news@NEWMOA
news@NEWMOA is designed to help our members and colleagues keep informed about the Association's projects and activities. You are receiving this e-newsletter because you are a member of a NEWMOA working group, committee, program, or listserv; an invitee to NEWMOA events; a colleague at EPA or a related organization; connected to the Association in some other way; or have expressed interest in our work. If you have questions about delivery of this e-Newsletter, contact Lois Makina, (617) 367-8558 x312.
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Board of Directors
NEWMOA's Board met in October to share updates from EPA and state programs, and review and decide on NEWMOA's projects for FY 2016. During the meeting, Robert Kaliszewski, CT DEEP became NEWMOA's 2016 Chair and Stephanie D'Agostino, NH DES became the Treasurer. The Vice Chair will be a designee from Mass DEP.
During the meeting, the Board reviewed and approved NEWMOA's proposed FY 2016 budget and workplans and a two-year development plan. The Board decided to review NEWMOA's five-year strategic plan in 2016 with an eye toward the changes taking place in state and federal government and the impacts that is having (and will continue to have) on the organization.
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October 2015 Board Meeting - Saratoga Springs, NY
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NEWMOA is Moving!
As of December 1, 2016 our new address will be:
89 South Street, Suite 600, Boston, MA 02111.
We will still have the same phone numbers and email addresses. Please update your address book/s.
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Getting to Know NEWMOA's Leaders
As noted above, the 2016 Chair for NEWMOA's Board is Robert Kaliszewski, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (CT DEEP). Some of you may not know much about Bob, so here's a quick interview.
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NEWMOA: Tell us about yourself and your background.
Bob: Already interested in the outdoors, my high school biology teacher turned me on to environmental issues, and as they say the rest is history. I studied environment science and law, and after a few years working directly on environmental problems in industry I came to the then Department of Environmental Protection. Next year will mark my 30th at the now Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. I am married to my wonderful wife Chris for longer than that and have two great adult children, a daughter that has recently migrated to the Northwest and a son about to finish up his college studies. NEWMOA: What do you do at the CT DEEP? Bob: I've had the good fortune to work on a wide array of topics at DEEP, ranging from water permitting to climate adaptation; from policy development to program implementation. As the Department's ombudsman, I had the opportunity to work with all of the Agency's programs. Today I head up our Bureau of Central Services helping support all we do - the Bureau includes planning, P2, land acquisition and management, budget and finance, information management, human resources, and field support services. I love the fact that every day at work brings something new and different. NEWMOA: What are your priorities for NEWMOA? What do you hope it will accomplish? Bob: I believe the entire Board shares the priority of making the organization sustainable well into the future. While the fiscal component of doing this is an ongoing battle, we also need to consider succession planning. Bringing in fresh ideas and energy to the organization is vital to maintaining our relevance. Over the past few years due to retirements and attrition NEWMOA's Board and Workgroups have lost many years of experience and knowledge. We need to replace those that have left with new smart thinkers and problem solvers. With all of us doing more with less it is ever more critical to find others that share our goals and are willing to help. I think that we can take a step in the right direction by exposing more staff within our agencies to the work that NEWMOA does and asking them to participate where they can. NEWMOA: What's one thing you would like people to know about you? Bob: I enjoy getting out in the field and seeing how things are manufactured.
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Waste Site Cleanup Program
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Workshops
NEWMOA held successful "1,4-Dioxane Assessment and Remediation" workshops on September 22nd and 23rd in Massachusetts and Connecticut, respectively. 1,4-dioxane groundwater contamination is an emerging issue with major implications because it is present at many waste sites and is difficult to treat. To view the presentations, visit: www.newmoa.org/events/event.cfm?m=175.
The workshops provided information on various aspects of investigating and mitigating sites with 1,4-dioxane contamination, including:
- Toxicology
- Fate and transport
- Historic use and prevalence
- Regulatory guidelines, policies, and approaches
- Treatment technologies and recent developments
- Case studies and state views
To be added to the NEWMOA email list for notices about future waste site cleanup workshops, email Jennifer Griffith.
