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GeoInsighter Summer/Fall 2007 Newsletter A WORD TO THE (ABOUT TO BE) WISE Return to the Newsletter Index "Things are going to change" was the message from the leaders of the New England environmental regulatory agencies at an American Bar Association meeting in Boston. In addition to United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Region 1, state agencies represented at the meeting included the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation, and the Departments of Environmental Protection for Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Maine.
A central topic of discussion for all the agencies was a shift in enforcement focus from large companies with larger issues and emissions to smaller and mid size companies. The agencies have concluded that the large companies are generally doing quite well in terms of complying with regulatory and permit requirements; they have the experienced staff and infrastructure to ensure good performance. On the other hand, smaller companies, far larger in number, are more limited in terms of their ability to allocate resources to the management of environmental requirements and to track changes in their businesses that trigger new requirements. This shift in focus was most directly addressed by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MADEP), which noted that it was going to re target hazardous waste enforcement, as an example, from approximately 400 large quantity generators to approximately 15,000 small quantity generators. The other agencies and the USEPA echoed this re focusing of enforcement resources and activities. We note that this shift in focus is consistent with a recent increase in the number of small to mid size businesses that have been contacting us for assistance with enforcement matters. Generally, we find that there are a number of regulatory areas that require attention, and often the needs are found to be issues that were previously adequately addressed by the business, but subsequent growth in the business or introduction of new product lines or raw materials have created obligations and responsibilities that were not recognized at the time the changes occurred. Based upon these observations, we suggest that businesses adopt practices that trigger review of environmental implications of process and chemical changes when they occur. Fundamentally, production supervisors need to be trained to ask questions when considering a process or chemical change. Plant managers need to consider potential environmental issues when considering adding a new process. Purchasing managers need to be alert to requests for or delivery of new chemicals and ask questions of the supplier's environmental contact. On a related note, the MADEP is in the process of reissuing its regulations governing administrative and civil penalties for environmental violations. The provisions, as currently proposed, include administrative fines of up to $25,000 per day for unapproved releases, failure to obtain required permits, failure to report hazardous material releases, failure to comply with cleanup regulations and schedules, and a pattern of non compliance. A number of the changes in the penalty are targeted at non-compliance with cleanup regulations, specifically adding provisions related to failure to operate and maintain a permanent remedial solution and to comply with the terms of an Activity and Use Limitation. Along with these changes, the MADEP currently proposes to add a provision that will allow penalties to exceed the estimated economic benefit of the non compliance. John A. Gilbert, P.E. info@geoinc.com Return to the Newsletter
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