to sustain the balance. The Reservoir
Operations Study is another example of
how TVA is listening to stakeholders
and reevaluating its policies on manag-
ing the river system.
TVA also participates in partnerships
to improve water quality across the Val-
ley. With 50 initiatives located through-
out the Valley, TVA targets efforts where
it will accomplish the most benefit for
stakeholders by making resource
improvements, protecting existing
resources, and anticipating growth.
The Tennessee Growth Readiness
Program and the Tennessee Valley
Clean Marina Initiative help communi-
ties learn how land use decisions affect
water quality and supply, comply with
regulatory requirements, and make
informed decisions about managing
growth. The related article (see page
15) describes these programs in more
detail.
Since 1999, TVA has not received fed-
eral appropriations and has funded
environmental stewardship activities
through power revenues. TVA provides
power to large industries and 158 power
distributors that serve 8.3 million con-
sumers in seven southeastern states.
For more information about TVA and
its stewardship initiatives contact Buff
Crosby at TVA, (423) 751-7687 or visit
TVA's web site at www.tva.com.
JOIN FedEnviroNews\
FedEnviroNews is EPA's electronic newslet-
ter which delivers environmental news and
information of interest to federal facilities.
This newsletter is free and is part of EPA's
continuing efforts to improve awareness of
and provide access to environmental infor-
mation. Subscribers may cancel their sub-
scription at any time, and new subscribers
are welcome.
To subscribe (or unsubscribe) to
FedEnviroNews, please visit: http://www.
epa.gov/compliance/resources/listserv.html
Check "federal facilities" and provide
requested information.
Got an Article?
If you have an article about an environmental
activity or program at your agency or facility,
and you'd like us to consider it for publication
in the next FedFacs, please contact: Marie
Muller at muller.marie@epa.gov. FedFacs is
published twice a year, and articles are gen-
erally 500 words or less. The U.S. EPA
reserves the right to editordeclineanyarticle.
SUSTAINING TVA'S NATURAL HERITAGE
The TVA Regional Natural Heritage Project,
initiated in 1976, contains data on a variety of
biologically-related disciplines including
aquatic and terrestrial plants and animals,
threatened and endangered plantand animal
species, natural areas, wetlands, caves,
waterfalls, champion trees and animal gath-
ering areas in the multi-state TVA region.
This information is used to assist scientific
research and improve natural areas, as well
as protect biological diversity by guiding
development away from sensitive areas. Cur-
rently, the database contains over 30,000
individual records.
Because the Natural Heritage database
is integrated into TVA's environmental review
process, decision makers can identify, mini-
mize or eliminate potential conflicts between
proposed development and critical natural
resources. Project biologists and their part-
ners regularly inventory populations of feder-
ally listed plants or animals on TVA lands to
determine population numbers and vigor,
identify population trends, and plan appropri-
ate protection and enhancement for them.
Inventory data is further used to prioritize
areas on TVA lands appropriate for inclusion
into TVA's Natural Areas program. As a
result, the Natural Heritage Project now
manages a world-class system of nature
preserves spanning approximately 13,000
acres in five states. These natural areas pro-
tect listed plants and animals for future gen-
erations, while other areas are publicly
accessible for passive recreation, nature
appreciation, and other educational pro-
grams.
Recently, Dr. William Redmond, the
retired founder and leader of the TVA
Regional Natural Heritage Project was pre-
sented the Tennessee Department of Envi-
ronment and Conservation's "Conservation
Award". In 1993, the TVA Heritage project
received The Nature Conservancy's first Out-
standing Heritage Program award.
For more information about this program,
contact Peggy Shute at TVA, (865) 632-1661
or visit TVA's web site at www.tva.com.
14 FEDFACS
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P2
Partnering for Better Water Quality
and Sustainable Development
The Tennessee Growth Readiness
Program helps local communities
within the TVA seven-state region learn
how land management decisions impact
water quality and how to make informed
choices about growth and development.
TVA manages the program for the Ten-
nessee Department of Agriculture, and
works with the Uni-
versity of Tennessee
Water Resources
Research Center and
the Southeast Water-
shed Forum to deliver
training, materials
and support to plan-
ners and public works
officials. The program
began as a pilot, and
adapted strategies
from other watershed
programs. The program teaches planners
and public works officials about the com-
plex issues and choices surrounding land-
use and water quality, how to educate oth-
ers in their communities, and how to
design a Site Planning Roundtable
process. Community specific maps and
data help explain how current and future
land-uses may exacerbate existing water
quality problems. The goal is for commu-
nities to evaluate their existing growth
and development regulations and revise
these to better protect their water
resources. Officials from over 300 commu-
nities have participated in the program,
and many are considering revising their
codes and ordinances to improve water
quality in the region.
For more information about the Ten-
nessee Growth Readiness Program,
please call Joel Haden at TVA, (865) 632-
2132, or visit the program's website at
http://tgr.utk.edu.
The Tennessee Valley Clean
Marina Initiative (CMI) is a regional,
voluntary certification program developed
by TVA Resource Stewardship and its
watershed partners to promote sound,
The goal is for communities
to evaluate their existing
growth and development
regulations and revise
these to better protect their
water resources.
environmentally responsible marina and
boating practices along the 11,000 miles
of shoreline in the Tennessee Valley. The
Initiative improves water quality through
non-regulatory, collaborative P2 and
other source reduction strategies with
marina operators, other regulatory agen-
cies, watershed organizations and the
marine industry. CMI
focuses on: 1) sewage
management; 2) fuel
management; 3) solid
waste and petroleum
recycling and disposal;
4) vessel operation,
maintenance, and
repair; 5) marina sit-
ing, design and main-
tenance; 6) storm-
water management
and erosion control;
and 7) boater education. With the help of
the TVA Watershed Team, marina opera-
tors assess their operations and facilities
and identify areas for improvement.
Teams also conduct workshops, and pro-
vide useful resource material, including
information on environmentally friendly
marine products. Participants get recog-
nition through a variety of media, and
also are allowed use of the CMI logo. Cer-
tified marinas are reporting observable
improvements in water quality in and
around their marina basin. The Initiative
has broad participation among marinas
and boaters, and new partnerships
among federal, state and other regional
entities have also been forged. This pro-
gram may be a model for other parts of
the southeast United States. Currently,
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(Nashville District) and the Missis-
sippi/Alabama Sea Grant Consortium are
developing Clean Marina programs based
on this model.
For more information about this ini-
tiative contact Linda Harris at (423) 876-
4178 or visit TVAs web site at:
www.tva.com.
FEDERAL FACILITY P2
REQUIREMENTS
Federal facilities should recognize that pol-
lution prevention is not merely a goal or an
aspiration. Rather, pollution prevention is a
specific obligation outlined in numerous
statutes and executive orders.
The Pollution Prevention Act of 1990
defines pollution prevention as any practice
that "reduces the amount of any hazardous
substance, pollutant, or contaminant enter-
ing any waste stream or otherwise released
into the environment (including fugitive
emissions) prior to recycling, treatment, or
disposal" and "reduces the hazards to pub-
lic health and the environment associated
with the release of such substances, pollu-
tants, or contaminants."
The Act further states, "...pollution
should be prevented or reduced at the
source whenever feasible; pollution that
cannot be prevented should be recycled in
an environmentally safe manner whenever
feasible; pollution that cannot be prevented
or recycled should be treated in an environ-
mentally safe manner whenever feasible;
and disposal or other release into the envi-
ronment should be employed only as a last
resort and should be conducted in an envi-
ronmentally safe manner."
Specific statutes and executive orders that
provide for pollution prevention include:
• Clean Air Act (CAA) §7402-7405, §7412-
7418
• Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act (RCRA) §6907-6908, §6921-6927,
§6931, §6981
• Clean Water Act (CWA) §1251-1256,
§1342, §1381
• Pollution Prevention Act (PPA) §13103-
13106
• Emergency Planning and Community
Right to Know Act (EPCRA) §11001-
11005, §11021-11023
• Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and
RodenticideAct(FIFRA)§136
• National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA) §4331, §4363, §4363, §4368
• Executive Order 13148
• Executive Order 12088
• Executive Order 12856
FEDFACS 15
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P2
EPA Partners with Manufacturers and Retailers for Cleaner
Marine Engines
EPA and New Jersey's Department of
Environmental Protection recently
entered into a formal agreement with
local trade and retailers associations
through which the parties will work to
ensure that by 2005, 95 percent of the
two and four-stroke marine engines sold
in these states are low-polluting. EPA
hopes to sign a similar agreement with
other local, regional trade associations,
and the New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation.
