Significant Developments and Activities Report

LAND AND CHEMICALS DIVISION
Weekly Significant Developments and Activities Report
December 12, 2008

Monitoring at White Lake in Michigan Shows Quality Improvements in Fish

The RCRA final remedy for the Occidental Chemical Corporation (OCC) site located in Montague, Michigan resulted in the dredging of 10,500 cubic yards of sediment contaminated with PCBs and hexachlorobenzene from White Lake. The dredging was performed in the summer of 2003. A long-term monitoring plan for fish tissue sampling was initiated to gage the success of the dredging project in reducing contaminant concentrations in fish.

Skin-off fillets of the European carp (Cyprinus carpio) were obtained from White Lake in the summer of 2008 and contaminant concentrations were compared to skin-off fillets obtained shortly after dredging was completed in September 2003. Hexachlorobenzene is no longer detected in fish and average PCB concentrations decreased by a factor of ten to 0.03 mg/kg over the five year period. Only two of the twelve fish fillet samples had detectable concentrations of PCBs.

None of the twelve fish collected in 2008 exceeded the tolerance levels adopted by the Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) of 2 mg/kg PCBs for the general population, or 0.2 mg/kg for women of childbearing age and children under 15 years who consume one meal per month of the fish. Two of the twelve fish (17%) did exceed the strictest MDCH criterion of 0.05 mg/kg for women of childbearing age and children under 15 years who consume one meal per week of the fish.

The long-term monitoring plan requires OCC to conduct additional fish sampling and further evaluate the success of the dredging project in 2013.
Contact: Kenneth Bardo, 312-886-7566

Region 5 Participates in Illinois Educational Facility Management Designation Program Training

On December 5, Region 5 Children’s Health Program Manager, Maryann Suero, served as an instructor at the Environmental Health and Safety training course for school facilities managers in Illinois. The course, sponsored by Illinois Association of School Business Officials (IASBO), is required for successful completion by those seeking IASBO’s Educational Facility Management Designation, a voluntary certification program designed to enhance the development of a professional school facilities management workforce in Illinois.

Forty participants, representing 33 Illinois school districts, received instruction about the special vulnerabilities of children, integrated pest management, indoor air quality, green cleaning, asbestos, lead and health / life safety topics. They were also introduced to EPA's Healthy School Environments Assessment Tool and other tools designed to help schools assess, track and address their environmental and environmental health challenges.

In addition to Dr. Suero, instructors included representatives from environmental health advocacy groups, Safer Pest Control Project and Healthy Schools Campaign, as well as environmental health and safety consultants.
Contact: Maryann Suero, 312-886-9077

Alternative Covers for Landfills Workshop, Raleigh, NC

On December 1st -3rd, 2008, Rebecca Geyer of the Materials Management Branch participated in the ‘Alternative Covers for Landfills’ Workshop in Raleigh, NC hosted by EPA ORD, the University of Washington, and the Desert Research Institute. The workshop was created as a means to teach consultants and engineers how to design and submit effective proposals for alternative covers, and to teach regulators how to evaluate those proposals. The focus of the workshop was for participants to learn the hydraulic properties of these covers, how to optimize designs with model techniques, and how to ensure final installation is environmentally protective. The training succeeded in familiarizing participants with the most current research on performance, monitoring, design, and construction techniques related to alternative covers. Furthermore, the workshop successfully fostered a constructive dialogue between local regulators and private sector engineers regarding cover design and applicability in local scenarios.
Contact: Rebecca Geyer, 312-353-8314

ChAMPs and Great Lakes Initiatives

On December 4, 2008, Toxics Section and GLNPO staff met with the Directors of EPA’s ChAMP program and Environment Canada’s Chemicals Management Program (CMP) to discuss methods of implementation for national emerging chemicals and toxics reduction programs also affecting the Great Lakes and the Great Lakes Binational Toxics Strategy (GLBTS), a binational, ecosystems-based program. The focus of the meeting was linking chemicals identified by both nations and their respective programs to monitoring, surveillance, research and voluntary strategies employed in the GLBTS in order to reduce duplication of program areas, while also enhancing the programs overall. The project is expected to continue throughout the year 2009.

During the meeting, Jim Willis of EPA's ChAMP program stated that he envisioned the GLBTS doing a matrix or listing of ChAMP and CMP chemicals, and then finding which of those chemicals were on both lists, and then determining which pose the greatest threat to the Great Lakes.

