Missouri DNR Electronics Scrap Management Rule

The Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has completed rulemaking under to regulate the collection and recycling of computers under 10 CSR 25-19.010 Electronics Scrap Management. These rules were required in the Manufacturer Responsibility and Consumer Convenience Collection and Recovery Act. The Act requires manufacturers of computers to implement recovery plans for the collection and recycling or reuse of their obsolete equipment. The recovery plan must be implemented and a copy of the plan submitted to the Department of Natural Resources before the manufacturer can sell its computers in Missouri. Manufacturers must also label their equipment to identify themselves as the manufacturer.

Requirements for the recovery plan and reporting by computer manufacturers are listed in the Act. Retailers are prohibited from selling new computers in Missouri unless the equipment contains a manufacturer's label and the manufacturer is listed by the department as having a recovery plan.

The Act required the DNR to promulgate rules by July 1, 2009 to implement the law. Although many of the details are found in the law itself, the intent of the rule is to implement the act by further defining some of the terms used, clarifying who the law applies to, clearly stating the requirements for both manufacturers and retailers and establishing the standards for handling equipment covered by the law. The proposed rule was published in the Missouri Register on Aug. 3, 2009.

The final rule scheduled to be published in the March 30 update of the Code of State Regulation and will be effective on April 30, 2010.

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VOC Content Restrictions on Consumer Products - Revised NYDEC Rule

In January 2010, revised New York Department of Conservation (DEC) regulations became effective relating to the volatile organic compound (VOC) content of certain consumer products. In 2009, DEC made revisions to Part 235-2.1 including definitions for eleven new categories of consumer products that are being regulated in the revised Part 235. The new categories are: adhesive remover, anti-static (non-aerosol), electrical cleaner, electronic cleaner, fabric refresher, footwear or leather care, graffiti remover, hair styling products, shaving gel, toilet/urinal care, and wood cleaner. DEC also added definitions for the contact adhesive product category and is revised the definitions for two previously regulated product categories: air fresheners and general purpose degreasers.

DEC also modified several of the existing definitions and added other new definitions. For example, the Department revised the existing definition of "deodorant" and added a new definition for "deodorant body spray." Some of the new definitions come from the revised Ozone Transport Commission (OTC) model rule for Consumer Products. These definitions include: "APC VOC Standard," "Energized electrical cleaner," and "Existing product."

The revisions to section 235-3.1 amended the Table of Standards to include the VOC limits for the new categories and the revised VOC limits for the Contact Adhesive product category. The prohibitions concerning sale of these consumer products apply to products manufactured on or after January 1, 2010 which contain VOCs in excess of the VOC content limits specified in the Table of Standards (Subpart 235-3.1[a]).

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Changes To TSCA Confidential Business Information CBI Policy

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has enacted a new policy to regarding chemical reporting requirements under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Starting today, EPA has announced its intention to reject a certain type of confidentiality claim, known as Confidential Business Information (CBI), on the identity of chemicals. The chemicals that will be affected by this action are those that are submitted to EPA with studies that show a substantial risk to people's health and the environment and have been previously disclosed on the TSCA Chemical Inventory.

Under TSCA, companies may claim a range of sensitive, proprietary information as CBI. Under Section 8(e) of TSCA, companies that manufacture, process, or distribute chemicals are required to immediately provide notice to EPA if they learn that a chemical presents a substantial risk of injury to health or the environment. The Section 8(e) reports are made available on EPA’s Web site. In the past, companies could claim confidentiality for the actual identity of the chemical covered by the Section 8(e) submission, so the public posting of the information would not include the name of the chemical. The new policy ends this practice for chemicals on the public portion of the TSCA Inventory.

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New Air Quality Standard for Nitrogen Dioxide - NO2

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a new national air quality standard for nitrogen dioxide (NO2). The agency set the new one-hour standard for NO2 at a level of 100 parts per billion (ppb). EPA is retaining the existing annual average standard of 53 ppb.