Conventional two-stroke marine
engines powered most outboard engines
and personal water craft. These engines
often emit dark smoke containing hydro-
carbons and nitrogen oxides, which con-
tribute to the formation of ground-level
ozone or smog. Unburned gasoline is also
released directly into the water from such
engines, and contaminate water bodies
with toxic chemicals such as benzene,
toluene, xylene and ethylene.
This program can potentially benefit
federal entities which own and operate
boats with outboard engines. Four-
stroke and direct
fuel-inj ected
two-stoke
engines are com-
mercially avail-
able at practi-
cally any marine
retailer. Being
part of a clean
marine engine
program also
provides oppor-
tunities for fed-
eral agencies to
partner with
states and indus-
try.
EPA has established clean marine
engine agreements with the marine
industry and state governments in Wis-
The parties will work
to ensure that by 2005,
95 percent of the two
and four-stroke marine
engines sold in these
states are low-polluting.
consin, Rhode Island, Vermont, Florida,
Maine, New Hampshire, Oregon, Con-
necticut, Massachusetts and Maryland.
New federal mandates for
low-emission engines take
effect in 2006, but those
participating in the clean
marine engine programs
are committed to beating
that deadline for the vast
majority of engines they
make and sell.
For more information on
clean marine engines or
how to set up your own
clean marine engine pro-
gram, visit http://www.epa.
gov/docs/Region2/clean
marine/index.html or con-
tact EPA Region 2 Clean
Marine Engine Project coordinator Tris-
tan Gillespie at: gillespie.tristan@epa.
gov.
FEDERAL FACILITIES PROGRAM MANAGERS ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
HEADQUARTERS
Greg Snyder, Director
Planning, Prevention, &
Compliance Staff
US EPA
Federal Facilities Enforcement Office
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20460
snyder.greg@epa.gov
Phone: 202-564-4271
Fax:202-501-0069
REGION 1
Anne Fenn
CT,ME,MA,NH,RI,VT
US EPA Region 1
Office of Environmental Stewardship
1 Congress Street
Suite 1100, Mail: SPP
Boston, MA 02114-2023
fenn.anne@epa.gov
Phone:617-918-1805
Fax:617-918-1810
REGION 2
Kathleen Malone
NJ, NY, PR, VI
US EPA Region 2
Compliance Assistance Section
290 Broadway, 21st Fl.
New York, NY 10007-1866
malone.kathleen
@epa.gov
Phone:
Phone:212-637-4083
Fax: 212-637-4086
REGIONS
Jose Jimenez
DE, DC, MD, PA, VA, WV
US EPA Region 3
Office of Environmental Programs
1650 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103-2029
jimenez.jose@epa.gov
Phone:215-814-2148
Fax:215-814-2783
REGION 4
Mark Robertson
Anthony She/ton
AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, SC, TN
US EPA Region 4
Environmental Accountability
Division, Federal Facilities
61 Forsyth St., SW
Atlanta, GA 30303-8960
robertson.mark@epa.gov
shelton.anthony@epa.gov
Phone: 404-562-9639 (MR)
Phone: 404-562-9636 (AS)
Fax: 404-562-9598
REGIONS
Lee J. Regner
IL, IN, Ml, MN, OH, Wl
US EPA Region 5
Office of Enforcement & Compliance
Assurance
77 West Jackson Blvd
Chicago, IL 60604-3507
regner.lee@epa.gov
Phone:312-353-6478
Fax:312-353-5374
REGION 6
Joyce F. Stubbletield
AR, LA, NM, OK, TX
US EPA Region 6
Compliance Assurance &
Enforcement
Division
1445 Ross Avenue
Dallas, TX 75202
stubblefield.joyce@epa.gov
Phone:214-665-6430
Fax:214-665-7446
REGION?
Diana Jackson
IA, KS, MO, NE
US EPA Region 7
Enforcement Coordination Office
901 North 5th Street
Kansas City, KS 66101
jackson.diana@epa.gov
Phone: 913-551-7744
Fax:913-551-9744
REGIONS
Dianne Thiel
CO, MT, ND, SD, UT, WY
US EPA Region 8
999 18th Street
Denver, CO 80202-2466
thiel.dianne@epa.gov:
Phone:303-312-6389
Fax: 303-312-6044
REGION 9
Larry Woods
Tom Kelly
AZ, CA, HI, NV, Pacific Islands
US EPA Region 9
Cross-Media Division
75 Hawthorne St, CMD-2
San Francisco, CA 94105
woods.larry@epa.gov:
kelly.thomasp@epa.gov
Phone: 415-972-3857 (LW)
Phone: 415-972-3856 (TK)
Fax: 415-972-3562
REGION 10
Michele Wright
AK, ID, OR, WA
US EPA Region 10
Office of Enforcement & Compliance
(OEC-164)
12006th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98101
wright.michele @epa.gov
Phone:206-553-1747
Fax:206-553-7176
16 FEDFACS
-------
P2
Ovens Decrease Solvent Use at Los Alamos
At Los Alamos National Laboratory
(LANL) staff are encouraged to find
and adopt methods for reducing waste
and preventing pollution. In two cases,
ovens reduced the need for solvents; they
are used to test the oil content of asphalt
samples, and to clean glassware for
experiments.
Before construction materials are
used at the Laboratory, samples are
tested. Asphalt aggregate is tested to
determine the percentage of oil in the
sample. In the past, oil was removed from
samples by soaking and rinsing them in
Stoddard solvent, a hazardous waste. A
new binder oven now removes oil without
solvent, with more accurate results and
at a lower cost.
The binder oven eliminates about 55
gallons of solvent waste per year, and
labor costs are reduced by approximately
$24,000 per year. It reduces disposal costs,
storage space requirements, and time
spent completing the waste documenta-
tion. Employees are no longer exposed to
organic solvent, so health risks and the
need for safety supplies are reduced. Sam-
ples are tested almost three times faster,
and materials not meeting specifications
are identified and rejected more quickly.
The binder oven also reduces the chance
for human error during sample prepara-
tion by providing quantitative analysis of
oil content for each sample.
A different oven cleans glassware in
several organic chemistry labs at LANL.
A high-temperature oven decomposes
organic compounds, and organic vapors
in the exhaust are destroyed by a cat-
alytic oxidizer system. The new ovens
eliminate the need to clean glassware
with oxidizing acids or solvents such as
acetone, methanol, or dichloromethane to
remove organic residue. Old methods
exposed employees to hazardous chemi-
cals, required cleaning chemicals and
rinse water to be treated as hazardous
waste, and did not always completely
remove residue, contaminating glassware
for future experiments.
Binder oven at LANL.
After the oven cleans the glassware,
researchers rinse it once to remove any
inorganic compounds. Cleaning glass-
ware with the high-temperature oven
requires 50 percent less rinse water, is
expected to reduce 50 kg of hazardous
waste per year, and save approximately
100 hours of staff time.
For more information about LANL's
use of ovens at their labs, or its vehicle
maintenance shop P2 strategies, please
contact Sonja Salzman at: ssalzman®
lanl.gov
NATIONAL GUARD AND ILLINOIS PARTNER ON WEAPONS CLEANING SYSTEM
The Illinois Army National Guard (ILARNG) is using a centralized,
ultrasonic aqueous weapons cleaning facility to cut down on haz-
ardous solvent impregnated cleaning cloths and wipes generated
during weapons cleaning operations at its 54 armories throughout Illi-
nois.
The ILARNG contacted the Illinois Waste Management and
Research Center (WMRC), a division of the Illinois Department of Nat-
ural Resources, to find a replacement for hazardous solvents it was
using. WMRC suggested the elimination of hazardous solvents alto-
gether. Aqueous detergents worked well removing oils and greases
from weapon surfaces, but failed to remove carbon built-up on interior
operating surfaces. Heating the aqueous cleaners still failed to
remove the built-up carbon. The combination of heat, detergents and
ultrasonic agitation proved most effective at removing oil, dirt and
carbon from the most confined weapon surfaces.
