Center for Industrial Services

In this issue ...

1. Proposed Revisions To The Definition Of Solid Waste—Extension Of Comment Period.
2. Tennessee Hazardous Chemical Right To Know Law Changed.
3. Green Suppliers Launch A Complete Success.
4. Electronics Manufacturer To Take Back E-Waste From Staples Customers.
5. Pollution Prevention-Are You Doing Enough?
6. New Guidance By EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.
7. Air Quality Proposal To Cut Power Plant Emissions Is Signed.
8. QUALITY, MANAGEMENT, AND ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH AND SAFETY WORKSHOPS –February 2004 through May 2004.

1. PROPOSED REVISIONS TO THE DEFINITION OF SOLID WASTE — EXTENSION OF COMMENT PERIOD.

In the December 2003 issue of the WRAP Sheet (Volume 13, number 8), we reported that EPA is proposing revisions to the definition of “solid waste”. The Federal Register (Volume 68, number 248, Monday 29 December 2003) announced an extension of the comment period. The following paragraphs are quotations from the 29 December 2003 Federal Register.

“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is extending the comment period for the proposed rule entitled “Revisions to the Definition of Solid Waste,” which appeared in the Federal Register on October 28, 2003 (68 FR 61558). The public comment period for this proposed rule was to end on January 26, 2004. The purpose of this notice is to extend the comment period to end on February 25, 2004.

The EPA will accept public comments on this proposed regulation until February 25, 2004. Comments submitted after this date will be marked “late” and may not be considered.”

EPA is proposing a change to federal waste management regulations to exclude from hazardous waste those materials that are recycled in a continuous process within the same industry. These changes could increase the recovery of metals, solvents, and other usable materials, making recycling easier for more than 1 million tons of hazardous waste annually and encouraging the recovery of an estimated $1 billion worth of materials. Industries most likely to be affected by this policy change include: inorganic chemicals, plastic materials and resins, nonferrous metals (lead), pharmaceutical preparations, and printed circuit boards.

The proposed rule change, as well as addresses for submissions, can be found on the EPA website at the following web address:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/14mar20010800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2003/pdf/03-26754.pdf

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2. TENNESSEE HAZARDOUS CHEMICAL RIGHT TO KNOW LAW CHANGED.

One of the original requirements of the Tennessee Hazardous Chemical right to Know Law required all manufacturing employers to compile and maintain a workplace chemical list for the hazardous chemicals known to be present in their workplace. The law also required the list be filed with the commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development, and updated as necessary but not less than annually.

The filing portion of the law has been changed to provide that “The workplace chemical list shall be filed with the commissioner within ninety-six (96) hours of a request by an authorized representative of the commissioner.” Whereas manufacturing employers are still required to compile and maintain the workplace chemical lists they are only required to file a copy with the commissioner when specifically requested.

The complete article can be viewed at: http://www.state.tn.us/labor-wfd/tosha.html

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3. GREEN SUPPLIERS LAUNCH A COMPLETE SUCCESS.

On December 2, 2003, EPA launched the formation of a new partnership called the Green Suppliers Network (GSN). GSN is a collaborative venture between the Environmental Protection Agency, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and the U.S. manufacturing industry. According to Tom Murray of EPA's Pollution Prevention Division, GSN will work with all levels of the manufacturing supply chain to achieve environmental and economic benefits by improving performance, minimizing waste generation and removing institutional roadblocks through its innovative approach to leveraging a national network of manufacturing technical assistance resources. With GSN support, suppliers to the automotive, aerospace, appliances, furniture and farm equipment industries can continuously improve their products and processes, increase energy efficiency, identify cost-saving opportunities, and optimize resources and technologies with the aim of eliminating waste and improving their environmental performance.

The GSN launch boasted several highlights that bode well for all participating members. A speech by EPA's Acting Deputy Administrator, Stephen Johnson, praised GSN as a "forum where the Environmental Protection Agency and industry can work together to achieve common goals of environmental performance." Johnson continued in highlighting what was another highlight of the meeting, the joining of the automotive company DaimlerChrysler to GSN and the trade association Suppliers Partnership for the Environment. "Through pollution prevention, smarter decisions can be implemented throughout the automobile manufacturing process that will benefit the environment and a company's bottom-line," Johnson said. "We welcome DaimlerChrysler's participation in this important effort."

The GSN launch also featured several successful breakout sessions between the respective member industries. These sessions included several key discussions on where to take GSN and how everyone can work together to help GSN move forward and more importantly, help human health and the environment. For more information on GSN, please contact Kristin Pierre at 202-564-8837 or Pierre.Kristin@epa.gov.

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4. ELECTRONICS MANUFACTURER TO TAKE BACK E-WASTE FROM STAPLES CUSTOMERS.

At the annual International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Jan. 8-11, 2004 in Las Vegas, Nevada, EPA is announcing a new partnership with Staples and the Product Stewardship Institute to test a pilot "take-back program" as a new approach for recycling used electronics. The new partnership is part of EPA's "Plug-In To eCycling" campaign that promotes electronics recycling by working with manufacturers and retailers, including AT&T Wireless, Best Buy, Dell, Envirocycle, Inc., Intel, JVC, Lexmark, Nxtcycle, Panasonic, Recycle America Alliance (a wholly owned subsidiary of Waste Management, Inc.), Sharp, Sony, and Staples, to increase public awareness and sponsor collection events.

