Bøger af U S Environmental Protection Agency

To respond to the problem of improper management of hazardous waste, Congress amended the Solid Waste Disposal Act with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) of 1976. Although the Act has several objectives, Congress' overriding purpose in enacting RCRA was to establish the basic statutory framework for a national system that would ensure the proper management of hazardous waste. The penalty calculation system established through U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's RCRA Civil Penalty Policy ("Penalty Policy" or "Policy") is based upon Section 3008 of RCRA, 42 U.S.C. § 6928. Under this section, the seriousness of the violation and any good faith efforts to comply with applicable requirements are to be considered in assessing a penalty. Consistent with this statutory direction, this Penalty Policy consists of: (1) determining a gravity-based penalty for a particular violation, from a penalty assessment matrix, (2) adding a "multi-day" component, as appropriate, to account for a violation's duration, (3) adjusting the sum of the gravity-based and multi-day components, up or down, for case specific circumstances, and (4) adding to this amount the appropriate economic benefit gained through non-compliance. In administrative civil penalty cases, EPA will perform two separate calculations under this Policy: (1) to determine an appropriate amount to seek in the administrative complaint and subsequent litigation, and (2) to explain and document the process by which the Agency arrived at the penalty figure it has agreed to accept in settlement. The methodology for these calculations will differ only in that no downward adjustments (other than those reflecting a violator's good faith efforts to comply with applicable requirements) will usually be included in the calculation of the proposed penalty for the administrative complaint. In those instances where the respondent or reliable information demonstrates prior to the issuance of the complaint that applying further downward adjustment factors (over and above those reflecting a violator's good faith efforts to comply) is appropriate, enforcement personnel may in their discretion (but are not required to) make such further downward adjustments in the amount of the penalty proposed in the complaint. In determining the amount of the penalty to be included in the complaint, enforcement personnel should consider all possible ramifications posed by the violation and resolve any doubts (e.g., as to the application of adjustment factors or the assumptions underlying the amount of the economic benefit enjoyed by the violator) against the violator in a manner consistent with the facts and findings so as to preserve EPA's ability to litigate for the strongest penalty possible. It should be noted that assumptions underlying any upward adjustments or refusal to apply downward adjustments in the penalty amount are subject to revision later as new information becomes available. In civil judicial cases, EPA will use the narrative penalty assessment criteria set forth in the Policy to explain the penalty amount agreed to in settlement.

The U.S. Environmental Agency (EPA) is charged by Congress with protecting the nation's land, air, and water resources. Under a mandate of national environmental laws, the Agency strives to formulate and implement actions leading to a compatible balance between human activities and the ability of natural systems to nurture life. To meet this mandate, EPA's research program is providing data and technical support for solving environmental problems today and building a science knowledge base necessary to manage our ecological resources wisely, understand how pollutants affect our health, and prevent or reduce environmental risks in the future. The National Risk Management Research Laboratory is the Agency's center for investigation of technological and management approaches for reducing risks from threats to human health and the environment. The focus of the Laboratory's research program is on methods for the prevention and control of pollution to air, land, water and subsurface resources; protection of water quality in public water systems; remediation of contaminated sites and ground water; and prevention and control of indoor air pollution. The goal of this research effort is to catalyze development and implementation of innovative, cost-effective environmental technologies; develop scientific and engineering information needed by EPA to support regulatory and policy decisions; and provide technical support and information transfer to ensure effective implementation of environmental regulations and strategies. The purpose of this publication is to present information that will assist decision-makers in evaluating an innovative remedial technology for application to cleanup of sites with contaminated ground water. This ITER, which has been produced as part of the Laboratory's strategic long-term research plan, describes the effectiveness and applicability of the propane biostimulation technology developed by Envirogen as a potential in-situ remedial alternative for the mineralization of MTBE from contaminated ground water.

In December 1986, U.S. EPA's Assistant Administrator for Water initiated a major study of the Agency's surface water monitoring activities. The resulting report, entitled "Surface Water Monitoring: A Framework for Change", emphasizes the restructuring of existing monitoring programs to better address the Agency's current priorities, e.g., toxics, nonpoint source impacts, and documentation of "environmental results." The study also provides specific recommendations on effecting the necessary changes. Principal among these are: 1. To issue guidance on cost-effective approaches to problem identification and trend assessment. 2. To accelerate the development and application of promising biological monitoring techniques. In response to these recommendations, the Assessment and Watershed Protection Division developed the rapid bioassessment protocols (RBPs) designed to provide basic aquatic life data for water quality management purposes such as problem screening, site ranking, and trend monitoring, and produced a document in 1989. Although none of the protocols were meant to provide the rigor of fully comprehensive studies, each was designed to supply pertinent, cost-effective information when applied in the appropriate context. As the technical guidance for biocriteria has been developed by EPA, states have found these protocols useful as a framework for their monitoring programs. This document was meant to have a selfcorrective process as the science advances; the implementation by state water resource agencies has contributed to refinement of the original RBPs for regional specificity. This revision reflects the advancement in bioassessment methods since 1989 and provides an updated compilation of the most cost-effective and scientifically valid approaches. The primary purpose of this document is to describe a practical technical reference for conducting cost-effective biological assessments of lotic systems. The protocols presented are not necessarily intended to replace those already in use for bioassessment nor is it intended to be used as a rigid protocol without regional modifications. Instead, they provide options for agencies or groups that wish to implement rapid biological assessment and monitoring techniques. This guidance, therefore, is intended to provide basic, cost-effective biological methods for states, tribes, and local agencies that (1) have no established bioassessment procedures, (2) are looking for alternative methodologies, or (3) may need to supplement their existing programs (not supersede other bioassessment approaches that have already been successfully implemented).

