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Refineries Agree to Cut Flaring, Emissions WASHINGTON, DC, October 1, 2003 (ENS) - Four oil refineries in three states will install and implement technologies to reduce polluting emissions from their largest emitting units under the terms of Clean Air Act settlements signed today with the U.S. government.The terms of the settlements address nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, benzene, and particulate emissions that can cause respiratory problems and worsen childhood asthma. The Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency announced comprehensive settlements with Coastal Eagle Point Oil Company (CEPOC), CHS Inc. (Cenex), Ergon-West Virginia Inc. and Ergon Refining Inc. that will bring them into compliance with Clean Air Act standards. The agreements will affect three percent of domestic refining capacity, about 285,000 barrels of oil per day, processed at refineries located in Vicksburg, Mississippi; Laurel, Montana; Westville, New Jersey; and Newel, West Virginia. Each refinery has agreed to upgrade its leak detection and repair practices, implement programs to minimize the number and severity of flaring events, and adopt new strategies for ensuring continued compliance with benzene waste requirements under the Clean Air Act's National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants. Experience under previous global refinery consent decrees suggests that flaring at these refineries may be reduced by more than 50 percent, the agencies said. Flaring is a concern for communities in the vicinity of refinery operations, often affecting minority and low income populations. Flaring is a high temperature oxidation process used to burn combustible components of gases produced by refining operations. The changes will reduce air emissions by more than 3,900 tons per year once the settlements are filed with U.S. District Courts in New Jersey, Montana and Mississippi, and the 30 day public comment period is completed. The states of Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey and West Virginia actively participated and are joining in these settlements. The refiners will pay civil penalties totaling $2.9 million. They will environmental projects valued at over $1.6 million to reduce idling truck emissions in New Jersey and provide improved equipment for first responders in Mississippi and West Virginia. "CEPOC, Cenex and Ergon showed a commitment to work constructively and cooperatively with EPA and its state and local partners," said John Peter Suarez, Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and Compliance at the EPA. "The settlements benefit not only the environment, but the communities that were directly affected by the pollutants. These settlements continue EPA's ongoing efforts to level the playing field for the industry." These settlements are the latest in a series of multi-issue, multi-facility settlements being pursued by the EPA under its Petroleum Refinery Initiative. The latest consent decrees, together with those covering Koch Petroleum, BP Exploration & Oil, Motiva, Equilon and Deer Park Refining, Marathon Ashland Petroleum, Conoco, Navajo Refining and Lion Oil settlements, account for 37 refineries and 35 percent of domestic refining capacity. The Justice Department and the EPA also announced a separate, narrower agreement with National Cooperative Refining Association in Kansas. This company will pay a penalty and implement supplemental environmental projects collectively valued at over $1.8 million. WASHINGTON, DC, October 1, 2003 (ENS) - Polluters are paying less and taxpayers are paying more to clean up hazardous U.S. waste sites than they were seven years ago, according to an analysis by U.S. Public Interest Research Group (U.S. PIRG). The polluter funded trust from which the Superfund program got its name is bankrupt as of today, the public interest advocacy organization points out, and this leaves taxpayers with the liabilities. "The bankruptcy of the Superfund trust fund marks a dramatic shift in toxic waste cleanup policy. The Bush administration is letting polluting industries off the hook again and leaving regular taxpayers to pay cleanup costs," said Julie Wolk, Environmental Health Advocate for U.S. PIRG. A recent report by the General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of the U.S. Congress, confirmed that Superfund's trust fund would be essentially gone by September 30 - the end of fiscal year 2003 - leaving regular taxpayers to carry the financial burden for toxic waste cleanups. In 1995, taxpayers paid for only 18 percent of the Superfund program, or $300 million, the U.S. PIRG analysis shows. Next year, American taxpayers will pay between $1.1 and $1.265 billion for the program, an increase of between 263 percent and 317 percent, the organization said. Meanwhile, the advocacy group charges that large polluting corporations enjoy a $4 million per day tax break as long as the Superfund polluter pays fees are not reinstated. Former Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton all collected polluter pays fees, or supported their reinstatement, but the current Bush