"EPA is looking to other manufacturers and retailers to follow the partnership lead in providing Americans more convenient access to safe recycling of their old electronics," said Barry Breen, EPA's Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency Response, who officially unveiled the new partnership.

As part of the CES trade show, EPA will hold an Environmental Recognition Luncheon Jan. 10 to announce the new pilot, commend its partners and recognize Philips Consumer Electronics as the winner of the Innovations Award for Environmental Design for their 30" LCD Flat TV. The special award was created by the Consumers Electronics Association to recognize companies for integrating environmentally-friendly characteristics—efficient and clean energy use, innovative manufacturing processes, durability and end-of-life resource conservation—into their products. Philips' 30" LCD Flat TV features at least 40 percent less energy consumption and weighs significantly less than comparable products.

The Consumers Electronic Association unites more than 1,000 companies within the U.S. consumer technology industry. The Product Stewardship Institute, operating out of the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, assists state and local governments to work with industry to reduce the health and environmental impacts from consumer products. CES is expected to draw over 110,000 attendees and 2,300 exhibitors from more than 110 countries.

Electronics are a fast growing portion of America's trash – with 250 million computers destined to become obsolete by 2005. Electronics can present an environmental hazard if they are disposed of improperly, because they contain mercury, cadmium, lead, brominated flame-retardants and other toxics. With an average of four pounds of lead in many older TV picture tubes and computer monitors, along with other potentially hazardous materials, electronic products call for special handling at the end of their lives.

Under the partnership with Staples and the Product Stewardship Institute to be announced by EPA on Jan. 10, electronics manufacturers Apple, Brother, Dell, Epson, Intel, Lexmark, Panasonic, Sharp, and Sony will pay for the recycling of their name brand products taken back to Staples. A recycling company called Envirocycle will ensure safe recycling of these products. EPA expects to partner with manufacturers and retailers to conduct additional pilot projects in the Pacific Northwest and Minnesota in the coming year. The states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine and New Hampshire will undertake the first pilot project in 26 retail stores.

Plug-In To eCycling is an outgrowth of EPA's Resource Conservation Challenge (RCC) initiative, which identifies and uses innovative, flexible, and protective ways to conserve natural resources and energy. Introduced in 2003, the RCC establishes partnerships and alliances with industry, states and environmental groups, and provides training, tools and technological assistance for businesses governments and citizen groups.

For more information on the Plug-In To eCycling program, go to http://www.plugintoecycling.org. For more information on the CES, go to http://www.cesweb.org; and on the RCC, go to http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/index.htm.

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5. POLLUTION PREVENTION - ARE YOU DOING ENOUGH?

“Today’s Chemical plant managers and process engineers are driven to eke out profits in a mercilessly competitive business climate. In these times, environmental projects are often consigned to the sidelines, criticized for stealing scarce resources from other engineering efforts and having no ability to improve profit margins.

It’s axiomatic that for all process operations that convert raw materials into finished products, the formation of any waste steals from the bottom line. Clearly, the use of end-of-pipe controls to minimize the volume, toxicity or mobility of industrial waste is worthwhile to minimize the environmental footprint of the process. But the post-treatment of existing waste to make it suitable for discharge does little to improve a plant’s operating efficiency, conversion rate or profitability, nor does it necessarily give the operator any competitive business advantage.

By comparison, when monies are wisely spent on upstream pollution prevention initiatives, the return on investment and savings come in the form of reduced downtime, raw materials consumption, and the production of off-spec products, improved energy efficiency, product yields and worker safety, and curtailed waste-treatment and disposal expenses.

For some plants, such efforts mean reusing solvents and wastewater in closed-loop, zero-discharge systems. For others, a switch to cleaner fuels or using oxygen-enhanced combustion reduces SOx and NOx in flue gas. The effort may be as rudimentary as conducting a thorough maintenance overhaul, or it may involve more complex engineering involvement, such as that required to switch to advanced catalysts that boost product-conversion rates.

Companies are understandably reluctant to spend money that offers no return on investment. But it is time to retire the wearisome excuse that responsible, proactive environmental leadership – beyond that required by law – is somehow at odds with today’s aggressive business objectives. These goals are not diametrically opposed, but are in fact inextricably entwined.

Leadership in this regard must come from the collective efforts of individuals ‘from the shop floor to the top floor.’ Chemical engineers, who routinely use chemical and physical principles to solve problems of practical interest, are in an ideal position to champion such environmental goals.

Engineering initiatives aimed at reducing waste and preventing pollution must be vigorously pursued… It’s hard to overhaul existing operations so they minimize the use of fuel and the conversion of raw materials; it’s hard to devise clever, viable engineering solutions that sometimes turn conventional wisdom on its ear; and it can be especially hard to get the buy in for such forward-looking projects from corporate management that doesn't’t have the breadth of vision to recognize the advantages. But can there be an endeavor more worthwhile than safeguarding workers and protecting the environment? We know that many pollution prevention initiatives do this while still improving operation efficiencies and the product yields, and maximizing profitability.