Mr. Willis also stated that he was looking for viable pilot projects with those chemicals selected.
Contact: Bradley Grams, 312-886-7747

Financial Assurance Initiative Meeting with IDEM

On December 8, the RCRA Branch, the HQs Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, Industrial Economics (IEc) and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management held the first of a series of conference calls to discuss the findings of the Preliminary Financial Assurance Assessments (PFAs) conducted in Indiana. The PFAs in Indiana are a part of a national initiative to evaluate the adequacy of closure and post closure financial assurance mechanisms in place at hazardous waste treatment, storage and disposal facilities. During the meeting, the parties began discussing the appropriate follow up steps to ensure potential deficiencies in financial assurance are addressed.
Contact: Todd Brown, 312-886-6091

Pesticides Section Staff Meetings with Headquarters and States on State Containment Rules

The Pesticides Section has completed two in a series of six meetings with Headquarters Offices of Pesticide Programs, Enforcement and Compliance Assurance and General Counsel and Region 5 States to discuss State containment rules. The first meeting was held with Minnesota on November 12. The second meeting was held with Ohio on December 4. The purpose is to determine whether the States can continue to enforce State containment rules in lieu of the Federal rules, which became effective on August 16, 2006 [Federal Register: August 16, 2006 (Vol. 71, No. 158), (Rules and Regulations) pages 47329-47378]. Enforcement of the containment provisions of the rule is due to begin on August 17, 2009.

In order to continue enforcing State containment regulations, a State must demonstrate that the State regulations provide environmental protection equivalent to that provided by the federal regulations. The series of meetings with States and Headquarters are critical to this determination. It is expected that the discussions with all Region 5 States will be completed by February and that final decisions by EPA Headquarters will be made by March 2009.
Contact: Margaret Jones, 312-353-5790

Region 5 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit FY 2008 Summary

The Region 5 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU) experienced another very active and successful year in FY 2008. The PEHSU’s outreach and training efforts ranged from presentations at health fairs, Grand Rounds events at hospitals, and specific training lectures to medical, nursing, and physician assistant students, reaching approximately 7000 individuals. Several PEHSU physicians also gave television news interviews about children’s health issues, reaching over 300,000 people.

The PEHSU, including the Cincinnati satellite, received a total of 218 initial telephone consultation requests, and requiring 258 follow-up contacts. As in the case of outreach events, telephone consultations involved the full range of children’s environmental health concerns, including lead, pesticides, arsenic, mold and other indoor air contaminants, mercury, contaminants in water, hazardous waste and soil contaminants. The largest number of calls came directly from parents, with doctors and nurses making up the other largest group. Through its many consultations, the PEHSU provides science-based guidance and support on complex health issues that may otherwise not be adequately addressed. Finally, the PEHSU distributed an impressive array of outreach and educational materials in response to these consultations, including many EPA materials. This use strengthens the health care community’s understanding of EPA as a partner in environmental health education.
Contact: Edward Master, 312-353-5830

Western Michigan Children’s Health Initiative

Responsive to Region 5’s Western Michigan Children’s Health Initiative, the PEHSU Director, Dr. Daniel Hryhorczuk, worked with the Western Michigan Osteopathic Medicine Association to provide training in Muskegon to 50 physicians addressing medical aspects of lead poisoning and its prevention. This training, held in April 2008, was an outgrowth of the PESHU’s earlier participation with the Muskegon Health Department in 2007 in a Town Hall meeting on lead poisoning prevention.
Contact: Edward Master, 312-353-5830

Cooperation in Piloting EPA’s EJ SEAT

2008 also saw the growth of the PEHSU’s collaboration with the newly formed Chicago Consortium for Reproductive Environmental Health in Minority Communities (CREHM). As a new collaborator in the PEHSU, Dr. Susan Buchanan of the University of Illinois Medical Center, also assumed the role of the Director of CREHM. With Dr. Buchanan’s guidance, the PEHSU and CREHM began collaboration on a pilot use of EPA’s EJ SEAT data for Chicago to evaluate the data’s utility to external partners, such as the PEHSU, CREHM and other community groups, in targeting and prioritizing their environmental health activities. In January 2009, EPA representatives will meet with CREHM and PEHSU members to discuss the results of this review of EJ SEAT data. Finally, the PEHSU also contributed greatly to the planning of the first CREHM conference that was held in October 2008.
Contact: Edward Master, 312-353-5830

