EPA National News: EPA Press Advisory: (1) EPA Seeks Comment on Proposed Pesticide Emergency Exemption Process Rule; (2) EPA Recognized as Family-Friendly Place to Work in North Carolina; (3) EPA and America's Clean Water Foundation Encourage Global Water Quality Monitoring Effort; (4) Waste Disposal Company Owner Sentenced for Illegal Dumping in Alabama; (5) President of Pennsylvania Laboratory Convicted of Mail Fraud; (6) EPA "Enforcement Alert" Focuses on Asbestos in Schools
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EPA Press Advisory: (1) EPA Seeks Comment on Proposed Pesticide Emergency Exemption Process Rule; (2) EPA Recognized as Family-Friendly Place to Work in North Carolina; (3) EPA and America's Clean Water Foundation Encourage Global Water Quality Monitoring Effort; (4) Waste Disposal Company Owner Sentenced for Illegal Dumping in Alabama; (5) President of Pennsylvania Laboratory Convicted of Mail Fraud; (6) EPA "Enforcement Alert" Focuses on Asbestos in Schools

Following are some Agency developments which may interest you. If you need more information on any of these subjects, call the appropriate contact.

News for release: (Washington, D.C. - September 1, 2004)


(1) EPA Seeks Comment on Proposed Pesticide Emergency Exemption Process Rule

Contact: Enesta P. Jones 202-564-7873 / jones.enesta@epa.gov

EPA is seeking public comment on a proposed rule that would streamline the application and review process for pesticide emergency exemptions. The revisions would allow applicants for emergency exemptions (state and federal agencies) to: (1) generally re-certify that emergency conditions continue in the second and third years for certain repeat requests, thus eliminating the need for annual documentation; and (2) use a loss-based approach to substantiate the "significance of economic losses" (the most commonly used criterion for demonstrating an emergency condition) rather than a comparison of revenues under the emergency to historical variations in revenues. Both of these proposed revisions are currently being evaluated in a limited pilot program. The Federal Register notice is expected to be published on Sept. 3, and there is a 60-day public comment period. The revisions would reduce the burden to applicants and EPA, allow for quicker decisions by EPA, and provide more consistent and fairer determinations of "significant economic loss" as the basis for an emergency. The proposed revisions do not affect the risk side of the assessment and decision. EPA has received significant input from government agencies and other stakeholders in the development of this proposal. Under Section 18 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, EPA can authorize a state or federal agency to use an unregistered pesticide on an emergency basis and for a limited time. The Agency evaluates a request for emergency exemption of a particular pesticide use to ensure that a pest-related emergency exists and that use of the product will be protective of human health and the environment.

(2) EPA Recognized as Family-Friendly Place to Work in North Carolina

Contact: Enesta P. Jones 202-564-7873 / jones.enesta@epa.gov

EPA's campus in Research Triangle Park, N.C., has been named one of the Top 40 family-friendly places to work by Carolina Parenting Inc., a magazine publisher in North Carolina. The EPA-RTP campus was nominated for its support for families in the workplace. The EPA-RTP campus offers on-site child care services; financial assistance for child care; onsite nursing mother's room; flexible work schedules; leave bank program that enables parents to care for themselves or family members during illness; and a fitness center and walking trails. Carolina Parenting Inc. recognizes companies annually in North Carolina that adopt philosophies and policies to support working parents in their efforts to balance work and the demands of raising a family. The local chapter of the Federal Women's Program nominated the EPA-RTP campus. EPA and other recipients of the family-friendly recognition will be honored by Carolina Parenting Inc. at a ceremony on Wednesday, Sept. 22, in Cary, N.C. A list of the recipients will appear in the September issues of Carolina Parent, Piedmont Parent, and Charlotte Parent magazines at: http://www.carolinaparent.com .