The cleaning system consists of an overhead gantry which moves
a rack of ten weapons through a three-tank cleaning process. The
first tank cleans, with the aid of two 24-inch stainless steel probe-type
ultrasonic transducers. The second tank rinses the weapons, and the
third tank introduces hot air to assist drying. Cleaning and rinsing
baths are heated to180 degrees.
For cleaning, the hand guards, bolt assembly and charging handle
are removed from the each weapon; the barrel assembly remains
attached to the receiver assembly, is disassembled, placed in a stain-
less steel mesh screen bag and attached to the weapon. Weapons are
placed in the storage rack, which is inverted and lifted into each tank
in turn. After drying, the soldier collects his weapon, blows off any
remaining moisture with an air compressor, lubricates and reassem-
bles the weapon.
An ultra filtration membrane system reclaims spent cleaner solu-
tion and rinse water. Reclaimed water and detergent is returned to the
cleaning system and the contaminants, the oil dirt and carbon, are
concentrated for disposal.
This weapons cleaning system has operated for a year with no
major problems. The system design allows unit armorers to operate
the system with minimal instruction. Facility personnel inspect and
perform maintenance on the system after each training period.
Jon Casebeer is the ILARNG point of contact for questions
pertaining to this system and can be reached at: (217) 761-3794,
Jon.Casebeer@il.ngb.army.mil. Mike Springman is the WMRC point of
contact and can be reached at: (618) 466-3806; wmrc@piasanet.
com.
FEDFACS 17
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P2
U. S. Air Force Adopts Lead-Free Ammo for Training
U. S. Air Force recently adopted
lead-free ammunition for training at
base small arms ranges. The transition to
lead-free ammunition is a P2 strategy
that solves multiple environmental,
safety, and health problems, while
enhancing the training mission at little to
no additional cost.
Conventional lead-containing ammu-
nition poses serious potential and actual
environmental, safety and health prob-
lems at small arms ranges. The Air Force
began its search for an alternative to
lead-containing ammunition in 1998.
While improved range design features
could reduce some problems, the best
approach was to eliminate lead-contain-
ing ammunition and replace it with lead-
free ammunition for training wherever
possible.
A small number of Air Force's problem
ranges initially tested several types of
commercially available lead-free ammuni-
tion. The Air Force later teamed with the
Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) in
Crane, Ind., and procured 5.56mm and
9mm lead-free ammunition from several
companies, and continued testing at the
NSWC ballistic laboratories.
The ammunition selected is accurate
and reliable in training, and is user-
transparent to the firer of the weapon. It
contains no lead or toxic heavy metals (in
either the projectile or the priming com-
position) , functions reliably in unmodified
weapons, and is cost-competitive with
conventional ammunition.
Lead-free ammunition also means
range staff airborne lead exposure limits
are no longer applicable, and time-con-
suming, expensive range cleaning and
abatement is no longer necessary. Fur-
ther, safety is enhanced because the new
ammunition is free from ricochet risk,
and environmental lead contamination of
soil, ground water, and surface water can-
not occur. In addition, future small arms
range designs will be simplified and more
cost-effective.
The Air Force contracted with the
Winchester Division of Olin Corporation
and the Federal Cartridge Corporation
for 9mm and 5.56mm calibers of ammu-
nition respectively. This ammunition
should be in full use by late 2004. Adop-
tion of lead-free training ammunition in
12 gauge shotgun and 7.62mm NATO are
imminent.
For more information about the Air
Force's lead-free ammunition program,
please contact: Dennis Kirsch, P.E., Ran-
dolph Air Force Base, TX. (210) 652-3240;
dennis.kirsch@randolph.af.mil
FORT HOOD TANKER PURGE FACILITY
One of Fort Hood's flagship P2 programs is its tanker purge facility. Since
late 2002, Fort Hood, a U.S. Army installation in central Texas, has elimi-
nated the discharge of over one million gallons of water into sewer sys-
tems, and saved thousands of gallons of water.
A tanker purge facility is key to keeping Army operations moving
smoothly. Large tanker trucks move fuel to vehicles in the field and from
unit to unit, and must be cleaned periodically to keep fuel from becoming
contaminated. During high operational phases, like the current one with
Iraq, tanker cleaning times increase greatly.
In the past, tanker cleaning required a great deal of water as well
as time, sometimes as much as eight hours for each tanker. During
cleaning, soldiers were not available to train, and tankers were not
available for missions. Tankers used to be cleaned by filling the fuel
tank with water, pouring in a cleaning solution and manually agitating
the tank by driving it. This process was repeated four to five times
before the tank was clean. Vast amounts of water were used - often
20,000 gallons of water to clean each tanker. The fuel-contaminated
water was directly released into sewer systems, sometimes without
even adequately cleaning the tank.
The new purge facility system uses a closed loop, high-pressure
washstand that can accommodate two 5,000 gallon trucks; each truck is
completely cleaned in 1.5 hours. Upto45tankertrucks can be cleaned in
a month, even at times of high turn-over. The system recycles all water in
a closed loop system and can be used many times. By heating water to
150 degrees, water more thoroughly cleans the tank, and is then flushed
• '}
and filtered into another
holding tank where fuel
residue is skimmed off. Both
water and fuel can be recy-
cled and reused, and only
five to ten gallons of water
are lost. Nothing is dis-
charged into the storm
water system.
Construction on this facility will continue into 2004. It will be enclosed
in a structure built with agriboard, a sustainable, energy efficient, panel-
ized building material made of compressed wheat straw. The panelized
system can be erected in one fifth the time of conventional normal stud
wall building, which saves considerable dollars on labor costs. When
completed, the purge facility will be a model for other military installa-
tions involved in sustainability and pollution prevention projects.
Fort Hood is the largest armored military training installation in the
U.S. Army. Encompassing 214,351 acres, it is home to the III Corps, 1st
Cavalry Division, 4th Infantry Division, 13th Corps Support Command, and
eight other brigade-size units. The Fort Hood-supported population,
which includes retirees, survivors, and their family members, is approxi-
mately 170,745.
For more information about Fort Hood's tanker purge facility, contact
Randy Doyle, P2 Program Manager, Fort Hood. (254) 287-1099; randy.
doyle@us.army.mil
18 FEDFACS
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P2
NASA Technology Reduces Smokestack and
Automotive Emissions
to NASA, a new method for
reducing smokestack and automotive
emissions may soon be in use throughout
the country. Originally created for satel-
lite lasers to measure the chemical
makeup of the Earth's atmosphere, the
smokestack and automotive catalytic con-
verter application of
Low-Temperature Oxi-
dation Catalysts
(LTOC) enables the
destruction of pollutant
gasses, such as carbon
monoxide and hydro-
carbons, as well as some
nitrogen oxides.
Developed at
NASA's Langley
Research Center,
Hampton, Va., LTOC technology is
expected to reduce formaldehyde and
carbon monoxide concentrations in
smokestack emissions by approximately
85 to 95 percent, while reducing auto-
motive pollution emissions by approxi-
mately 30 percent.
Current pollution remediation tech-
nologies are typically very expensive to
implement and maintain. The catalytic-
based formaldehyde remediation sys-
tem will be relatively inexpensive to
implement and maintain within contin-
uously operating facilities. It will reduce
the time and cost associated with indus-
trial compliance with current and
future federal pollution standards.
NASA originally called on Langley
researchers to develop a technology for
space-based carbon-dioxide laser sys-
tems. To maintain carbon dioxide lasers
in space for atmospheric research,
NASA needed a catalyst system that
would affect the oxidation of carbon
monoxide, a by-product of carbon-diox-
ide laser operation, under the cold vac-
uum of space.
Although the need for a carbon diox-
ide laser in space gave way to solid-state
lasers, the NASA research team devel-
Originally created for
use in space, NASA's
LOTC technology
has been adapted
for use on Earth.
oped an oxidation technology that would
work at very low temperatures. LTOC
technologies were then adapted for
higher temperature applications like
smokestack emissions and the internal
combustion engine.
An automotive catalytic converter
using LTOC technol-
ogy has met initial
EPA requirements
and California emis-
sion standards for
the automotive
after-market. The
LTOC catalytic con-
verter does not
require a warm-up
period to function
and uses signifi-
cantly fewer precious metals than current
commercial products, which reduces the
overall cost of an after-market product by
25 percent.
