The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) recently approved new procedures for changing the flight path of southbound turboprops to the west in particular wind conditions at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac). This process previously assigned headings to southbound turboprops manually. The new procedures automate the steps to concentrate low-flying planes over Burien, a city in Washington, after […]

The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) held a public informational seminar on March 25, 2019 to present draft regulations that would revise California’s Universal Waste Program to include waste photovoltaic modules (PV modules), commonly known as solar panels. The informational session offered the opportunity for public discussion prior to the beginning of the formal […]

The EPA recently launched its Action Plan for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFAS are a large class of manufactured chemicals that are very effective in several industrial applications, but have also posed risks to human health through drinking water sources around the United States. The Action Plan mainly uses the Safe Drinking Water Act […]

March 1 is the deadline for submission of EPCRA Tier II forms. If you have hazardous chemicals at your facility that mandate a Safety Data Sheet (SDS), you may need to submit Tier II forms under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA). Only chemicals that are in excess of established thresholds need to […]

Once upon a time, EPA attempted to make pharmaceutical waste a universal waste. This proposal and draft rule (which attempted to make management of pharmaceutical waste less onerous for healthcare facilities) died on the vine and will likely never be finalized by EPA. Just in time for the holidays, however, EPA changed its strategy and […]

On Dec. 19, the Trump administration unveiled its new Federal Action Plan to Reduce Childhood Lead Exposures and Associated Health Impacts. “The Federal Lead Action Plan will enhance the Trump Administration’s efforts to identify and reduce lead contamination while ensuring children impacted by lead exposure are getting the support and care they need,” EPA Acting […]

The US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) hazardous waste manifest system is designed to track hazardous waste from the time it leaves the generator facility where it was produced, until it reaches the off-site waste management facility that will store, treat or dispose of the hazardous waste. In 2014, the EPA established a national system for […]

One of the biggest environmental regulations that we deal with every day is the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).  Passed in 1976, RCRA is as a solid waste disposal law that addresses the management of both solid waste and hazardous waste. The implementing regulations took effect in 1980.  RCRA was intended to be implemented […]

In case you missed it, on June 15, (now former) U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt signed a proposed action to establish no additional regulatory requirements under the Clean Water Act (CWA) section 311(j)(1)(C) authority for CWA hazardous substances (HS) discharge prevention. The EPA published the Notice of Propose Rulemaking (NPRM) on June […]

Your engineer finally delivered the Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure Plan (SPCC Plan) for your facility, and it requires that you train Oil-handling employees. Oil-handling employees? How do you determine which of your employees meet the definition of that term? BACKGROUND EPA’s SPCC regulation (found at 40 CFR 112.7) require that the owner or operator […]