(3) EPA and America's Clean Water Foundation Encourage Global Water Quality Monitoring Effort

Contact: Cathy Milbourn 202-564-7824 / milbourn.cathy@epa.gov

To ensure that global citizens have clean water for domestic, agricultural, commercial and recreational uses, EPA and America's Clean Water Foundation are inviting people around the world to monitor the water quality of their rivers, lakes, streams, wetlands and coastal waters. This effort is to help engage civic groups, churches and other organizations to participate in the second annual World Water Monitoring Day on Oct. 18, 2004. Volunteers of all ages can obtain a test kit to measure their watershed for four basic indicators of health such as dissolved oxygen, pH, turbidity or water clarity and temperature and then enter the results online. Information about participating in the event and receiving kits are available at: http://www.worldwatermonitoringday.org or by contacting America's Clean Water Foundation Coordinator Ed Moyer at 202-746-8493. A joint press conference will be held at the National Press Club on Friday, Sept. 3, at 10:30 a.m. to demonstrate the water monitoring kits and to help kick off the public's participation in the activities associated with the event.

Weekly Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Wrap-Up

Contact: Rich Hood 202- 564-4355 / hood.rich@epa.gov

(4) Waste Disposal Company Owner Sentenced for Illegal Dumping in Alabama

Don Milton White, a private contractor from Mobile, Ala., was sentenced to six months in prison, three years probation and $20,000 in restitution to the U.S. EPA. In May, White pleaded guilty to two counts of violating the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. White contracted with the Escambia County Utility Authority in Florida to transport and dispose of wastes from its wastewater treatment facility. White illegally dumped the wastes, which included oils, tar, paint wastes, hydraulic fluid, solvents and other mixed materials, at separate locations in Mobile and in Baldwin County in Southern Alabama. Of the hundreds of gallons of wastes White illegally discarded, some contained highly corrosive liquid that is regulated as hazardous waste under federal law. Dumping waste oils, fluids and solvents on the ground can create a contamination hazard for humans and wildlife. Sentencing took place on Aug. 19 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama in Mobile. The case was investigated by the Jackson, Miss., Office of EPA's Criminal Investigation Division, EPA's Emergency Response Branch and the FBI. It was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Mobile and the Environmental Crimes Section of the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.

(5) President of Pennsylvania Laboratory Convicted of Mail Fraud

Edward V. Kellogg, President, Quality Control Officer and owner of Johnson Laboratories Inc., in New Cumberland, Pa., was convicted of 34 counts of mail fraud for billing customers for false environmental test reports from May 1998 to July 2000. Johnson Laboratories was in the business of providing analytical testing of environmental samples of water and wastewater. The charges claimed that Kellogg caused environmental test results for Volatile Organic Chemicals to be falsely prepared and that he billed customers $9,722 for the fraudulent test results. Submitting false laboratory results can prevent pollution control programs from being effective. The conviction was handed down on Aug. 17 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania in Allentown, Pa. The case was investigated by the Philadelphia Office of EPA's Criminal Investigation Division, the EPA Office of Inspector General, the Environmental Crimes Section of the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's Bureau of Laboratories. It is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Allentown.
(6) EPA "Enforcement Alert" Focuses on Asbestos in Schools

EPA's Office of Regulatory Enforcement has dedicated the September 2004 issue of "Enforcement Alert" to the protection of children from exposure to asbestos at school. When asbestos-containing material is disturbed, fibers may be released into the air and inhaled by children and school staff. A popular misconception is that asbestos-containing materials were banned and removed from school buildings years ago. Although some schools have been able to remove asbestos altogether, many have opted to manage asbestos-containing material in place. This "Enforcement Alert" reminds schools and local education agencies to inspect their facilities for asbestos-containing building materials and prepare management plans for the reduction of asbestos hazards. To read the September "Alert," go to: http://www.epa.gov/compliance/resources/newsletters/civil/enfalert/aheraalert0721.pdf . To get more information on asbestos in schools, go to: http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/asbestos_in_schools.html .

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Release date:09/01/2004 Receive our News Releases Automatically by Email

 

 
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