EPA Opens Registration for Campus RainWorks Design Challenge Competition

Press release:

EPA Opens Registration for Campus RainWorks Design Challenge Competition

Contact Information: Davina Marraccini (News Media Only), (404) 562-8293, marraccini.davina@epa.gov

(ATLANTA – Sept. 6, 2012) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has opened registration for student teams from colleges and universities across the country to participate in its new design competition, the Campus RainWorks Challenge, through which teams will compete to develop innovative approaches to stormwater management. This first annual competition, will help raise awareness of green design and planning approaches at colleges and universities, and train the next generation of landscape architects, planners, and engineers in green infrastructure principles and design. Stormwater is a major cause of harmful water pollution in urban areas in the U.S., impacting tens of thousands of miles of rivers, streams, and coastal shorelines, as well as hundreds of thousands of acres of lakes, reservoirs, and ponds.

Student teams, working with a faculty advisor, will submit design plans for a proposed green infrastructure project for their campus. Registration for the Campus RainWorks Challenge is open from September 4 through October 5, and entries must be submitted by December 14, 2012 for consideration. Winning entries will be selected by EPA and announced in April 2013. Winning teams will earn a cash prize of $1,500 - $2,500, as well as $8,000 - $11,000 in funds for their faculty advisor to conduct research on green infrastructure. In 2013, EPA plans to expand Campus RainWorks by inviting students to design and complete a demonstration project assessing innovative green infrastructure approaches on their campus.

EPA is encouraging the use of green infrastructure as a solution to help manage stormwater runoff. Green Infrastructure uses vegetation, soils, and natural processes to manage stormwater runoff at its source and provide other community benefits. Green infrastructure is increasingly being used to supplement or substitute for single-purpose “gray” infrastructure investments such as pipes, and ponds. The Campus RainWorks Challenge will help encourage the use of green infrastructure projects on college and university campuses to manage stormwater discharges.

More information on the Campus RainWorks Challenge:

http://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/greeninfrastructure/crw_challenge.cfm

JPMorgan Chase Bank top Reimburse Government $1.28 Million for Cleanup of Boone County, W.Va. Superfund Site

Press release:

JPMorgan Chase Bank top Reimburse Government $1.28 Million for Cleanup of Boone County, W.Va. Superfund Site

Cleanup of the Browning Lumber Co. site was completed earlier this year and included extensive cleanup by EPA prior to cleanup work performed by JPMorgan Chase -- the corporate successor to a former site owner. The site will be eligible for appropriate re-use as part of West Virginia’s voluntary cleanup program, which encourages voluntary clean-ups of contaminated sites as well as redevelopments of abandoned and under-utilized properties.

Starting in 1976, Charleston National Bank, owner of the site as trustee of the Shepard Trust, leased the property to the Browning Lumber Co., which harvested timber and used part of the property for wood-treatment. Charleston National is now merged with JPMorgan Chase.

The site became contaminated after decades-long wood-treating activities using chromated copper arsenate (CCA). CCA contains the hazardous substances chromium, copper and arsenic.  Although the facility ceased operations by 1998, hazardous substances, primarily arsenic in soil, continued to pose a threat to human health and the environment.

Following a fire, EPA first investigated the site in late 2005 and later conducted a cleanup in 2006 and 2007 that included decontamination of the old wood-treatment facility, stabilization of a large area of contaminated soil, and proper disposal of 100 cubic yard of soil contaminated with arsenic and chromium and 43 drums of liquid and solid hazardous wastes.

For more information on this site, visit http://www.epaosc.org/site/site_profile.aspx?site_id=1961

PHILADELPHIA (Sept. 5, 2012) - In a settlement announced today by the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, JPMorgan Chase Bank has reimbursed the federal government $1.28 million for costs incurred by EPA in cleaning up the Browning Lumber Company Superfund Site in rural Bald Knob, Boone County, W.Va. Under the Superfund law, past and current owners and operators of a Superfund site are responsible for the cleanup costs.  