administration is opposed to reinstating the fees. "At the same time that taxpayers are paying more and polluters are paying less, the number of Superfund sites getting cleaned up has been cut in half," said Wolk. "Under the Bush administration, the one in four Americans, including more than 10 million children, who still lives within four miles of a Superfund toxic waste site will continue to be exposed to toxic chemicals," she said. Last year, the Bush administration cleaned up 42 Superfund toxic waste sites and expects to clean up approximately 40 sites this year. This is a more than 50 percent decrease from the late 1990s when EPA cleaned up an average of 87 sites per year. See a breakdown of the state-by-state cost to taxpayers of cleaning up Superfund sites at: http://www.uspirg.org/StatebyStateCosts1995-2004.PDF
EPA Attracts Public Attention to Energy Star Lighting WASHINGTON, DC, October 1, 2003 (ENS) - “If each household in the U.S. switched the lighting in just one room to Energy Star, we’d save enough energy to light more than 34 million homes and prevent one trillion pounds of greenhouse gas emissions," Marianne Horinko said today. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acting administrator was launching the government's 2003 Change a Light, Change the World campaign, which encourages Americans to switch to bulbs and fixtures that have earned the Energy Star label, to save energy, money, and protect the environment.By replacing the five most frequently used light fixtures or bulbs at home with models that have earned the Energy Star, "a household can save more than $60 a year in energy costs while enjoying the latest in style, design, convenience and efficiency,” Horinko said. Energy Star lights include compact fluorescent light bulbs. The EPA says that if every household in the United States replaced one light bulb with an Energy Star qualified compact fluorescent bulb, it would prevent enough pollution to equal removing one million cars from the road. There are also Energy Star rated fixtures that can now be found at most home centers, lighting showrooms, and specialty stores. These fixtures must last at least 10,000 hours and some last up to 20,000 hours. This means that with regular use - 3.5 hours a day - the bulbs will last for at least seven years. Energy Star qualified fixtures can be torchieres, under and over cabinets in the kitchen, ceiling mounted lights, wall sconces, suspended fixtures and outdoor lighting, including motion sensor fixtures. The EPA, working with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), began the national campaign with an energy efficient lighting makeover at the Thomas Edison Winter Home in Fort Myers, Florida. The home’s outdoor lamp posts and porch lights are being changed to bulbs and fixtures that have earned the Energy Star. This change coincides with the upcoming 125th anniversary of Edison’s own light bulb invention. Energy Star qualified lighting lasts six to 10 times longer than traditional lighting, and operates on two-thirds less energy. Lighting products that have earned the label generate about 70 percent less heat than incandescent lighting, which means they are cool to the touch and help reduce energy costs associated with cooling the home. During October and November, EPA and DOE are partnering with hundreds of manufacturers, retailers, state governments, utilities, and regional energy efficiency organizations throughout the United States to make finding and buying energy-efficient light bulbs and fixtures easier. Local, regional, and national activities include lighting change out events and special offers from participating retail, manufacturer, and regional utility partners to help consumers save on light bulbs and fixtures that have earned the Energy Star. To find out more visit: http://www.energystar.gov
Delaware Energy Task Force Blueprint for the Future DOVER, Delaware, October 1, 2003 (ENS) – A task force that has been working for more than a year on crafting an energy policy for Delaware, Tuesday presented Governor Ruth Ann Minner with nine strategies for the state's energy future, from reducing consumption to promoting more renewable energy sources.“Sound energy policies are critical to improving our quality of life. A livable Delaware requires us to continually improve our energy efficiency,” said Governor Minner who created the task force in April 2002. “We need to focus on an energy supply that is reliable, affordable and clean. This report is intended to be the blueprint for Delaware’s energy future.” The Delaware Energy Task Force recommends that the state government be required to consider energy efficiency as a factor in state purchasing. The state would be wise to improve energy efficiency and conservation efforts by energy users, and encourage clean and renewable energy generation, the task force said. Allowing electricity customers to purchase a certain amount of "green energy" is one of the 55 high priority recommendations presented by the task force. Residential and commercial building codes should be updated to incorporate modern energy efficiency standards, said the task force, which also recommended the establishment