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Solid Waste & Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) Program
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Webinars
NEWMOA sponsored a webinar on "Anaerobic Digestion for Food Scraps" on October 8. Greg McKarron's (SCS Engineers) and Tom Kraemer's (CH2MHill) presentations covered:
- Different AD technologies and their pros and cons for food scraps
- Status of AD for food scraps nationally, who's leading, who's following?
- What are solid waste companies thinking about AD for food scraps?
- What are engineering/consulting companies thinking about AD for food scraps?
- What are POTWs thinking about AD for food scraps?
- How is the private sector viewing policy-makers and states with organics bans or states considering bans?
- What are the challenges for the private sector in AD for food scraps?
- Managing the outputs from the AD facilities
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Over the past few months, NEWMOA has held regular conference calls on:
- State regulation of evaporators
- State approaches to compliance at pharmacies
These training calls are for state and federal hazardous waste inspectors and other compliance and enforcement staff and regulatory development staff.
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Pollution Prevention & Sustainability Program
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NEWMOA partnered with CLEAResult to hold two webinars focused on energy efficiency and safer chemical use in refrigeration, as a way of advancing sustainability in the grocery sector. The goal of these webinars is to help participants understand how to improve energy efficiency in and minimize accidental releases of high global warming potential gases from refrigeration units.
During the October 7 webinar, "Cool Tips for TAPS: Identifying Opportunities in Refrigeration" technical assistance providers heard an overview of the opportunities for improving the sustainability and efficiency for refrigeration equipment. The presenters also discussed how technical assistance programs (TAPs) can make referrals to other programs for an opportunity analysis and implementation support.
The October 13 webinar, "Sustainability in Refrigeration: High Impact Practices that Lower Costs for Grocers" focused on two key sustainability opportunities within grocery stores: refrigerant leak reduction and energy efficiency through opportunities for retrofits, re-commissioning, retro-commissioning, and installing new technologies. The presenters described specific actions grocery stores can take to reduce their operating costs.
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Interstate Mercury Education & Reduction Clearinghouse (IMERC)
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In June 2015, NEWMOA partnered with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to file a petition calling on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to issue a federal rule requiring companies to provide data on mercury use every three years, to coincide with IMERC's reporting program on mercury use in products. The petition was filed in response to EPA's proposed mercury reporting strategy, part of which relied on voluntary reporting from a select number of companies. EPA issued a response on September 21, 2015 and ultimately rejected the petition.
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Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse (IC2)
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Over the summer, IC2 staff implemented several enhancements to the user interface of the Chemical Hazard Assessment Database. Some of these enhancements include a separate search interface for full GreenScreenŽ assessments and GreenScreen List Translator assessments and the ability to search by GreenScreen Benchmark score. The IC2 also added 40+ new GreenScreens to the Database, which were provided by the Washington State Department of Ecology and derived from their copper boat paint project.
IC2 staff added Vermont's list of Chemicals of High Concern to Children to the Chemicals of Concern Database and are presently adding California's Candidate Chemicals list.
The IC2 recently completed a strategic planning process for FY 2016. The final plan comprises four separate strategic workplans-one for each of the four IC2 workgroups-and an overall detailed workplan, as well as a budget. The Workgroups focus on alternatives assessment, databases, governance and recruitment, and training. Through this planning process, the membership affirmed that developing a multi-state chemical use disclosure system for reporting and data sharing is the IC2's top priority, and the Clearinghouse is currently working to realize that goal by applying for funding for the system.
The IC2 Board recently approved "Guidance for Collection of IC2 Annual Dues" that clarifies the schedule and process for collecting dues from IC2's members.
IC2 staff are currently updating the IC2 Chemicals Policy Database for the 2015 legislative session. On a related note, a subgroup of the IC2 Database Workgroup devoted a significant amount of time, energy, and careful consideration during the spring and summer to drafting a set of recommendations regarding changes in the scope of this Database. The Database Workgroup and the IC2 Board will take up those recommendations in the near future.
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