Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
In this Environmental Daily Advisor video, Advisor editor Kelly Lagana talks with Tim Fagan about EPA’s Final Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) for Power Plants. Tim Fagan is the editor for air topics for BLR’s environmental compliance content.
Under the CAA’s maximum achievable control technology (MACT) approach to reducing emissions of air toxics, the MACT floor must be at least as stringent as the average emission limitation achieved by the best performing 12 percent of existing sources in the category (for which EPA has emissions information) or the best performing 5 sources for […]
What Must be Included in the Spill or Discharge Notice? The name of the facility The owner or operator’s name The location of the facility The maximum storage or handling capacity of the facility and normal daily throughput Any corrective action and countermeasures taken, including a description of equipment repairs and replacements An adequate description […]
Plans must also be amended when there is a change in the facility design, construction, operation, or maintenance that materially affects its potential for a discharge. Here are some frequently asked questions on amending your SPCC plan. As it relates to amendment requirements for SPCC Plans, what is considered a "material change?" A “material change” […]
Simply put, antidegradation means that no pollutant discharges or activities will be permitted if these may cause surface waters already meeting water quality standards to drop below those standards. But the various colorations within that general meaning provide states with many opportunities to permit activities that do in fact degrade surface waters. As EPA notes […]
EPA estimates that there are 156,000 water systems in the United States, with more than 94 percent serving fewer than 3,300 persons. Obtaining a representative financial picture for such a large universe of regulated entities is a complex undertaking. However, the Agency periodically attempts to do so in its Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and […]
Industrial stormwater requirements are contained in national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permits; the critical element in such permits is development and implementation of a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPPP). These compliance tips cover key points that are sometimes overlooked in company SWPPPs and related compliance activities. Except in a relatively few cases where individual […]
Do I need a NPDES permit if my stormwater exposure is only in the parking lot? It may depend on several factors, including, but not limited to, the proximity of the parking lot to surface waters; the size of the parking lot; and the type of parking lot surface. A possible option that may apply […]
Now, the interest in Florida is high because it is the first time EPA has taken over a water quality standards-setting process from a state. Stakeholders are wondering if this precedent will be repeated in other regions of the country. EPA’s Action In November 2010, EPA issued new numeric water quality criteria for phosphorus and […]
These new threats are so widespread that EPA has released a strategy to place more emphasis on protecting healthy waters. And, existing resources may have to be spread even thinner to meet standards. According to EPA, sources of stress vary regionally, but mainly comprise agriculture; stormwater runoff; habitat, hydrology and landscape modification; invasive species; the […]