of a clean energy research center. The state should address the issue of transmission congestion, especially in southern Delaware, the task force advised, and promote natural gas and alternative transportation fuels as energy sources. Delaware should pursue legislation mandating that all diesel fuel in the state be at least two percent biodiesel, a fuel made from plant materials such as agricultural waste. Creating an energy advisory council to monitor Delaware’s energy systems and provide ongoing counsel to the governor would be a good idea, according to the task force. Task Force Chairman W. Michael McCabe said, “These issues are complex and don’t lend themselves to a quick fix, but with the resolve and innovation that is characteristic of the people of Delaware, we are confident the challenge will be met.” The report includes 14 tips for homeowners to conserve energy, including using more energy efficient appliances, shower heads, attic and window insulation. The Delaware Energy Task Force report is available online at: http://www.state.de.us/governor/publications
Phoenix Summer Air Quality Better Than Expected PHOENIX, Arizona, October 1, 2003 ENS) - The Phoenix metropolitan area reported better than expected air quality during the summer ozone season, which ended Tuesday, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) Director Steve Owens said.Owens attributed the lower number to increased public awareness and the people's willingness to telecommute and use alternate modes of transportation to reduce their driving during the heat of the day. The department had expected to exceed federal standards for ozone pollution 19 times based on an analysis of data collected over the past several years, Owens said, but this year's data revealed only 14 "exceedances." The improved results were observed despite record high temperatures and a gasoline pipeline break that caused a late summer fuel shortage. A shortage of gas in mid-August due to the Kinder-Morgan pipeline break caused many Phoenix residents to drive additional miles and idle in long lines to get gasoline. But officials say that increased carpooling and bus ridership during the gasoline shortage may have worked in favor of better air quality. "This year's summer ozone campaign has been very successful," Owens said. "We not only beat air quality expectations, but we also provided a great deal more information to the public about the health hazards associated with exposure to ground-level ozone pollution." Starting this year, ADEQ based its forecasts on the new federal eight hour ozone standard, which measures the highest average concentration over any eight-hour period each day. In previous years, the department issued forecasts based on the current one hour standard, which measures the highest ozone concentration recorded in any one hour period each day. While the new eight hour standard does not take effect until next year, the ADEQ and its Clean Air Campaign partners at Valley Metro and the Maricopa County Department of Environmental Services decided to move ahead with the transition this year as part of an effort to educate the public and prepare people for the challenge of meeting the new, tougher standard. The more stringent eight hour standard provides a more realistic measure of the exposure to harmful health effects of ground level ozone pollution. The standard is based on medical studies indicating that prolonged exposure to low level ozone concentrations is as harmful to human health as exposure to higher levels for shorter durations. In preparation for the move to the new standard, ADEQ and its partners revamped their notification process, adopting a combination of "ozone health watches" for those in sensitive groups and "ozone health warnings" for the general population. The department also issued weekly "ozone outlook" forecasts to help Valley residents to plan their weekly commutes. "The feedback on our weekly ozone outlook forecasts has been very positive," Owens said. "More importantly, the strategy appears to have helped lower the number of poor air quality days." Owens noted that maintaining healthy air quality this summer was particularly challenging because of the above average temperatures throughout July and much of August and Employers have also played a huge role in maintaining our air quality over the summer by getting their employees to use alternative modes this summer, especially on Ozone Health Warning days," said Susan Tierney, marketing coordinator for Valley Metro's Rideshare Program. "More than 550 employers signed up as part of a program to encourage their employees to ride the bus, carpool, or work from home on days when ozone levels were high." Tierney said Valley Metro saw a dramatic increase in the number of people visiting the ShareTheRide.com external link Web site to receive carpool/vanpool match list information, probably a result of the gasoline shortage. In July, the site produced 651 match lists, but in August the number jumped to 1,361. Bus ridership increased nearly 12 percent, due to an increase in services over the past year. Systemwide, more than 50 million passengers rode Valley Metro buses last year.
