Greenbytes: April 8, 2003 Edition

Greetings from EPA New England. We hope you find this edition of Greenbytes useful and we encourage you to give us feedback: wintrob.paul@epa.gov

Feature: EPA NE Enforcement Program Announces Strong Results for 2002

EPA New England recently announced strong enforcement results for 2002, including the highest penalty totals in nearly a decade and a record number of self-disclosures under EPA’s self-audit program.

The agency's regional office negotiated 47 administrative penalty settlements and 22 judicial settlements totaling $4.3 million. EPA New England's enforcement efforts last year also required violators to spend $203 million to come into compliance – more than double the $88 million required in 2001.

EPA New England’s enforcement program also posted a record year in negotiating innovative environmental projects – activities not required by the law – in settling enforcement cases. More than $9 million of so-called Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) were funded last year through enforcement settlements, many of them focused on public health problems such as indoor air pollution, asthma and childhood lead poisoning.

At the same time, more facilities than ever voluntarily audited their own environmental operations or established programs to prevent, detect and correct environmental violations. Last year the region had 377 disclosures of environmental problems that were found and fixed due to self audits by facilities. The vast majority of the disclosures were at municipal facilities, primarily public works garages, and college/university facilities.

Among the highlights of EPA New England's enforcement and compliance assistance programs last year:

• Strong Overall Enforcement: EPA New England completed 527 inspections and issued 47 administrative penalty settlements and 22 judicial settlements totaling $4.3 million, a $1 million jump from 2001 and the highest total since 1994. The region also referred 34 cases to the U.S. Department of Justice for civil prosecution, the highest number of referrals since 1990.

• Strong Criminal Enforcement: Cases handled by EPA's Criminal Investigation Division for New England led to 21 convictions with fines totaling $3.4 million. Among those cases was the conviction and sentencing of a New Hampshire apartment manager for violating federal lead paint disclosure laws – the first such criminal conviction in the country. The case was initiated after a two-year-old died from lead paint exposure in a Manchester, NH apartment.

• Supplemental Environmental Projects: EPA New England negotiated 22 SEPs last year worth more than $9.5 million, more than double the $4.7 million of projects done in 2001. Among the largest SEPs was an agreement by Waste Management of Massachusetts, a Boston trash hauler, to spend $1.4 million to install diesel particle traps on 100 Boston school buses and purchase low-sulfur diesel fuel for 200 buses. The company also agreed to spend $1.2 million to create a waterfront park near Chelsea Creek in East Boston. The case stemmed from Clean Air Act violations by the Boston trash hauler – specifically, illegal releases of ozone-depleting pollutants into the air by improperly crushing discarded refrigerators and air conditioners.

In addition, EPA New England’s enforcement program:

• continued to target specific industry sectors for "dual-track" enforcement activity and compliance assistance – among those, the metal finishing industry, colleges and universities, municipal and state Departments of Public Works and Transportation, and facilities and construction sites needing stormwater runoff permits.

• used its audit policy to improve compliance in specific sectors – in particular, colleges and universities and municipal public works facilities. The audit policy is designed to encourage facilities to find and correct environmental problems themselves. Last year the region had 377 disclosures of environmental problems that were found and fixed. EPA New England accounted for more than 40 percent of all the audit disclosures found nationally last year under EPA's audit program.

• focused much of its NE's enforcement activity on the region's urban areas, where serious environmental problems effect larger populations. Last year the region inspected 64 properties affecting over 20,000 housing units for possible lead paint disclosure violations.

• focused attention on improving compliance with stormwater runoff protection requirements. In addition to conducting 28 workshops to help municipalities and builders understand new stormwater rules, the region carried out dozens of inspections, most of them at construction sites. Among the biggest cases was a settlement with Boston Sand & Gravel, which agreed to pay a $897,000 penalty for stormwater violations at several Boston-area facilities.

• worked to protect air quality through enforcing the Clean Air Act. Among the largest cases, Cumberland Farms agreed to spend more than $2 million upgrading gasoline vapor recovery systems at 42 gas stations in New England, New Jersey and Pennsylvania where violations were found. The Canton-based company also agreed to pay a $90,000 fine; After violations were found at its bulk fuel storage terminal in New Haven, Conn., Gulf Oil agreed to spend $421,000 on capital improvements to its fuel storage tanks in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

For more information about EPA NE’s enforcement and compliance assistance activities, visit our web site at www.epa.gov/ne/compliance/index.html

Information about Supplemental Environmental Projects can be found at www.epa.gov/ne/enforcement/sep/index.html

Press Releases

EPA Offers $5,000 to $50,000 Healthy Community Grants in New England; Deadline April 25, 2003

EPA New England Shows Off New Mobile Command Post for Emergency Responses

EPA Honors Clean Water Actions

• CT
• ME
• MA
• RI

EPA & DOJ File Complaint Against New Bedford Boat Owner

EPA Grants $8 Million to NH for Drinking Water Programs

EPA Reaches Agreement with Olympia Nominee Trust to Cleanup Contaminated Soil at Wells G & H Site

EPA New England Announces Strong Enforcement Results for 2002

Facilities in Andover MA and Bucksport ME Join EPA's Performance Track: Deadline April 30

EPA Orders Cleanup Studies at Waterbury Superfund Site

Events and conferences are not archived. Please refer to the Regional Calendar for upcoming events and conferences.

Brownfields - what’s new

Charles River - updated text and recent press

Combustion: Incinerators, Industrial Boilers and Furnaces - updated information

Energy -fuel cell fact sheet & power plant links

Home Checklist - updated links

Long Island Sound Dredge Material Disposal - new reports

Manchester CSO - sepp progress fact sheets now available

Massachusetts State Unit - updated contacts

OMSAP MWRA Outfall - upcoming meetings listed

Ozone Smog - real-time ozone data added

SEPP Idea Bank - form added

"In The News" is a free daily service that provides links to today's top newspaper stories about the New England environment and links to related EPA New England information.

In The News Email Service: As soon as today's edition of "In The News" has been posted we will email you a listing of the day's environmental news.