EPA is establishing new monitoring requirements in urban areas that will measure NO2 levels around major roads and across the community. Monitors must be located near roadways in cities with at least 500,000 residents. Larger cities and areas with major roadways will have additional monitors. Community-wide monitoring will continue in cities with at least 1 million residents. Working with the states, EPA will site at least 40 monitors in locations to help protect communities that are susceptible and vulnerable to elevated levels of NO2.

EPA expects to identify or designate areas not meeting the new standard, based on the existing community-wide monitoring network, by January 2012. New monitors must begin operating no later than January 1, 2013. When three years of air quality data are available from the new monitoring network, EPA intends to redesignate areas as appropriate.

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Proposed Rules on Air Transport of Lithium Batteries

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has proposed new requirements for air shipments of lithium batteries and cells, including when they are packed with or contained in equipment. The proposed changes intended to ensure that lithium batteries are designed to withstand normal transportation conditions and that they are packaged to reduce the possibility of damage that could lead to an unsafe incident.

DOT’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), in coordination with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), developed this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to comprehensively address the safe transportation of lithium cells and batteries when being shipped on aircraft.

In part, DOT proposes to:

• Eliminate regulatory exceptions for small lithium cells and batteries when included in an air shipment; and require their transportation as Class 9 materials, meaning they could pose a hazard when transported;

• Subject packages of small lithium batteries to well-recognized marking and labeling requirements for hazardous materials;

• Require transport documentation to accompany a shipment of small lithium batteries, including notifying the pilot in command of the presence and location of lithium batteries being shipped on the aircraft;

• Require manufacturers to retain results of satisfactory completion of United Nations design-type tests for each lithium cell and battery type;

• Limit stowage of lithium cell and battery shipments aboard aircraft to cargo locations accessible to the crew or locations equipped with an FAA-approved fire suppression system, unless transported in a container approved by the FAA Administrator; and

• Apply appropriate safety measures for the transport of lithium cells or batteries identified as being defective for safety reasons, or those that have been damaged or are otherwise being returned to the manufacturer, and limit the transportation of defective or damaged cells or batteries to highway and rail.

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TSCA Inventory Update Rule IUR Reporting Year Begins

On January 1, a new TSCA Inventory Update Rule (IUR) reporting year began. Although reports will not be submitted until 2011, manufacturers and importers need to be collecting the necessary data to be able to submit their IUR report for 2010.

Every five years, companies that either manufacture or import chemicals or mixtures of chemicals on the “TSCA List” must report their activities. The reporting requirement, referred to as the “Inventory Update Rule”, or IUR, is only one of several requirements in the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) enacted in 1985. The IUR requirements are the most broadly applicable of all the TSCA requirements.

Historically, compliance with TSCA and the IUR requirements has been a continuing challenge for facilities. It is somewhat speculation to project why on-going TSCA compliance tends to be more difficult; however, there are some factors which may be an influence:

• IUR reporting is required infrequently.
• There is no State equivalent to TSCA.
• Importers of chemicals are equivalent to manufacturers of chemicals.
• Effect of centralized/decentralized purchasing.

For more information on the IUR, including a flow chart to determine if the Rule applies to your operations, go to:

TSCA Inventory Update Rule Regulatory Briefing

Caltha LLP provides specialized expertise to clients nationwide in the development of straighforward TSCA IUR tracking procedures and preparing TSCA IUR reports.

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2010 EH&S Regulatory / CHMM Overview Workshop - Environmental Training

Course Dates: March 17 through March 19, 2010
Course Location: Bloomington, Minnesota

The North Star Chapter of the Academy of Certified Hazardous Materials Managers (now "Alliance of Hazardous Material Professionals") provides an annual regulatory overview course for environmental, health & safety professionals. The Regulatory / CHMM Overview Workshop provides a comprehensive overview of the major regulatory programs, topics and concerns in environmental, health & safety management. Although some participants attend the course to prepare to take the Certified Hazardous Material Manager (CHMM) exam, many environmental professionals take the Regulatory / CHMM Overview Workshop to enhance their breadth of competence in their professions and/or to get up-to-date.