FRIDAY: United States and Canada to Announce Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement

Press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESeptember 5, 2012
FRIDAY: United States and Canada to Announce Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement

WASHINGTON – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson and Canadian Environment Minister Peter Kent will sign an updated Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement on Friday, September 7th. Administrator Jackson and Minister Kent will hold a short press availability following the signing ceremony.

The agreement, last updated in 1987, addresses critical health issues in the Great Lakes region and is a model of binational cooperation to protect water quality. The two governments began negotiations in 2009 to strengthen the agreement.

WHO:               U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson
                        Canadian Environment Minister Peter Kent

WHAT:              Signing ceremony and press availability

WHEN:             2 p.m. EDT, Friday, September 7, 2012

WHERE:           Embassy of Canada, 501 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001.

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EPA Opens Registration for Campus RainWorks Design Challenge Competition

Press release:


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASESeptember 5, 2012
 
EPA Opens Registration for Campus RainWorks Design Challenge Competition

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has opened registration for student teams from colleges and universities across the country to participate in its new design competition, the Campus RainWorks Challenge, through which teams will compete to develop innovative approaches to stormwater management. This first annual competition, will help raise awareness of green design and planning approaches at colleges and universities, and train the next generation of landscape architects, planners, and engineers in green infrastructure principles and design. Stormwater is a major cause of harmful water pollution in urban areas in the U.S., impacting tens of thousands of miles of rivers, streams, and coastal shorelines, as well as hundreds of thousands of acres of lakes, reservoirs, and ponds.

Student teams, working with a faculty advisor, will submit design plans for a proposed green infrastructure project for their campus. Registration for the Campus RainWorks Challenge is open from September 4 through October 5, and entries must be submitted by December 14, 2012 for consideration. Winning entries will be selected by EPA and announced in April 2013. Winning teams will earn a cash prize of $1,500 - $2,500, as well as $8,000 - $11,000 in funds for their faculty advisor to conduct research on green infrastructure. In 2013, EPA plans to expand Campus RainWorks by inviting students to design and complete a demonstration project assessing innovative green infrastructure approaches on their campus.

EPA is encouraging the use of green infrastructure as a solution to help manage stormwater runoff. Green Infrastructure uses vegetation, soils, and natural processes to manage stormwater runoff at its source and provide other community benefits. Green infrastructure is increasingly being used to supplement or substitute for single-purpose “gray” infrastructure investments such as pipes, and ponds. The Campus RainWorks Challenge will help encourage the use of green infrastructure projects on college and university campuses to manage stormwater discharges.

More information on the Campus RainWorks Challenge:http://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/greeninfrastructure/crw_challenge.cfm

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The Performance Operating Company Fined for Violating the Clean Water Act

Press release:

The Performance Operating Company Fined for Violating the Clean Water Act

(DALLAS – September 5, 2012) The Environmental Protection Agency has fined the Performance Operating Company, LLC, of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, $3,250 for violating federal Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations at two of its oil production facilities.

A June 28, 2012, EPA inspection at the company’s North Kane Tank Battery in Osage County, Oklahoma, found the facility’s SPCC plan had inadequate or no facility diagram, no listing of type of oil and storage capacity layout of containers, and the plan did not discuss nor implement appropriate containment and diversionary structures and equipment. The inspection also revealed the field drainage system, oil traps and skimmers were not regularly inspected and oil not promptly removed. The fine for the violations at the North Kane Tank Battery was $1,750.

A second EPA inspection on June 28, 2012, found the company’s #4A SWD facility in Osage County had no SPCC plan as required by federal regulations. The fine for the absence of an SPCC plan was $1,500.

As part of an Expedited Settlement Agreement with the EPA, the company has provided certification that all identified deficiencies have been corrected at both facilities.

SPCC regulations require onshore oil production or bulk storage facilities to provide oil spill prevention, preparedness and countermeasures to prevent oil discharges. The SPCC program helps protect our nation’s water quality since a spill of only one gallon of oil can contaminate one million gallons of water.