Most modern automobiles are
equipped with catalytic converters that
treat engine exhaust before it leaves the
car. Current technology requires the
exhaust to reach a high temperature
before the catalytic converter begins to
work. LTOC begins to operate at a much
lower temperature or as soon as the car
is started.
Because of its low-temperature oxi-
dation capabilities, the NASA catalyst
begins to work almost immediately
enabling destruction of toxic gases even
when the catalytic converter is cold.
Through NASA's technology commer-
cialization program, Automated Con-
trols Technologies, Inc. (A.C.T) of Fair-
mont, W. Va., is the exclusive licensee
for the NASA LTOC smokestack appli-
cation. A.C.T. officials expect to have
products on the market in early 2004.
Airflow Catalyst Systems Inc.,
Rochester, N.Y., is the licensee for the
internal combustion application.
Other LTOC technologies include:
sensors for carbon monoxide or volatile
P2 Quicknotes
THE POLLUTION PRE-
VENTION RESOURCE
EXCHANGE (P2RX)
P2RX is a consortium of eight regional pol-
lution prevention information centers and
has several resources available at
http://www.p2rx.org. P2Rx produces "topic
hubs" designed to provide an overview,
process information, P2 options, and best
documents (links) of the industrial sector or
the topic being covered. Jean Waters has
more information at: 402-595-1826 or
jwaters@mail.unomaha.edu.
WHAT'S NEW AT THE
P2 INFORMATION
CLEARINGHOUSE?
The Pollution Prevention Information Clear-
inghouse (PPIC) is a free service of the U.S.
EPA dedicated to reducing or eliminating
industrial pollutants in the environment.
PPIC provides copies of EPA pollution pre-
vention publications and supports clients in
accessing Internet-based P2 resources. To
visit PPIC's homepage and its new
resources, go to: http://www.epa.gov/
opptintr/library/ppicindex.htm
organic compounds; removal of carbon
monoxide and formaldehyde from
houses and other buildings; and
removal of carbon monoxide and
formaldehyde from automobile, aircraft
and other vehicle interiors. NASA is
still accepting license inquiries for
available LTOC applications.
For more information about NASA
LTOC technologies, please contact:
Chris Rink, NASA Langley Research
Center; (757) 864-6786; Christopher.p.
rink@nasa.gov
FEDFACS 19
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In the Spotlight
EPA Region 10 Recognizes
Northwest Environmental
Projects
Federal facilities are among the win-
ners of EPA Region 10's (Seattle)
recently announced first annual "Cham-
pions for Environmental Leadership
and 'Green' Government Innovation"
awards program. Eleven facilities were
recognized for their cooperative efforts
and their "green" projects. Region 10
thanks all 2003 recipients, and reminds
other facilities in its region to think
about 2004 submissions. The call for
nominations will go out in early 2004.
The awardees for 2003 are:
Elmendorf Air Force Base,
Alaska — Air Quality Innovations and
Hazardous Waste Reutilization. The Air
Program saved an estimated $1.5 mil-
lion dollars in administrative record
keeping costs. Elmendorf partnered
with the Defense Reutilization and Mar-
keting Service (DRMS) and recycled
over two million pounds of hazardous
wastes generated by Alaska military
installations.
Department of Energy, Richland,
Wash. Operations Office — Water
Distribution, Hanford Mortar-Lining.
The mortar-lining technique is an envi-
ronmentally friendly, cost-effective,
trenchless pipeline rehabilitation
process extending the life of existing
waterlines with a thin- coated, cement-
like mortar applied inside the pipeline.
Flow rates tripled from 460 gallons per
minute to 1,403 gallons per minute.
DOE continues to mortar-line Hanford's
degraded pipes to ensure water service.
Denali National Park and Pre-
serve, Alaska — Alternative Energy.
Energy management and generator
improvements were made at Wonder
Lake Ranger Station, Toklat Road
Camp, and Eielson Visitor Center. The
new propane generators are operated
for eight hours every fifth day, instead of
daily as with the older generators.
There are significant reductions in
noise, spill hazards, and exhaust emis-
sions, and fuel consumption was
reduced by about 60 percent.
U.S. Naval Air Station (NAS),
Whidbey Island, Wash. — Recycling
and Alternative Fueled Vehicles. Com-
bined P2 efforts by NAS employees
diverted 111 million pounds of solid
waste and compostable materials from
the waste stream, representing a 65 per-
cent reduction in solid waste over a 13
year period. NAS currently uses 16 elec-
tric vehicles, which significantly reduce
emissions, noise, and fossil fuel con-
sumption, and save approximately 130
man-hours and $6,100 dollars per user
per year, and $858 in fossil fuel usage.
U.S. Army - Fort Lewis, Wash. —
Installation Sustainability Program.
Between 1994 and 2001, Ft. Lewis
reduced hazardous material usage and
waste from 600,629 pounds to 254,578
pounds. The Installation Sustainability
Program (ISP) set 12 strategic goals to
guide program efforts through 2005. A
full version of the ISP report can be
found at: http://www.lewis.army.mil/
publicworks/ftlnternet/ftLewisInfo/
s is tainability/Sustainability Annual
Report.pdf
Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA), Renton, Wash. — Leadership
in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) Tracon Building and Green
Power Purchasing Program. Seatac Ter-
minal Radar Approach Control (TRA-
CON) is the first FAA building to meet
LEED standards and receive LEED's
Certification Gold Level. The TRACON
project includes: energy and water effi-
ciency; reduction or elimination of toxic
or hazardous building materials; recy-
cling; environmentally preferable mate-
rials, and indoor air quality improve-
ment with environmentally safe
material, equipment and construction
processes. The Green Power Purchasing
program stormwater management plan
removes 80 percent average annual
post-development total suspended
solids, and 40 percent post development
phosphorus. Overall potable water sav-
ings is at least 30 percent.
Eielson AFB, Alaska — Refuse
Derived Fuel Program (RDF) and Com-
munity Support. Eielson instituted a
process to use waste paper and card-
board materials in conjunction with coal
in coal fired machinery. This re-use of
70-80 tons per month of waste paper
products collected from the Base and
neighboring communities has saved
Eielson approximately $1.2 million dol-
lars in tipping fees and coal costs in the
past six years.
General Services Administration
(GSA), Auburn, Wash. — Renewable
Energy Program. GSA, in partnership
with Bonneville Power Administration
completed two photovoltaic projects at
GSA facilities in 2002 - a five kilowatt
system at the U.S. Courthouse/Federal
Office Building in Richland, Wash., and
a 2.5 kilowatt system at its fleet man-
agement building in Auburn, Wash..
Electrical cost savings are estimated at
$1200 a year. These projects help offset
energy needs during peak summer
month consumption, reduce dependency
on fossil fuels and purchased electricity,
and are cleaner and more efficient than
traditional forms of energy.
Bonneville Power Administra
tion (BPA), Portland, Ore. — Water
and Wastewater Energy. BPA's Water
and Wastewater Program serves
medium and small sized communities in
Washington state. Clustering multiple
projects resulted in energy savings
ranging from 13 to 38 percent at modi-
fied plant areas. Savings average
500,000 kilowatts per facility, and
reduces approximately 70 tons of car-
bon-dioxide per year. This also equates
to planting 19 acres of trees or taking 14
automobiles off the roads.
2O FEDFACS
-------
In the Spotlight
(continued)
Northwest Fisheries Science
Center (NOAA), Seattle, Wash. — P2
and Waste Reduction. By installing a
nitrogen/protein analyzer to replace the
hazardous Kjeldahl Method, NOAA dra-
matically reduced hazardous waste,
chemical usage, employee exposure to
hazardous materials and cost. Approxi-
mately 400 pounds of hazardous waste
are eliminated annually at an approxi-
mate cost of $1200 dollars. Other
extraction systems reduce methylene
chloride, PCBs and pesticides.
For more information about these
awards please contact: Michele Wright
at wright.michele@epa.gov.
EPA's Performance Track
Salutes DOE and
DynMcdermott
The U.S. Department of Energy
(DOE) and DynMcDermott Petro-
leum Operations Company, located in
New Orleans, are charter members of
EPA's most comprehensive voluntary
protection program, the National Envi-
ronmental Performance Track. DynMc-
Dermott is hailed as a model for pro-
gram members, and recently won
renewal of its contract to manage and
operate the U.S. Strategic Petroleum
Reserve (SPR). According to DynMcDer-
mott, company employees were largely
responsible for the renewal because of
their efforts in environmental, safety,
and health areas.