Extending PEHSU Services throughout Region 5

Fiscal Year 2008 also marked the first year of participation of the PEHSU satellite at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital (Satellite). The presence of this Satellite allows for greater PEHSU coverage in the eastern part of Region 5 that has traditionally not had great involvement with the PEHSU. A primary accomplishment of the Satellite was the establishment of a pediatric environmental health rotation for residents in occupational medicine. In addition, the satellite hired a Fellow in pediatric environmental health who will be a welcome addition to the current medical staff affiliated with the PEHSU. The activity of the Satellite site has also involved an increased interaction between the Region 5 and Region 4 PEHSUs, since a number of the callers and clinical visits to the Satellite originate from Kentucky, as part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area.
Contact: Edward Master, 312-353-5830

PESHU contributes to Regional Leadership in Biomonitoring

Finally, throughout FY 2008, the PEHSU continued its participation in a feasibility study of implementing a biomonitoring program for environmental toxins in the State of Illinois. The PEHSU is collaborating with public health departments in other states which have implemented similar programs, including California, Minnesota, and New York. The PEHSU’s expertise is particularly useful in carrying out one the biomonitoring approaches, which identifies high risk groups such as children and pregnant women and identifies potential biomonitoring studies for these groups.
Contact: Edward Master, 312-353-5830

University of Minnesota – Minneapolis Notice of Violation

On December 11, 2008, the RCRA Branch issued the University of Minnesota's Minneapolis Campus a Notice of Violation (NOV) for violations of certain regulations pertaining to large quantity generators of hazardous waste. The violations include: the storage of hazardous waste in excess of 90 days; minor deficiencies in the University's hazardous waste contingency plan; an inadequate land disposal restriction notification for one of the University's hazardous waste streams; and the failure to develop a written inspection schedule for a waste water treatment unit. The NOV requires the University of Minnesota to address the violations within 30 days. No further enforcement action is planned at this time.
Contact: Todd Brown, 312-886-6091

UST Fund Soundness Guidance

On December 3, 2008, Laura Lodisio RPS Chief and section staff (Restaino, Hill, Cisneros) participated in a national conference call lead by OUST to discuss the draft "Guidance for the Regional Review of State Funds as a Financial Responsibility Mechanisms for Federally-Regulated Underground Storage Tanks". OUST indicated that the purpose of this draft guidance is to institutionalize consistent oversight of state funds. The discussion determined that most of the regions currently conduct a general soundness review as part of the state grant overviews; however, this draft guidance greatly increases the complexity of those reviews. OUST proposed that this be strictly a regional responsibility, but the majority of the regions, including R5, were not in agreement with that proposal. Instead, the regions prefer that this audit of state funds be centralized out of HQ, most likely through a HQ contractor. The reasons for the regions recommendation included lack of regional resources, lack of regional expertise, and concern over obtaining the detailed level of financial data from the states and criteria for withdrawing approval of state funds. Even though the regions expressed the desire for the audits to be centralized, they did indicate that any decision for withdrawal of state fund approval should remain with the Regional Administrators.
Contact: Laura Lodisio, 312-886-7090

MMB Hosted Initial Region 5 Stakeholder Meeting on Drywall Recycling

On December 10th, 2008, MMB hosted an initial discussion on drywall recycling among 24 regional stakeholders, including representatives from all Region 5 states, the City of Chicago, the Chicago Waste-to-Profit Network, the US Green Building Council Chicago Chapter, the Construction Materials Recycling Association, the Gypsum Association, and four drywall manufacturers that produce products in the region. Drywall is a major component of the construction and demolition waste stream that is not readily recyclable due to the lack of well-developed markets for the material. There is interest in diverting drywall from landfills due to overall recycling efforts, the green building movement, and hydrogen sulfide gas generation that occurs when drywall and similar materials are exposed to certain conditions that can exist in a landfill environment. Participants discussed regional market conditions, several logistical issues with regards to drywall-to-drywall recycling, the status of state drywall recycling market development efforts, and the need to update the existing information resource on the internet on drywall recycling. Stakeholders will evaluate feasible next steps for developing markets in the region and identify opportunities for collaboration.
Contact: Julie Gevrenov, 312-886-6832

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