Court Rules IBM Cancer Lawsuit Can Go to Trial SAN JOSE, California, October 1, 2003 (ENS) - The first of more than 250 worker lawsuits against technology giant IBM can proceed to trial, Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Robert Baines has ruled.The company Friday asked the judge to dismiss the case brought by four former IBM employees who contend that carcinogenic chemicals they encountered on the job caused them to become sick with cancer. The four workers - Alida Hernandez, James Moore, Suzanne Rubio, and Maria Santiago - worked in IBM's semiconductor assembly plant in San Jose during the 1970s and 1980s. They claim that IBM knew the workers were being exposed to cancer causing chemicals, but did not tell them. In reply, IBM maintains that chemical poisoning does not identify a particular injury as the law requires. There is no scientific evidence supporting the claims, the company says, and argues that California workers' compensation law prohibits employees from suing employers for damages in most cases. The workers' lawsuit seeks unspecified damages against IBM and its chemical suppliers, including Fisher Scientific, Shell Oil, and Union Carbide. IBM's manufacturing facility in San Jose employed about 50,000 people since 1965, and was sold to Japan's Hitachi last year. Environmental advocates have warned for years that microchip assembly plants are toxic places to work. “We’ve known for more than three decades that the manufacturing of computer chips requires many toxic chemicals and that workers have been getting sick from exposure to those chemicals,” said Dr. Joseph LaDou, a University of California occupational physician who has been treating electronics workers since the 1970s. Dr. LaDou made these remarks back in March 2002 in response to the Semiconductor Industry Association's statement that it would conduct a preliminary review to determine if it is possible to conduct a study of health risks in the semiconductor industry, rather than just conducting the health study.
Pennsylvania Treats Mine Water as Future Power Plant Coolant HARRISBURG, Pennsylvania, October 1, 2003 (ENS) - A polluted mine pool at the abandoned Shannopin coal mine in Greene County, Pennsylvania will be pumped and treated before it breaks out and pollutes a tributary of the Monongahela River, Governor Edward Rendell announced Thursday.A $7.1 million treatment plant will be built to pump and treat 3,900 gallons per minute of polluted mine water from the Shannopin mine abandoned in 1993. The plant will then discharge the treated water into Dunkard Creek through a pipeline about two miles long. Shannopin Coal Company mined the Pittsburgh coal seam in the Shannopin Mine from 1926 until the early 1990s. Shannopin then went into bankruptcy and abandoned the mine. Pennsylvania forfeited and collected $282,000 in bonds in 1995. Using the bond money and more than $266,000 in funds from the Growing Greener program, the Commonwealth completed three projects to demolish some hazardous surface structures and bridges and seal mine portal openings. But the mine pool in the Shannopin Mine is still rising at over one foot each month. If not for this treatment plant project, it is estimated an uncontrolled breakout of polluted mine pool water would occur at the mine’s old portal near Bobtown in 2004. The highly acidic discharge would severely impact Dunkard Creek and impact the Monongahela River. The rising Shannopin Mine pool has already flooded the reserves in Dana Mining Company's Dooley Run Mine, causing the company to shut that mine down. The Dooley Run Mine was operating in the Sewickley coal seam about 100 feet above the Pittsburgh seam. The pool then began to flood the reserves in the Dana company’s Titus Mine, forcing the company to cut the number of employees in that mine from 30 to 15. The company also had to postpone applying for a permit for a new coal mine, the Four West Mine. The Dana Mining Company will operate the new Shannopin treatment plant. Governor Rendell said the project will turn an environmental challenge into an economic opportunity. “This project will protect Pennsylvania waterways, save taxpayer money and stimulate growth by promoting industrial uses for abandoned mine water." The Shannopin mine project is part of a larger project to use treated water from abandoned Pennsylvania mine pools to provide cooling water to a proposed coal fired power plant in West Virginia. The power plant is still in the planning stages and is seeking an air quality permit from the West Virginia environmental agency. If constructed, the plant would require 7,000 gallons per minute of water for its cooling towers. A seven mile long pipeline would have to be built to carry the treated Shannopin mine water to the plant in West Virginia. “The potential tie-in with the power plant project makes this project even more promising, because it would be the realization of a concept we’ve been actively promoting for some time - the use of abandoned mine water as an industrial resource,” Governor Rendell said. “If this power plant project becomes reality, it will prove that it is possible to turn a detriment, namely polluted mine pools, into a valuable resource that can have a positive and profound impact on our economies and our environment," the governor said. "This should encourage other parties to consider using treated mine pool water for future projects, while preventing pollution to our waterways, and easing the burden on municipal water supplies.” The state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) will also conduct an interim response cleanup of the Shannopin Mine Prep Plant. The cleanup will address potentially hazardous wastes left behind when the site was abandoned in 1993. The DEP has conducted numerous inspections and has completed an inventory of potentially hazardous substances on the site including 282 tanks, cans, cylinders, buckets, bags, and an unsecured trailer, previously used as a laboratory. “The Prep Plant is located along the Monongahela River,” DEP Secretary Kathleen McGinty said. “We are very concerned about discharges of the leaking containers and petroleum products into the river and the unlimited access to the hazards on the site. We will take action to remove those hazards and protect the Monongahela River.”