Performance Track promotes envi-
ronmental performance which exceeds
regulatory requirements. All federal
facilities and U.S. companies with a
proven record of regulatory compliance,
an operational environmental manage-
ment system, a demonstrated commit-
ment to continued environmental
improvement, and outreach to the local
community and the public may be eligi-
ble to join. Benefits for members include
recognition on a national scale; low pri-
ority for routine inspections; use of the
Performance Track logo; networking
opportunities; and access to regulatory
changes that reduce reporting require-
ments and administrative costs.
The SPR was established in 1973 to
prevent commercial oil supply disrup-
tions which may disrupt the U.S. econ-
omy. It is located in deep underground
salt caverns along the Gulf Coast of
Texas and Louisiana, and contains the
world's largest stockpile of crude oil.
DynMcDermott, an ISO 14001-certi-
fied company with 500-1000 employees,
is responsible for storing and distribut-
ing the SPR's crude oil in the event of a
national energy emergency. In its appli-
cation to Performance Track in 2000, it
noted significant reductions in haz-
ardous materials consumption and haz-
ardous waste, and committed to achieve
more reductions in the upcoming three
year period.
DynMcDermott submitted its annual
performance report for Performance
Track in July 2002, and described a
SPR-wide pollution prevention assess-
ment to determine opportunities for
waste reduction and recycling, and pro-
posals for P2 projects. The projects will
address DOE's P2 and energy efficiency
goals for reducing hazardous waste, and
reducing sanitary waste through recy-
cling.
Highlights of their recycling cam-
paign include the following: 900 pounds
of telephone books and 94 pounds of
Mardi Gras beads recycled; 3,208
pounds of excess paint given to the city
of Freeport, La.; 80 pounds of excess
mixed paint used as a curing agent and
to paint a helicopter pad; 356 pounds of
spent wireline grease generated from
cavern work reused; over one million
pounds of used asphalt and 270,000
pounds of dirt from landfill disposed by
donating it to the local parish landfill.
A 960 pound reduction in hazardous
solid waste was met and surpassed, and
a goal of 15 percent recycling for total
solid waste has been almost reached,
and air emissions reductions were met
and surpassed two years ahead of the
commitment date.
As part of its community outreach,
the SPR's environmental committee col-
laborates with emergency planning
committees, mutual aid associations,
local fire departments, and other local
groups. An annual site environmental
report is made available to the media,
libraries, elected officials and other
interested parties on DynMcDermott's
website: www.spr.doe.gov.
DynMcDermott's environmental
committee conducted quarterly meet-
ings with community advisors, contin-
ues to work with a local non-govern-
mental organization assisting in an
annual local shoreline cleanup cam-
paign, is a major corporate sponsor for
DOE's Louisiana Regional Science
Bowl, and maintains a business and
education partnership with an "at risk"
junior high school. Each SPR site adopts
a non-profit organization in the commu-
nity and provides gifts to needy families
or individuals during the Christmas
season. Over 70 environmental/P2
awards were given to DynMcDermott
contractor employees through the com-
pany's Pollution Prevention Awareness
Program.
Currently, there are 17 other federal
facilities in Performance Track. Applica-
tions are accepted twice annually; the
next application period will be Febru-
ary- April 30, 2004. Application forms
are found at http://www.epa.gov/
performancetrack/apps/app.htm. For
more information, please contact Luctri-
cian Booth at (202) 566-2867, or
booth.luctrician @epa.gov.
Visit Performance Track at: http://www.
epa.gov/performancetrack.
In the Spotlight continued on page 22
FEDFACS 21
-------
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Continued from page 21
Federal Facilities Recognized
with National P2 Award
National Pollution Prevention
Roundtable's Most Valuable Pollu-
tion Prevention (MVP2) award was
given to two federal facilities at an
award ceremony in Washington, D.C.
this past September. A contractor at the
Los Alamos National Laboratory was
also recognized with an MVP2 award.
The MVP2 award is a national award
given to organizations which demon-
strate exemplary environmental stew-
ardship and P2 efforts.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(COE), Alaska District and Jacobs Engi-
neering won their award for an asphalt
recycling project in Kodiak, Alaska. By
using recycled contaminated material
as a base course for road paving, the
P2 Quicknotes
EPA AWARDED A
BLANKET PURCHASE
AGREEMENT (BPA)
Corporate Express was awarded a BPA for
all desktop and non-electronic office sup-
plies EPA purchases using a purchase card.
In a BPA, an agency agrees to purchase
products from a designated vendor. EPA tai-
lored its agency-specific e-catalog to meet
specific environmentally preferable pur-
chasing (EPP) needs. This gives EPA
employees access to green office supplies
through a commercially owned, agency
specific e-catalog. Using the BPA will
greatly increase EPA's purchase of green
office supplies and will increase purchase
of office supplies mandated by Javitz-
Wagner-OTJay (JWOD). The BPA will also
increase purchasing from small business
vendors, give EPA access to group dis-
counts, and allow for better tracking of all
office supply purchases made with pur-
chase cards. This will help EPA learn what
purchasers are buying and how to improve
the system.
WHITE HOUSE CLOSING THE CIRCLE AWARDS: 2004
The Office of the Federal Environmental Executive (OFEE) is inviting nominations for the
2004 White House Closing the Circle (CTC) Awards. This program recognizes Federal
employees and their facilities for efforts which resulted in significant contributions to or
have made a significant impact on the environment. The awards focus on waste pre-
vention, recycling, and green purchasing activities under E.0.13101, pollution prevention
and environmental management under E.O. 13148, and green/sustainable buildings
under both executive orders. The complete directions, including information on agen-
cies' internal awards programs and changes to the 2004 award categories, can be found
on OFEE's web site: http://www.ofee.gov/(click on the "Closing the Circle Awards Nom-
ination" button on the left side of the home page). If you have any questions call us at
(202) 564-1297. Good Luck!
COE minimized waste streams, pro-
vided a remote Alaskan community with
a paved road and decreased remediation
costs. Transporting the 31,500 tons of
material by truck and barge to the near-
est suitable landfill in the state of Wash-
ington would have consumed substan-
tial fuel and resulted in air emissions,
as well as increasing the ecological risk.
By not utilizing thermal treatment,
504,000 gallons of fuel was avoided
along with the associated emissions of
450 pounds of carbon monoxide and
1,850 pounds of particulates. The esti-
mated cost savings are more than $1.5
million in direct savings, and there were
also secondary benefits to the local econ-
omy.
The Naval Facilities Engineering
Service Center in Port Hueneme, Calif.
received an award for their project
"Cost-Effective Protection of Ground
Water Resources from MTBE and Other
Fuel-related Water Pollutants." This
innovative project developed P2 technol-
ogy for underground storage tanks, and
is the product of five years of collabora-
tion between the federal government,
academia, and industry. One site using
this technology documented cost sav-
ings of over $30 million. U.S. Represen-
tative Lois Capps personally presented
the award at the ceremony. U.S. Senator
Dianne Feinstein sent a letter of con-
gratulations.
Finally, KSL's staff at Los Alamos
National Laboratory (LANL) was recog-
nized for pollution prevention improve-
ments to the vehicle maintenance shop
at LANL. Shop employees identified the
root cause of most oil leaks - failure of
aluminum fittings - and replaced them
with sturdier, although more expensive,
steel ferrules. This resulted in over 70
percent fewer spills. Contaminated soil
was significantly reduced, and LANL is
able to treat it on-site using innovative
approaches developed by the auto shop
employees. Spills inside the shop are
cleaned with self-cleaning and reusable
oil-digesting bacteria. Bio-based, non-
toxic hydraulic fluid made from soybean
extract has replaced petroleum-based
fluid used in forklifts at radiological con-
trol areas outside. If fluid leaks do
result, it simply degrades into the soil.
LANL has also installed a hot water
parts washer, which saves time, enables
LANL to recycle oil and water, and
reduces employee exposure to solvents.
Projects at LANL resulted in yearly
labor savings of approximately $40,000
and avoided costs of more than $80,000.