Additional information on SPCC regulations is available at: http://www.epa.gov/oilspill

More about activities in EPA Region 6 is available at http://www.epa.gov/aboutepa/region6.html

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In Support of Affected States, EPA Approves Temporary Fuel Waiver for 8 States Impacted by Hurricane Isaac

Press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 5, 2012

In Support of Affected States, EPA Approves Temporary Fuel Waiver for 8 States Impacted by Hurricane Isaac

WASHINGTON - As a result of the disruption in the supply of fuel from Gulf-area refineries following Hurricane Isaac, and at the request of Governors, EPA has exercised its authority under the Clean Air Act to temporarily waive certain federal clean gasoline requirements for gasoline sold and distributed in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina. The disruption and delays in production and delivery of gasoline resulted from effects of Hurricane Isaac.

This waiver was granted by EPA in coordination with the Department of Energy (DOE). EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson determined that extreme and unusual supply circumstances exist, which may result in a temporary shortage of gasoline compliant with federal regulations. The federal waiver will help ensure an adequate supply of gasoline in the impacted states until normal supply to the region can be restored.

The waiver applies to the use of low Reid Vapor Pressure (RVP) "summertime" gasoline for the remainder of the "high ozone" period, which ends on Sept 15. Due to a number of continuing refinery outages caused by Hurricane Isaac, and the slower-than-expected-pace of restarts of other Gulf-area refineries, EPA determined that there would not be an adequate supply of summertime gasoline for these states through Sept 15. The waiver allows available supplies of higher RVP "wintertime" gasoline to be used prior to the end of the high ozone period, in order to prevent a gasoline supply shortfall in these states.

States bordering on this area are projected to have sufficient supplies of compliant summertime fuel through the end of the high ozone period in two weeks, and no shortages are expected to develop. However, EPA will continue to actively monitor fuel supplies in these areas, and will act expeditiously if needed to prevent a shortfall.

More information: http://epa.gov/enforcement/air/fuel-waivers.html

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Brookhaven, Pa. Resident Wins EPA Award for Getting Feds to Better Manage Electronics

Press release:

Brookhaven, Pa. Resident Wins EPA Award for

Getting Feds to Better Manage Electronics 

PHILADELPHIA (Sept. 4, 2012) – Daniel Gallo, a resident of Brookhaven, Pa., is one of only 10 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency employees nationwide honored for helping federal agencies protect the environment by making smarter purchases and use of electronics products. Gallo’s efforts helped federal agencies save $7.8 million and cut harmful greenhouse gas emissions last year to the equivalency of taking 6,000 passenger cars off the road for one year, earning him the 2012 Federal Electronics Challenge Award.

The Federal Electronics Challenge Award is EPA’s prestigious national award which recognizes superior work in encouraging federal facilities and agencies to purchase greener electronics, use them in ways less harmful to the environment, and ensure old or used electronics are recycled or discarded in beneficial and environmentally-safe ways.

“In the last few years there’s been an explosion in the electronics field. Smart phones, tablets, printers, computers and other electronics are part of our everyday life,” said EPA Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin. “Dan is helping the federal government lead by example by making sure our own inventory of electronics is conscientiously managed from initial purchases, to daily use, and eventually properly recycling these products.”

Responsibly buying and managing electronics is important given that computers, mobile phones, printers and other electronic equipment contain toxic materials, consume significant amounts of energy during use, and present complex challenges when they are discarded.  

“The federal government is one of the largest consumers of electronics. And far too many electronics end up in landfills,” said Gallo, an EPA electronics recycling specialist. “What gives me a great deal of satisfaction is helping people to use these devices wisely and to help dispose of them with the least impact on the environment.”

Gallo, who has been with EPA for 23 years, has worked on the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Resource Conservation Recovery Act's waste regulations and has also been the enforcement coordinator for the lead-based paint program. He has worked as the region's electronics recycling specialist since 2007.

Gallo graduated from Monsignor Bonner High School in Drexel Hill, Pa. in 1975. After graduating from the University of Scranton in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Services, Gallo received a Masters degree of Public Administration (MPA) in 1982 from the University of Pittsburgh-Graduate School of Public & International Affairs. In 1994 he graduated from Widener University School of Law with a Juris Doctorate.