Course Content

• Federal Statutes Overview
• Liability and Compliance
• Clean Water Act
• Clean Air Act
• Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
• Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA)
• Community Right-to-Know (SARA Title III - EPCRA)
• Chemistry of Hazardous Materials
• Toxicology
• Geology
• Radiation Principles
• Asbestos
• Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA)
• Hazardous Materials Transportation
• OSHA
• Accident Scenario
• Environmental Management Systems
• Environmental Considerations in Real
• Estate/ Due Diligence Assessments
• Underground Storage Tanks
• Resource Conservation & Recovery Act (RCRA)
• Waste Analysis
• Hazardous Waste Treatment Technologies
• Waste Reduction/Minimization and Pollution Prevention
• Compliance Audits
• Motivation of Employees with Respect to Environmental Matters
• CHMM Code of Ethics
  

For more information go to:
2010 Regulatory / CHMM Overview Workshop

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Final Hazardous Waste Import - Export - Shipment Rules

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has published its final rule to align EPA hazardous waste import/export/transit shipment regulations with the procedures of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), an international consortium that comprises 30 countries including the United States.

Specifically, this rule revises:

1. Existing RCRA regulation regarding the transboundary movement of hazardous wastes for recovery among countries belonging to the OECD to conform to legally required revisions made by the OECD, such as:

- requiring U.S. recovery facilities to submit a certificate after recovery of the waste has been completed,
- adding provisions to ensure that hazardous wastes are returned to the country of export in a more timely and documented manner when it is necessary to do so, and
- adding new procedures for imported hazardous wastes that are initially managed at U.S. accumulation and transfer facilities to better track and document that subsequent recovery by a separate recycling facility is completed in an environmentally sound manner.

2. RCRA regulations for spent lead-acid batteries (SLAB) to add export notification and consent requirements to provide stricter controls and greater transparency for exports of SLABs to any country, and should ensure that the batteries are sent to countries and reclamation facilities in those countries that can manage the SLABs in an environmentally sound manner.

3. Hazardous waste import-related requirements for U.S. hazardous waste management facilities to confirm individual import shipments comply with the terms of EPA’s consent. and

4. The address to which export exception reports are to be sent.

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Wisconsin Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule

Beginning April 22, 2010, contractors nationwide who perform renovation activities in residential homes and child-occupied facilities built before 1978 must be certified and follow specific lead-safe work practices to prevent lead contamination.

While this new requirement will apply nationwide under the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2008 Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule, Wisconsin recently passed an emergency administrative rule adopting the EPA requirements at the state level. As a result, contractors performing renovation activities in Wisconsin will be required to obtain certification through the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (WDHS), instead of the EPA. Wisconsin is the first state to receive federal approval to enforce the new EPA standards at the state level. Wisconsin’s emergency rule is expected to be finalized April 2010.

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NDEQ Environmental Permits Now Require Proof of Legal Status

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality (NDEQ) now requires that applicants for environmental permits (air emissions, wastewater, stormwater, etc) provide an attestation form certifying that they are in the U.S. legally.

On April 8, 2009, the Governor signed into law Legislative Bill 403 (LB 403). This law (effective October 1, 2009) requires state agencies to verify the lawful presence in the United States of any person who has applied for public benefits that are administered by that agency. For the purposes of the law, public benefits are defined to mean “any grant, contract, loan, professional license, commercial license . . . or any other similar benefit” provided by a governmental agency. This includes the professional certifications, permits, and approvals issued by the NDEQ.

Applications for State issued permits must include the Attestation Form. Failure to complete and submit the Attestation Form will delay processing of the application.

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