KSL received letters of congratulations
from U.S. Senators Pete Domenici and
Jeff Bingaman. (Also see the article on
page 17 about other P2 strategies at
LANL.)
NPPR anticipates applications for
next year's MVP2 awards to be accepted
until May 15, 2004, and winners noti-
fied by July 15. Awards will be pre-
sented during National Pollution Pre-
vention week, which will be September
20-26. For further information, visit
NPPR's website at: http://www.p2.org.
22 FEDFACS
-------
Selected P2 Internet Resources
http://www.epa.gov/p2
This is the U.S. EPA's primary P2 website. Links
to many other P2 resources can be found here.
http://www.ofee.gov
Office of the Federal Environmental Executive -
promotes sustainable environmental steward-
ship throughout the federal government.
http://www.p2.org/
National Pollution Prevention Roundtable - is
the largest membership organization in the
United States devoted solely to P2. The Round-
table's mission is to provide a national forum for
promoting the development, implementation,
and evaluation of efforts to avoid, eliminate, or
reduce pollution atthe source.
http://www.p2gems.org/
P2 GEMS - A database containing full text
research documents, research summaries,
citations, and names of experts and resources.
Publicly funded P2 clearinghouses and
research centers across the United States are
making special databases and P2 research
summaries available on the Web.
http://www.p2rx.org/
Pollution Prevention Resource Exchange
(P2Rx) - This network consists of nine regional
pollution prevention centers that offer a variety
of resources, including information for specific
industry sectors, training, libraries, referrals and
research. Through P2Rx, the nine centers are
laying the groundwork for a seamless national
network of easily accessible, high-quality P2
information.
http://www.epa.gov/oppt/
library/ppicdist.htm
This is EPA's Pollution Prevention Information
Clearinghouse (PPIC). This site contains EPA
publications about pollution prevention. Many
documents are available electronically, but
some documents must be requested from EPA.
http://www.epa.gov/opptintr/epp/
The objective of EPA's Environmentally Prefer-
able Purchasing Program (EPP) is to encourage,
motivate, and assist Federal agencies to include
environmental concerns, along with price and
performance, as a factor in their purchasing
decisions. The EPP Web site provides guidance,
case studies, tools, and other resources to help
agencies procure environmentally preferable
products and services. These products have
reduced effects on human health and the envi-
ronment when compared to others serving the
same purpose.
http://www.epa.gov/p2/
programs/PBT.htm
EPA's Persistent, Bioaccumulative, and Toxic
(PBT) Strategy focuses attention on reducing
risks from highly toxic substances that can build
up in the food chain to levels harmful to human
health. This website contains information about
preventing PBTs.
http://www.p2pays.org/
The Waste Reduction Resource Center (WRRC)
provides technical Pollution Prevention (P2)
support to the states in EPA Regions III and IV.
http://www.assistancecenters.net/
Compliance Assistance Centers - In addition to
compliance assistance, many of these sites also
contain P2 information.
http://www.nrc-recycle.org/
The National Recycling Coalition, Inc. (NRC) is
a nonprofit organization committed to maximiz-
ing recycling to achieve the benefits of resource
conservation, solid waste reduction, environ-
mental protection, energy conservation and
social and economic development.
http://www.eere.energy.gov/femp/
The Department of Energy's Federal Energy
Management Program works to reduce the cost
and environmental impact of the Federal gov-
ernment by advancing energy efficiency and
water conservation, promoting the use of dis-
tributed and renewable energy, and improving
utility management decisions at Federal sites.
http://www.sustainable.doe.gov/
DOE's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
Network/Smart Communities Network. Infor-
mation on green buildings, land use planning,
and other sustainable practices.
FAA ENVIRONMENTALLY
PREFERABLE PRODUCT
WEB RESOURCES
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
is actively reducing its hazardous materi-
als usage and hazardous waster genera-
tion through several initiatives. The FAA's
affirmative procurement program encour-
ages facilities to purchase and use envi-
ronmentally preferable products and ser-
vices. To assist in promoting these
programs, the Office of Environment and
Energy created a product substitution
guide to identify environmentally prefer-
able alternatives for hazardous materials
used by the FAA. The FAA's Environmental
Substitution Guide can be found at
http://www.aee.faa.gov/aee-200/sub_
guide/begin.htm.
The products identified in this guide are
either non-hazardous or have more favor-
able environmental, safety, and health
properties than currently used products.
The products are organized into the follow-
ing categories: Adhesives, Cleaners/Sol-
vents, Corrosion Preventive Compounds,
Lubricants, Pesticides, Electronics Clean-
ing and Flux, and Freeze Spray. A new sec-
tion covering Affirmative Procurement was
added with the 2003 edition.
A number of P2 brochures and hand-
outs have been made available to the FAA
community. These were developed in
preparation for P2 week and America
Recycles Day at FAA Headquarters. Part of
promoting "green" awareness requires
information distribution to FAA employees
and their concerned public.
For P2 week, a new FAA Environmen-
tally and Economically Beneficial Land-
scaping Guide was developed and distrib-
uted throughout the FAA. The
Environmentally and Economically Benefi-
cial Landscaping Guide and information on
recycling can be found at http://
www.aee.faa.gov/aee-200/recycle2.htm.
For more information contact: frank.
lanzetta@faa.gov [202-267-3497].
FEDFACS 23
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Enforcement News
EPA and DoD Resolve Post-ROD Issues
On October 2, 2003, EPA and DoD suc-
cessfully resolved a nearly three-year
post-Record of Decision (ROD) dispute
that will now expedite decision-making at
dozens of military Superfund cleanup
sites for years to come. The ROD docu-
ments the approach that will be used to
cleanup pollution at a site. EPA and DoD
disagreed over the appropriate EPA over-
sight role in determining what actions
are needed to implement and maintain
land use controls which help ensure the
cleanup remains protective after the rem-
edy has been selected.
Land use controls typically allow some
pollution to remain in place, as long as it
can be managed safely and effectively,
and not compromise human health or the
environment. For instance, it may be best
to cap a military landfill containing trash
and other wastes rather than removing
its contents, which can be quite expensive
and unnecessary to ensure site safety.
However, for the cap to continue to be
safe, its integrity must be maintained.
Land use controls help ensure, as part of
the long-term maintenance of the remedy,
that trees would not be allowed to grow in
the cap and that service men and women
or others did not dig through the cap
inadvertently. Because land use controls
are part of the remedy, EPA insists that
land use controls be fully evaluated,
designed, and implemented, just as the
physical part of the remedy. In addition,
EPA has an important oversight respon-
sibility to ensure that they are and
remain safe.
After lengthy negotiations first with
the Navy, and later with the Army, EPA
and the Navy agreed to a set of principles
(the Navy Principles). The Navy Princi-
ples include land use controls in a ROD
and guarantee a role for EPA in imple-
mentation and maintenance decisions of
these controls. Because of EPA's and the
Navy's hard work and good faith negotia-
tions, they, along with the Army and the
Defense Logistics Agency, reached a reso-
lution that streamlined the information
needed on actions required to ensure land
use controls are safe. An EPA/DoD task
force will soon examine further efficien-
cies and economies for site management
and oversight.
EPA also agreed to give full and fair
consideration to a new, alternative per-
formance-based approach suggested by
the Air Force. EPA will assess the Air
Force's approach on a site-specific basis
and see how and whether the service's
proposed principles might be used to
reach resolution regarding Air Force
cleanups.
For further information, contact Sally
Dalzell at U.S. EPA at (202) 564-2583.
Enforcement Roundup
ALJ Finds Penalty Appropriate
in CAA NESHAP Case Against
Fort Jackson
In an Initial Decision dated September
12, 2003, Administrative Law Judge
(ALJ) William Moran found EPA Region
4's (Atlanta) proposed penalty was appro-
priate, and assessed the full civil penalty
of $85,800 for Clean Air Act (CAA)
NESHAP-Asbestos violations at the U.S.
Army Training Center, Fort Jackson, S.C.
The violations included failure to provide
written notice prior to the renovation
activity; failure to inspect facility for
asbestos prior to the renovation; failure to
use trained personnel during the renova-
tion; and failure to keep removed
asbestos material wet until collected for
disposal. Fort Jackson stipulated it was
liable for the violations, but raised as a
defense that the EPA Administrator had
not properly delegated authority to make
the required CAA Section 113(d)(l) con-
currence (with the U.S. Attorney Gen-
eral) on any Section 113(d) action involv-
ing violations greater than one year old.
