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Greenbytes: October 26, 2005 Edition

In this Issue

Greetings from EPA New England. We hope you find this edition of Greenbytes useful and we encourage you to give us feedback. For information on subscribing or unsubscribing see the section at the end of this message.


Feature: Change a Light and help Change the World
Robert W. Varney, Regional Administrator, EPA New England

Since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the Gulf Coast region last month, the focus on energy supply and consumption has been pushed to the forefront more than ever before. Most Americans continue to ask, “How can I play a role in helping the region and the country recover from these disasters?” Well, one simple thing that all of us can do in these difficult times is to help improve energy efficiency and conserve energy.

Earlier this month, the Environmental Protection Agency together with the Department of Energy kicked off the annual "Energy Star Change a Light, Change the World Campaign" and urged Americans to change a light in their home to a more energy-efficient one as an important step to save energy and protect our environment.

We are very proud of the leadership on this issue in our own region. All six New England Governors are participating directly in Energy Star’s fall campaigns to promote lighting upgrades and other home improvements to increase energy efficiency, save money, and reduce air pollution.

The simple act of replacing just one incandescent light bulb in every U.S. home with one that earned the Energy Star label will save the nation $600 million in energy bills. That is enough energy to light 7 million homes, and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to 1 million cars.

Lighting accounts for nearly 20 percent of electricity costs, with the average home containing more than 30 light fixtures. Energy Star qualified bulbs and fixtures help reduce household energy costs because they use one-third the energy of traditional lighting, and last up to 10 times longer. Consumers can save up to $25 in utility costs over the lifetime of one bulb. Replacing the most frequently used lights at home will yield the most savings.

And lighting is just one of the many easy adjustments we can make at home. Saving energy at home is as simple as looking for the Energy Star label when purchasing household appliances and products. Dozens of common household appliances and products carry the Energy Star label, including: refrigerators, washing machines, consumer electronics, lighting, air conditioners, dehumidifiers, heating equipment, computer monitors, and much more. When you buy an Energy Star labeled product, you’re getting one of the most energy efficient products in that category – without sacrificing quality, features or performance.

How much does the simple act of looking for the Energy Star label help our environment? In 2004 alone, Energy Star partners and products saved 135 billion kilowatt hours of electricity nationwide – more than total annual electricity sales in New England – while preventing greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 20 million vehicles. Even more impressive, this was accomplished while saving consumers and businesses about $10 billion on their energy bills. You can visit www.energystar.gov or call toll-free 1-888-STAR-YES (1-888-782-7937) for more information.

So I urge all New Englanders to take a pledge to replace at least one incandescent bulb or fixture in your home with one that has earned the Energy Star label. By taking simple steps to improve our energy efficiency, we can help preserve our environment for future generations, while saving money on energy bills. This is a no-lose proposition and gives all of us a hand in helping in the ongoing recovery efforts.

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Brief Bytes

2006 Model Year Auto Fuel Economy Information Available
EPA and the U.S. Dept. of Energy (DOE) recently released the 2006 Fuel Economy Guide. The new information will help consumers to make informed, educated decisions when purchasing a new car that can both save them money and help protect our shared environment. Hybrid and diesel vehicles continue to lead the government's fuel economy ratings, with the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius hybrids and Volkswagen New Beetle and Golf diesels topping the list. Several hybrid SUVs are ranked in the top-ten for model year 2006, including the Lexus RX 400h, Ford Escape Hybrid, Mazda Tribute Hybrid, Mercury Mariner Hybrid and Toyota Highlander Hybrid. The 2006 fuel economy leaders within vehicle classes, as well as the lowest fuel economy models, are listed at: http://www.epa.gov/fueleconomy/overall-high.htm .

Fuel economy estimates, which appear on the window stickers of all new cars and light trucks prior to sale, are determined by tests conducted by manufacturers and EPA according to EPA specifications. To ensure these estimates continue to remain as reliable as possible, EPA plans to propose updates to the methods used to determine the sticker fuel economy by the end of the year.