Engineers, dream big and don’t take no for an answer. When it comes to pollution prevention, shoot for the moon.”

This inspirational piece by Suzanne Shelley, Editor, Chemical Engineering was taken from page seven of the December 2003 issue of Chemical Engineering (www.che.com).

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6. NEW GUIDANCE BY EPA’S OFFICE OF ENFORCEMENT AND COMPLIANCE ASSURANCE.

To encourage violators to undertake projects that will benefit the environment and public health, EPA's Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) has released new guidance on the Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEP) Policy.

A SEP is an environmentally beneficial project that a violator voluntarily agrees to perform as part of an enforcement settlement. SEPs are projects or activities that go beyond what is required of a violator to return to compliance with environmental requirements and which the defendant/respondent is not otherwise legally required to perform. By agreeing to an SEP, violators bring direct benefit to the communities where violations occurred.

OECA anticipates that this guidance will encourage the regulated community to propose environmentally beneficial projects that would otherwise not be implemented due to the long-term, speculative nature of the returns. The three guidance documents are: Guidance for Determining Whether a Project is Profitable, When to Accept Profitable Projects as Supplemental Environmental Projects, and How to Value Such Projects (provides a way to calculate if the environmental or public health benefits of a project are significant enough to outweigh profits that the violator might receive); Guidance Concerning the Use of Third Parties in the Performance of Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) and the Aggregation of SEP Funds (answers frequently asked questions by enforcement personnel on the use of third parties in the development and/or implementation of a SEP and on the aggregation of SEPs); and Recommended Ideas for Supplemental Environmental Projects (examples of projects that offer great potential for significant and measurable environmental and/or public health benefits to the environment and the community affected by the violation). The full documents can be found at: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/civil/programs/seps/index.html.

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7. AIR QUALITY PROPOSAL TO CUT POWER PLANT EMISSIONS IS SIGNED.

Citing health and clean air benefits, EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt signed a proposal that would result in the deepest cuts in sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions from power plants in more than a decade.

The Interstate Air Quality proposal would reduce power plant emissions in a total of 29 eastern states and the District of Columbia in two phases. Sulfur dioxide emissions would drop by 3.6 million tons in 2010 (a cut of approximately 40 percent from current levels) and by another 2 million tons per year when the rules are fully implemented (a total cut of approximately 70 percent from today's levels). NOx emissions would be cut by 1.5 million tons in 2010 and 1.8 million tons annually in 2015 (a reduction of approximately 65 percent from today's levels). Emissions will be permanently capped and cannot increase.

SO2 and NOx contribute to both ozone and particulate pollution. SO2 and NOx can be transported on the wind, causing environmental and health problems hundreds of miles away. Fine particles can pose serious health risks, especially for people with heart or lung disease (including asthma) and older adults and children. Ground-level ozone can irritate the respiratory system, aggravate asthma, reduce lung capacity and increase people's susceptibility to respiratory illnesses like pneumonia and bronchitis.

EPA will now take public comment on the Interstate Air Quality proposal. A final rule is planned for 2005. For more information, go to http://www.epa.gov/interstateairquality

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8. QUALITY, MANAGEMENT, AND ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH AND SAFETY WORKSHOPS – February 2004 through May 2004

For more information about the courses listed below, please visit our Web site. Or, call us: 615.532.8657 or toll-free at 888.763.7439. To register for any of these courses, please use this registration form.

Certain courses are underwritten by TDEC Division of Community Assistance funding under the Waste Reduction Assistance Program contract. Tennessee Pollution Prevention Partnership (TP3) Partners and Performer-level members receive a discount on registration fees for these open-enrollment courses. To learn more about TP3, please call George Smelcer at 615.532.4912, gsmelcer@tennessee.edu; Harding Aslinger at 423.425.2364, haslinge@tennessee.edu or contact Don Stone at 615.532.4924, dstone1@tennessee.edu. Or, you may visit the TDEC Web site at www.state.tn.us/environment/dca/tp3.htm.

** TP3 discount applies to Partner and Performer Level Members
† Government Employee Discount Available

In-plant courses on topics such as Lean Manufacturing, Quality Management, Human Performance Technology, Manufacturing Management and Operations, and Environment, Health and Safety also are available on your schedule. Please visit our Web site for course information, or call us at (615)532-8657 or (888)763-7439 to request a catalog.

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SUBSCRIBE FREE: http://www.tmep.utk.edu/

Feedback by e-mail: gsmelcer@tennessee.edu or buggeln@tennessee.edu
Feedback by phone: (615) 532-8657 or (888) 763-7439
WRAP Sheet archive: http://www.tmep.utk.edu/
WRAP Sheet is published by the Tennessee Manufacturing Extension Program: http://www.tmep.utk.edu

The University of Tennessee Center for Industrial Services
Tennessee Manufacturing Extension Program
193 Polk Avenue, Suite C
Nashville, TN 37210
Phone: (615) 532-8657
Fax: (615) 532-4937

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