Fort Jackson also challenged application
of the CAA Section 113(e) penalty assess-
ment criterion of "size of business," as
well as the overall appropriateness of the
penalty. ALJ Moran rejected Fort Jack-
son's arguments, and found the delega-
tion of authority exists and was properly
made from the EPA Administrator. Citing
the EPA Environmental Appeals Board
(EAB) decision in U.S. Army, Fort Wain-
wright Central Heating and Power Plant,
the ALJ held that consideration of the
"size of business" penalty criterion is
appropriate, and that Region 4's (Atlanta)
application of the various CAA penalty
policies in proposing its penalty was rea-
sonable and based on the facts of the case.
Region 6 RCRA Settlement
Reached for FAA's Mike
Monroney Aeronautical Center
On July 28, 2003, EPA Region 6 (Dallas)
signed a Consent Agreement and Final
Order (CA/FO) to address violations of
the Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act (RCRA) at the Federal Aviation
Administration's (FAA's) Mike Monroney
Aeronautical Center in Oklahoma City,
Okla. The CA/FO requires FAA to pay a
penalty of $67,210, and orders compli-
ance. The CA/FO alleges 10 separate
counts with the majority of violations
relating to the facility's failure to meet
the permit exemption requirements for a
RCRA generator. The counts in the
CA/FO include failure to label, date, and
close containers, failure to manage satel-
lite accumulation areas appropriately,
failure to update hazardous waste train-
ing, failure to maintain an adequate Con-
tingency Plan, failure to make hazardous
waste determinations, failure to label
used oil tanks and containers, and failure
24 FEDFACS
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to comply with reporting requirements.
EPA is pleased with the efforts that the
FAA Mike Monroney Center has made to
improve its hazardous waste manage-
ment programs and to reduce the likeli-
hood that similar violations will occur in
the future.
Region 8 Issues Order to BOB
Regarding Four Bears Drinking
Water Treatment Plant
On October 14, 2003, EPA Region 8 (Den-
ver) issued an Administrative Order on
Consent (AOC) against the Department
of Interior, Bureau of Reclamation (BOR)
for violations of the Safe Drinking Water
Act (SDWA) at the Four Bears Drinking
Water Treatment Plant, N.D. After a July
2003 meeting with BOR, an AOC was
agreed to by the parties. The BOR owns
and funds the plant, but it is managed
and operated by the tribe. The public
water system (PWS) violated SDWA tur-
bidity standards in April 2003, and thus
provided potentially unsafe water to its
customers. The Four Bears PWS opera-
tors are not adequately trained on plant
operations, and the AOC requires BOR to
hold the tribe accountable and comply
with the AOC. The AOC includes stipu-
lated penalties for failure to comply, and
if this does not occur EPA will consider an
AO against the tribe.
Region 8 Settles Action
Against BIA UST Violations
On August 27, 2003, EPA Region 8 (Den-
ver) executed a Consent Agreement and
Final Order (CAFO) settling a RCRA
Subtitle I - Underground Storage Tank
(UST) enforcement action against the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) - Standing
Rock Agency, Ft. Yates Law Enforcement
Facility, Ft. Yates, N.D. The Ft. Yates
facility is within the exterior boundaries
of the Standing Rock Sioux Indian Reser-
vation. The CAFO requires BIA to pay a
$16,943 penalty, and conduct Supplemen-
tal Environmental Projects (SEPs) worth
at least $26,000. The SEPs will include
removal of non-regulated heating fuel
USTs, closure site assessments and, if
necessary, corrective actions at any of the
tank sites. The settlement also includes
an environmental audit of all BIA owned
or operated facilities at the Standing
Rock Agency, including any of BIA's grant
or contract facilities. The settlement
arises from an April 1, 2003, EPA Region
8 administrative complaint alleging UST
violations against Ft. Yates for failing to:
maintain leak detection monitoring
records; operate leak detection equip-
ment in accordance with manufacturer's
instructions; and report and investigate a
suspected release of regulated product
(gasoline).
Region 8 Issues SDWA
Proposed Order to BIA
Facilities on Pine Ridge
Reservation
On July 3, 2003, Region 8 (Denver)
issued a proposed compliance order/pro-
posed order with administrative penalty
pursuant to sections 1423 and 1447 of
the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA).
The Order, alleging violations of the
SDWA Underground Injection Control
(UIC) requirements for Class V wells,
was issued to the Bureau of Indian
Affairs (BIA), Pine Ridge Road Shop and
Kyle Road Shop facilities on the Pine
Ridge Indian Reservation in South
Dakota. The Order may be the first
instance of a combined penalty
order/compliance order under the SDWA
UIC program issued to a federal facility.
The order proposed a penalty of $28,691
for UIC violations including failure to
permit or discontinue the well, failure to
timely submit a permit application or
requested information, and failure to
close or retrofit the well to prevent
underground source of drinking water
(USDW) contamination. The Order also
requires, within 30 days, submittal of
closure plans for the Class V wells or
submittal of a completed permit applica-
tion for continued use of the existing
Class V well/disposal system.
FFEO Issues Policy on Listing
Mixed Ownership Mine or Mill
Sites
EPA's Federal Facility Enforcement
Office issued its policy Listing Mixed
Ownership Mine or Mill Sites Created
as a Result of the General Mining Law of
1872 on the Federal Agency Hazardous
Waste Compliance Docket on June 24,
2003. The Policy states that mixed own-
ership mine or mill sites created as a
result of the General Mining Law of
1872 generally should not be included
on the published list of federal facilities
which have been reported to the CER-
CLA 120(c) Federal Agency Hazardous
Waste Compliance Docket (Docket). The
Policy recognizes that individual mine
or mill sites should be evaluated on a
case-by-case basis, and that such sites
should be considered for inclusion in
EPA's CERCLIS database. The policy
can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/
compliance/resources/policies/cleanup/
federal/policymixownrshpmine.pdf
FEDFACSONTHEWEB
This and past issues of FedFacs can be
found on EPA's website at: http://www.epa.
gov/compliance/resources/newsletters/
civil/fedfac/index.html
Editor's Note:
In the Summer 2003 issue, some informa-
tion was inadvertently omitted. In our
story on EPA Region 4's "CWA/SPCC
Compliance Assurance Initiative for Fed-
eral Facilities," those wishing to find out
more about the initiative can contact:
Tony Shelton at (404) 562-9636. In our
article "EPA Sponsored Environmental
Management System Workshops,"Denver
should have been among the cities where
training has been given.
FEDFACS 25
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In Brief
EMRs at Texas FBOP/FMC and
VA Medical Center — U.S. EPA Region
6 (Dallas) conducted environmental man-
agement reviews (EMRs) at the Federal
Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) Federal Med-
ical Center (FMC), Fort Worth, and the
Veterans Administration Medical Center
(VAMC) in Dallas. The EMRs examined
each facility's environmental programs
and management system to determine
the extent protection programs and plans
have been developed and implemented.
The Dallas VAMC is one of 17 VA medical
centers selected by the Department of
Veterans Affairs Health Administration
to participate in a cooperative partner-
ship in which EPA conducts EMRs to help
improve facility compliance.
EPA staff worked with each facility to
design the parameters and scope of the
review prior to its visit. Reviews included
an in-brief by the EPA team, a tour, inter-
views with appropriate staff from top
management to staff level, and an out-
brief. Both reviews were well received by
the facilities. FBOP has requested fur-
ther assistance from EPA Region 6 in
designing its environmental manage-
ment system. A draft report of the
recently conducted VAMC EMR is in
review by the EPA Region 6 EMR team.
EPA Region 6 will also conduct EMRs in
2004 at VA medical centers in Temple,
Texas and the U.S. Army Camp Stanley
Storage Facility in Boerne, Texas.
The DoD Environmental Data Qual-
ity Workgroup and Intergovernmen-
tal Data Quality Task Force jointly
sponsored an invitational roundtable on
the "Analysis of Perchlorate in Environ-
mental Samples" on 23 October 2003, in
Dallas, Texas. This roundtable enabled
government and private sector experts
(chemists) to examine problems/limita-
tions with current perchlorate sampling
and testing methods, discuss emerging
technology, and recommend a path for-
ward for developing, validating and pro-
mulgating (e.g., through SW-846)
improved, performance-based perchlo-
rate sampling and analysis methods. Par-
ticipants included USAGE, NAVFAC,
AFCEE, AFIOH , EPA/ORD, EPA/OSW,
EPA Regional staff, state regulatory
agencies, academia, and private labs.
