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1. U.S. EPA NATIONAL COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE PROVIDERS FORUM 2002, 2. EPA ACCEPTING PROPOSALS FOR WATERSHED CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS, 3. VERMONT MAN ARRESTED ON ILLEGAL REMOVAL OF ASBESTOS CHARGES, 4. SHIP’S ENGINEER PLEADS GUILTY IN OREGON ON CHARGES OF MAKING FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING OIL DISCHARGE
FOR RELEASE: THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2002 U.S. EPA NATIONAL COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE PROVIDERS FORUM 2002 Teresa Libera 202-564-7873/libera.teresa@epa.gov EPA is hosting the National Compliance Assistance Providers Forum on Dec. 3-6. This annual event will be co-sponsored with Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and held at the Adam’s Mark Hotel in San Antonio, Texas. The theme for this year’s forum is “Optimizing Resources for Environmental Results.” The forum will provide an opportunity for governmental compliance assistance providers, industry, trade associations, consultants, academia and non-profits to share expertise, build skills and network. Forum highlights include panels, workshops and training on a variety of topics, including: partnering; pollution prevention; environmental management systems; Internet-based tools; homeland security; marketing and performance measurement. Field trips, exhibits and vendor displays also are planned. The deadline for registration for the forum is Dec. 2. There is no fee for the forum or field trips. A limited number of hotel rooms are available at the government rate. Exhibit space is still available. To view a tentative agenda, or to register for the forum, go to: http://www.mng-ltd.com/cfide/website/ncapf02/ or contact Sandi Jones of EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance at 202-564-7038. EPA ACCEPTING PROPOSALS FOR WATERSHED CLASSIFICATION SYSTEMS Suzanne Ackerman 202-564-7819/ackerman.suzanne@epa.gov EPA is accepting proposals from U.S. universities, non-profit institutions and state or local governments for research to classify watersheds. Each research grant will be funded for up to $300,000 per year for a total of three years through the Science to Achieve Results program. These grants will be used to design water monitoring programs, prioritize impaired watersheds for restoration and diagnose losses in their variety of marine organisms (biodiversity). The classification systems should be applicable to a wide variety of watersheds in different parts of the country, so that state and local agencies can use the systems for risk prevention, watershed management and tracking of specific pollutants. The deadline for submitting proposals for these research grants is Jan. 29, 2003. For more information on this call for proposals, see: http://es.epa.gov/ncer/rfa/current/2003wshedclass.html. ENFORCEMENT WRAP-UP Teresa Libera 202-564-7873/libera.teresa@epa.gov VERMONT MAN ARRESTED ON ILLEGAL REMOVAL OF ASBESTOS CHARGES Edward Carroll of Ludlow, Vt., was arrested on Oct. 28 on charges he violated the Clean Air Act by illegally removing and handling asbestos during a demolition project in Plainfield, Conn. The six-count federal indictment handed down in U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut in New Haven charged, from September through November 2000, Carroll conducted demolition and renovation activities at the Inter-Royal Mill in Plainfield. The indictment alleges during that time, he failed to remove all asbestos-containing materials (ACM) before beginning demolition and he improperly bagged the ACM. The failure to properly handle ACM can cause asbestos fibers to become airborne, then the fibers can be inhaled by workers and the public. Inhaling asbestos fibers is a known cause of lung cancer, a lung disease known as “asbestosis,” and mesothelioma, which is a cancer of the chest and abdominal cavities. If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of up to five years in prison and/or a maximum fine of up to $250,000 on each count for which he is convicted. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and the Plainfield Police Department with the assistance of EPA’s National Enforcement Investigations Center. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in New Haven. An indictment is merely an accusation and all defendants are presumed innocent unless or until they are proven guilty in a court of law. SHIP’S ENGINEER PLEADS GUILTY IN OREGON ON CHARGES OF MAKING FALSE STATEMENTS REGARDING OIL DISCHARGE Duk Jo Jeong of Korea, first engineer of the Motor Vessel Cygnus, pleaded guilty on Oct. 25 to making a false statement to the U.S. Coast Guard concerning the ship’s illegal discharge of oily waste into the Pacific Ocean. The defendant, who pleaded in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon in Portland, already had spent six months under house arrest awaiting trial. He was immediately sentenced to two years probation and will be deported from the United States. The Cygnus, which brings automobiles to the United States, is owned by Feng Lee Maritime Corp. of Panama City and is operated by Fujitrans Corp. of Japan. The discharge of oil into the ocean can be harmful to aquatic life. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division, the U.S. Coast Guard, the FBI and the Washington State Department of Ecology. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s office in Portland and the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. R-214 # # # Release date:11/07/2002 Receive our News Releases Automatically by Email
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