Consumer Resources for more fuel economy information:

Protecting Children from Lead Poisoning
Federal, state and local governments and non-profit organizations are participating in the seventh annual National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week, Oct. 23-29, 2005. This year's theme is "Put a Lid on Lead," emphasizing to parents and children the importance of preventing lead poisoning. EPA is being a partner with other government agencies and organizations to highlight the importance of lead poisoning prevention. Events being held across the country include free blood-lead tests for children and opportunities for education and outreach to families such as health fairs and workshops on lead education and safety. To learn more about Lead Poisoning Prevention Week activities and how to protect children from lead poisoning, contact your local health department, go to: http://www.epa.gov/lead/lppw2005.htm or call 1-800-424-LEAD.

Green Power Partnership Tops 3 Billion Kilowatts, Enough to Power 300,000 Homes
EPA's Green Power Partnership has grown to 600 partner organizations, purchasing more than 3 billion kilowatt hours (KWh) of green power annually, enough to power 300,000 American homes each year. This voluntary program includes Fortune 500 companies, universities, and local, state, and federal agencies. Green power is electricity generated from environmentally preferable, renewable resources such as solar, wind, water (hydro), geothermal, biomass (combustion of organic materials) and biogas (combustion of naturally-produced methane). Green power currently accounts for just 2 percent of America's electricity supply, but voluntary purchasing of renewable energy is accelerating the development of new renewable energy sources. The voluntary green power market currently supports over 2,200 megawatts of new renewable generating capacity.

The Green Power Partnership has grown dramatically since it was launched with 21 Founding Partners in 2001. The 3 billion KWh purchased by the partnership has doubled in the past 15 months and grew 10-fold over the past four years. This EPA voluntary program standardizes green power procurement as part of best practice environmental management. Partners in the program pledge to switch to green power for a specified minimum percentage of their electricity needs in return for EPA technical assistance and recognition. For more information about EPA's Green Power Partnership, including a list of all 600 Partners, see: http://www.epa.gov/greenpower .

24 Domestic Airlines Agree to Improved Drinking Water Safety
EPA recently reached settlements with 11 major domestic airlines and 13 smaller airlines to ensure the safety of the drinking water used by their passengers and crew. The settling airlines have agreed to routinely monitor the quality of water on their airplanes. The action came after a 2004 EPA investigation of 327 U.S. and foreign flag airlines at 19 airports found total coliform contamination in the drinking water in 15 percent of aircraft.

The settlements were reached with: AirTran Airways, Alaska Airlines, Aloha Airlines, American Airlines, America West, ATA Airlines, Champion Air, Continental Airlines, Continental Micronesia, Falcon Air Express, Frontier Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Miami Air International, Midwest Airlines, North American Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Pace Airlines, Ryan International Airlines, Spirit Airlines, Sun Country Airlines, United Airlines, US Airways, USA 3000 Airlines, and World Airways. The 11 major domestic airlines who have settled are members of the Air Transport Association, whose 14 members account for 90 percent of U.S. air travel. EPA is continuing to negotiate agreements with Omni Air International and the three remaining members of the Air Transport Association: Delta Airlines, JetBlue Airways, and Southwest Airlines.

Meanwhile, EPA is also developing regulations for water that is served onboard aircraft. For more information on the regulation of water supplies aboard passenger aircraft, to view publicly available testing data, and read a summary of the June 2004 public meeting, see: http://www.epa.gov/airlinewater .

2006 Children’s Environmental Health Excellence Awards
EPA’s Office of Children’s Health Protection is accepting applications for the 2006 Children’s Environmental Health Excellence Awards. The awards are designed to increase awareness, stimulate activity, and recognize efforts that protect children from environmental health risks at the local, regional, national, and international level. Awards are divided into five categories: Government, Non-Governmental Organizations, Corporate, Individual, and K-12 and Higher Education. You may apply under only one category. EPA will be looking for projects that significantly impact children’s environmental health issues through research; indicators; capacity building; regulatory and policy innovations; education and outreach; and interventions. Applications are due Dec. 15, and an awards ceremony will be held for the winners in Washington, D.C., in spring 2006.

More information: http://yosemite.epa.gov/ochp/ochpweb.nsf/content/news2.htm#cehawards or call Carolyn Hubbard of EPA’s Office of Children’s Health Protection at 202-564-2189.