New York Strengthens Timber Theft Law ALBANY, New York, October 1, 2003 (ENS) - Governor George Pataki today signed legislation that increases the penalties for timber theft and announced the availability of $645,000 in financial, educational, and technical assistance for owners of private forests in New York state.Provisions of the law will prohibit the cutting, removal, injury or destruction of any trees or timber or other property on state lands or private lands without consent of the owner, and make such actions eligible for prosecution as a Class A misdemeanor. The measure will increase the penalty from $10 per tree to $250 per tree and/or treble damages based on the current fair market value of a tree as it stands prior to the time of sale, cutting, or removal, in addition to potential reparations paid to the rightful owner. This law also provides that the state Department of Environmental Conservation may, in cooperation with the New York State Attorney General's Office and the Office of Court Administration, develop and provide educational training programs for municipal justice courts, district attorneys and law enforcement agencies about the control and prosecution of timber theft and trespass. This program is aimed at creating a better understanding of the enforcement of timber theft provisions on the part of local authorities. The law takes effect on March 1, 2004. The funding is provided through the Forest Land Enhancement Program, a state-federal partnership that will provide educational, technical and financial assistance to promote active stewardship of private forest resources. "Much of New York state's abundant and precious wildlife depends upon the ecosystem that forest lands provide, and it is important that we take the initiative to protect those resources to ensure the continued growth of healthy forests," Governor Pataki said. "This legislation will discourage timber theft on private and state lands, while encouraging increased participation in sustainable forestry practices to preserve New York's forests for the benefit of future generations." In New York State, forests encompass more than 18 million acres and cover 62 percent of the land. Private landowners own and manage approximately 15.4 million acres, or 85 percent of that forest land. The new law helps encourage the practice of forestry on public and private lands by establishing a Right to Practice Forestry. The initiative is similar to New York's Right to Farm law and will help ensure that legitimate, and sustainable, forestry activities are not restricted or banned by local regulations or ordinances. It will support the retention and expansion of New York forest products manufacturing businesses by promoting sustainable forestry and appropriate forest management practices. Environmentalists do not object to the forest business section of the law. Adirondack Council Executive Director Brian Houseal said, "This is an excellent program to build public and private partnerships by providing incentives for compatible economic uses of forest and farmlands, while improving wildlife habitat." "In the Adirondacks," Houseal said, "with our diverse mosaic of State Forest Preserve and private lands, the program provides local communities with the tools to stabilize their tax base, while they establish buffer zones along river corridors to reduce erosion and prevent water pollution. This, in turn, enhances migratory corridors for a wide variety of birds, mammals and other wildlife." To be eligible for the program, private forest owners must own five to 1,000 acres of private forest land or land suitable to establish a forest. They must complete the implementation of approved forestry practices on their lands under the guidance of a Forest Stewardship Management Plan before receiving funding. State forestry professionals are available to assist in the preparation of a plan designed to meet landowner and program objectives. Landowners working with private sector foresters can receive cost share assistance as long as they provide documentation of costs to implement the forest practices. Qualified landowners will be eligible for up to $5,000 in financial assistance annually and may implement projects on 50 or less acres of land each year. Sustainable forestry practices must be maintained for at least 10 years. Private forest owners can begin applying for funds on October 6, 2003. Information and an application will be posted on the DEC website at: http://www.dec.state.ny.us/website/dlf/privland/flep.asp. |
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