More information can be found at:
http://www.epa.gov/swerffrr/recent
additions.htm.
Environmentally Preferable Pur-
chasing (EPP) Vendor Fair — For the
third consecutive year, U.S. EPA Region I
(Boston) organized a session entitled
"Federal Focus on EPP" at the Massa-
chusetts 9th Annual Buy Recycled and
EPP Vendor Fair and Conference in
Worcester, Mass. (October 8, 2003). Tai-
lored for federal purchasing and facility
staff, the session discussed EPA's Federal
Facilities Program, described environ-
mental management systems (EMS), and
explained how Environmental Manage-
ment Reviews (EMRs) can prepare a
facility to implement an EMS. A follow-up
presentation explained how to incorpo-
rate EPP into an EMS. The session also
presented an on-line purchasing system
that tracks recycled content purchases (a
requirement under RCRA section 6002),
and provided tips on selecting a recycling
service for obsolete electronics. The EPP
Vendor Fair featured approximately 100
exhibitors of "green" products and ser-
vices. Over 800 attendees from universi-
ties, hospitals, and government agencies
participated in the conference, making it
the largest, longest running event of its
kind in the nation.
Government Senior Manager EMS
Training — U.S. EPA Region 6 (Dallas)
Federal Facilities Program sponsored two
separate environmental management
system (EMS) training for senior federal
leaders in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
The training informed managers about
EMS requirements and strategies at fed-
eral agencies. The first two-hour session
was held September 15, 2003 at the Fed-
eral Bureau of Prisons Medical Center in
Fort Worth, and was attended by 35
senior managers from several federal
agencies. The second session was held
September 29, 2003 during the monthly
Dallas/Fort Worth Federal Executive
Board meeting, and was attended by 29
federal executives from 23 different agen-
cies and bureaus. Dr. Gary Chiles of
MWH, Inc. conducted both sessions.
U.S. EPA Regions 5 and 7 Sponsors
EMS Workshop — On August 5-7, 2003,
EPA Regions 5 (Chicago) and 7 (Kansas
City) hosted "Designing Your EMS: A
Federal Facility Workshop" at the Region
7 Offices in Kansas City, Kan. Over 100
federal facility representatives from vari-
ous agencies attended. Workshop partici-
pants learned basic ISO 14001 elements
of an environmental management system
(EMS), and the steps needed to imple-
ment an EMS at their facilities. The
workshop included a panel of several fed-
eral facility representatives who shared
their EMS implementation experiences
at their facilities. David Coughey, Depart-
ment of Energy's Kansas City, Mo. Plant,
outlined the EMS implementation time-
line, resource commitment, benefits and
lessons learned during certification.
Steven Coyle, Robins Air Force Base
(RAFB), Ga., explained the RAFB
methodology for continuous process
improvement including how they started,
identified RAFB environmental aspects,
and lessons they learned. Robert Lallier,
NASA Glenn Research Center Plum
Brook Station, Ohio, spoke about NASA's
implementation philosophy of integrating
the pre-existing ISO 9001 Business Man-
agement System with the ISO 14001
EMS system. He explained the process
for achieving their ISO 14001 registra-
tion and identified the facility's expected
benefits and lessons learned.
During the workshop's breakout ses-
sion, agencies were grouped together by
similar mission/facility functions and dis-
cussed where they Continued on page 27
26 FEDFACS
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Federal Agency Compliance
Tracking System (FACTS)
http://www.epa.gov/idea/fedfac
The U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency's Federal Facilities Enforce-
ment Office (FFEO) released the final ver-
sion of the Federal Agency Compliance
Tracking System (FACTS) on December 1,
2003. FACTS, formerly known as the On-
line Environmental Compliance Status
Report (ECSR), enables users to research,
track and monitor the environmental
compliance history and current status of
individual regulated federal facilities from
a single access point. Now EPA employees,
registered federal, state, local and tribal
government agencies can view and ana-
lyze inspection, enforcement and compli-
ance data in EPA's national database sys-
tems, and query data by federal agency,
EPA region and state. FACTS was first
released as a pilot version on November
30, 2002. Comments received during the
pilot period led to enhancements in the
new version, including the capability to
search for compliance and enforcement
information for a single facility, entire
agency, or other federal government
entity.
FACTS is available as a partnership
site on EPA's Online Tracking Informa-
tion System (OTIS), a web-based infor-
mation system providing facility-specific
information on inspections, enforcement
and compliance data. To use OTIS and/or
FACTS, a one time user registration is
required; no username or password is
necessary. Non-registered users can
obtain instructions and register at:
http://www.epa.gov/idea/otis/register by
selecting the link: Obtaining Gov't
Access/Registering for OTIS. To visit
FACTS, go to: http://www.epa.gov
/idea/fedfac.
Further instructions for using the
new FACTS can be found in the link:
"About this Search Tool" located at the
top of the home page. If you have any
questions or comments about FACTS,
please e-mail Richard Satterfield at:
satterfield. richard@epa.gov. Questions
or comments pertaining to OTIS or
access problems during registration
should be directed to Rebecca Kane at:
kane.rebecca@epa.gov.
IN BRIEF
Continued from page 26
were in the EMS process, problems
encountered and solutions. This session
allowed agencies to share information
with their counterparts and develop a
network to address issues and share
information in the future.
Immediately following the workshop,
Martin Elliott, from the Army Office of
the Director of Environmental Pro-
grams, provided Army personnel with
updated guidance on implementing ISO
14001. Please forward suggestions or
comments for future conferences or
workshops to Diana Jackson, Region 7,
(913) 551-7744, jackson.diana@epa.gov
or Lee Regner, Region 5, (312) 353-6478,
regner.lee@epa.gov.
Greening the Government Confer-
ence - U.S. EPA Regions I, II, and III
and the Northeast Waste Management
Officials (NEWMOA) sponsored the first
comprehensive Greening the Govern-
ment Conference on June 4-6, 2003 at
the Rittenhouse Sheraton Hotel in
Philadelphia (a green seal of approval
hotel). The conference included topics
such as: energy and water conservation,
beneficial landscaping, and "green"
building design, procurement, meetings,
cleaning products, and cafeterias.
Speakers were affiliated with federal
agencies, states, academia, public inter-
est organizations, private companies
and consultants. Bill McDonough, inter-
nationally known designer, architect
COMPLIANCE
ASSISTANCE CENTER
DEVELOPMENT
CONTINUES
EPA's Federal Facilities Enforcement Office
(FFEO) continues to develop an enhanced
web-based Environmental Stewardship
and Compliance Assistance Center for fed-
eral facilities. The existing compliance
assistance center, FedSite (http://www.
epa.gov/fedsite) will be expanded, and all
federal government compliance assistance
resources integrated into one, independent
site eventually supported and directed by
member agencies.
Since late October, FFEO staff has been
in discussions focused on the day-to-day
operation of the expanded Center with rep-
resentatives of the Army Corps of Engineers
Construction, Engineering and Research
Laboratory (CERL) located in Champaign, III.
Staff from FFEO and CERL are drafting an
interagency agreement for operation of the
enhanced Center. CERL currently manages
the DoD's environmental web site, DENIX.
Over the past decade, CERL has performed
several federal facility environmental
audits, and has proven capabilities and
detailed knowledge of a variety environ-
mental compliance issues using web-based
technologies. The new Center is expected
to be operational this spring.
For more information about the Federal
Facilities Environmental Stewardship and
Compliance Assistance Center, please con-
tact Mike Shields at: shields.mike@epa.gov
or 202-564-9035.
and proponent of the "Next Industrial
Revolution" was the keynote speaker.
Conference participants were given
information and tools to help initiate
"green" practices at their facilities, and
discussed future options for developing
a federal/state network to share and
promote sustainable projects and pro-
grams. There is strong interest in
designing an Eastern Federal Network
for Sustainability similar to the success-
ful Western Federal Network for Sus-
tainability. EPA Regions I and II will
lead the initial coordination of the East-
ern Network.
FEDFACS 27
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