Progress on Pesticide Reviews
Last month, EPA issued its fourth annual report regarding our progress implementing risk mitigation measures for 10 pesticides undergoing reregistration and tolerance reassessment, and subject to deadlines established by a Sept. 2001 Consent Decree with NRDC. The pesticides addressed in the report include atrazine, azinphos-methyl, benomyl, carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, diazinon, endosulfan, lindane, phosmet, and propargite. In addition, the report discusses EPA's plans for completing cumulative risk assessments for several groups of pesticides identified as potentially having common mechanisms of toxicity. More information is at: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/reregistration/reports.htm .

Report: Energy Star Helps Americans Save $10 Billion on Energy Bills
With the help of Energy Star, Americans saved about $10 billion and the amount of energy required to power about 25 million homes during peak power, a recent report shows. Energy Star, a government-backed program helping businesses and individuals protect the environment through superior energy efficiency, and EPA's other voluntary programs together prevented 57 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, an increase from 48 million in 2003. The annual Energy Star report is available at: http://www.energystar.gov/ia/news/downloads/annual_report2004.pdf . More information on EPA’s climate protection partnerships is at: http://www.epa.gov/cppd .

Annual Superfund Report Available
In the fiscal year ending on Sept. 30, EPA’s Superfund program completed construction at 40 sites across the country, for a total of 61 percent of the sites on the National Priorities List, according to the recent annual report on the clean up program. The report highlights efforts to increase community participation, strengthening partnerships, and enhancing cleanup effectiveness and consistency in program implementation. EPA also focuses on beneficial reuse and revitalization of sites following cleanup and ensuring that remedies continue to protect human health. The report summarizes finances - in FY2004, EPA spent $507 million on construction and post-construction activities, and emergency response actions, while also obligating $104 million for 27 new construction projects. As the Superfund program matures, the size, complexity and cost of sites that are under or ready to begin construction continue to grow. In fiscal year 2004, more than 52 percent of the Superfund obligations for long-term, ongoing cleanup work were committed to nine sites.The report is available at: http://www.epa.gov/superfund .

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Press Releases

Automatically receive all EPA New England news releases: http://www.epa.gov/region1/pr/pr-ne-subscribe.html

Burlington, VT - Grants Will Help Address Childhood Lead Poisoning

Woburn, MA - Comment Period Reopened for Proposed Industri-Plex Clean Up Plan

Burlington, VT - ReCycle North Wins Grant for Reducing Building Waste

Marlborough, MA - Chamber of Commerce Gets Grant to Reduce Municipal Waste

Pittsfield, MA - Green Building Grant for Technique Demonstrations

New England’s Best Workplaces for Commuters

World Water Monitoring Day Celebrations:

Pittsfield, MA - Citizens Coordinating Council Mtg. on 10/26

Watertown, MA - Cleanup Nears Completion at Former Arsenal

Holyoke, MA - Fine Proposed for CSO Violations

Wellesley, MA - Settlement on Morses Pond Culvert Site

Durham, CT -Cleanup Plan Approved for Durham Meadows Superfund Site

Southington, CT - Cleanup Plan Approved for Solvents Recovery Services Superfund Site

R.I. Manufacturer Cited for CAA Violations

Troy, NH - Cleanup Plan Approved for Troy Mills Landfill Superfund Site

CT Landlord Faces Fines for Lead Paint Notification Failures

Acton / Concord MA - Cleanup Plan Approved for W.R. Grace Superfund Site

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Meetings & Conferences

Citizens Coordinating Council for GE Pittsfield/Housatonic River
Wed. Oct. 26

New Bedford Harbor - public meeting
Thurs. Oct. 27

Index of November meetings

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What's New on the Web

RSS Now Available for EPA New England info:

Grant Information page - updated

Brownfields Grant Guidance

Environmental Education Grants - updated info

NPDES permits

Storm water NOIs - new info for MA & NH

No Discharge Zones - updated

Legal Internship Opportunity at EPA New England

GE - Housatonic site - September monthly report

GE - Housatonic River 1.5 Mile - Sept. report

GE - Housatonic site - Pre-Design Investigation Report Unkamet Brook

Brownfields ‘What’s New’

W.R. Grace site - Record of Decision

Troy Mills - Reuse Assessment

Cannon Superfund Site (Bridgewater, MA) - Five Year Review

Industri-Plex Superfund Site - updated documents

New Hampshire Plating - Reuse Assessment

Pownal Tannery - Reuse Profile

Saco Tannery - Reuse Profile

Pinette's Salvage Yard Five Year Review

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