Climate change will bring additional challenges to places and ecosystems that are already under environmental stress. The expected climate changes will worsen existing problems as well as bring new problems. The process described in this Workbook leads you to take a broad look at how climate change will affect your environmental system and your organization. The creation of a planning-level risk-based vulnerability assessment will help you develop an action plan with effective solutions that your stakeholders and partners can help implement. Identifying risks associated with climate change and managing them to reduce their impacts is essential. This Workbook presents a guide to climate change adaptation planning based on EPA's experience with watershed management, the National Estuary Program and the Climate Ready Estuaries program. The Workbook will assist organizations that manage environmental resources to prepare a broad, risk-based adaptation plan. This Workbook helps meet the need for guidance on conducting climate change vulnerability assessments at a watershed scale, provides decision-support tools, helps people plan climate change adaptation strategies, and builds the capacity of local environmental managers. The Workbook helps EPA to fulfill the commitments that it has made to assist local and regional organizations to effectively plan for climate change impacts.

"Release Detection for Underground Storage Tanks and Piping: Straight Talk on Tanks" provides easy-to-understand descriptions of several release detection methods for tanks and piping, as well as explanations of the regulatory requirements for release detection. Release detection methods include: secondary containment with interstitial monitoring, automatic tank gauging, continuous in-tank leak detection, statistical inventory reconciliation, tank tightness testing with inventory control, manual tank gauging, groundwater monitoring, vapor monitoring, and release detection for underground piping.

This resource document is the third in the Air Toxics Risk Assessment (ATRA) Library series. It presents an overview of the overall process and tools for evaluating cumulative risk from multiple air toxics emitted from sources at the community level and developing and implementing risk reduction activities to bring about meaningful environmental change. Volume 1: Technical Resource Manual discusses the overall air toxics risk assessment process and the basic technical tools needed to perform these analyses. The manual addresses both human health and ecological analyses. It also provides a basic overview of the process of managing and communicating risk assessment results. Other evaluations (such as the public health assessment process) are described to give assessors, risk managers, and other stakeholders a more holistic understanding of the many issues that may come into play when evaluating the potential impact of air toxics on human health and the environment. Readers with a limited understanding of risk assessment are encouraged to consult Volume 1. Volume 2: Facility-Specific Assessment (this volume) builds on the technical tools described in Volume 1 by providing an example set of tools and procedures that can be used for source-specific or facility-specific risk assessments. Information is also provided on tiered approaches to source- or facility-specific risk analysis. Volume 3: Community-Level Assessment builds on the information presented in Volume 1 to describe to communities how they can evaluate and reduce air toxics risks at the local level. The volume will include information on screening level and more detailed analytical approaches, how to balance the need for assessment versus the need for action, and how to identify and prioritize risk reduction options and measure success. Since community concerns and issues are often not related solely to air toxics, the document will also present readily available information on additional multimedia risk factors that may affect communities and strategies to reduce those risks. The document will provide additional, focused information on stakeholder involvement, communicating information in a community-based setting, and resources and methodologies that may play a role in the overall process. Note that EPA's Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics has also developed a Community Air Screening How To Manual that will be available in 2004 and will be discussed in Volume 3.

You cannot see, smell, or taste radon. But it still may be a problem in your home. When you breathe air containing radon, you increase your risk of getting lung cancer. In fact, the Surgeon General of the United States has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States today. If you smoke and your home has high radon levels, your risk of lung cancer is especially high. The "Home Buyer's and Seller's Guide to Radon" answers important questions about radon and lung cancer risk. It also answers questions about testing and fixing for anyone buying or selling a home.

(Main) This resource document is the first in the Air Toxics Risk Assessment (ATRA) Library series. It presents an overview of the overall process and tools for evaluating cumulative risk from multiple air toxics emitted from sources at the community level and developing and implementing risk reduction activities to bring about meaningful environmental change. Volume 1: Technical Resource Manual discusses the overall air toxics risk assessment process and the basic technical tools needed to perform these analyses. The manual addresses both human health and ecological analyses. It also provides a basic overview of the process of managing and communicating risk assessment results. Other evaluations (such as the public health assessment process) are described to give assessors, risk managers, and other stakeholders a more holistic understanding of the many issues that may come into play when evaluating the potential impact of air toxics on human health and the environment. Readers with a limited understanding of risk assessment are encouraged to consult Volume 1. Volume 2: Facility-Specific Assessment (this volume) builds on the technical tools described in Volume 1 by providing an example set of tools and procedures that can be used for source-specific or facility-specific risk assessments. Information is also provided on tiered approaches to source- or facility-specific risk analysis. Volume 3: Community-Level Assessment builds on the information presented in Volume 1 to describe to communities how they can evaluate and reduce air toxics risks at the local level. The volume will include information on screening level and more detailed analytical approaches, how to balance the need for assessment versus the need for action, and how to identify and prioritize risk reduction options and measure success. Since community concerns and issues are often not related solely to air toxics, the document will also present readily available information on additional multimedia risk factors that may affect communities and strategies to reduce those risks. The document will provide additional, focused information on stakeholder involvement, communicating information in a community-based setting, and resources and methodologies that may play a role in the overall process. Note that EPA's Office of Pollution Prevention and Toxics has also developed a Community Air Screening How To Manual that will be available in 2004 and will be discussed in Volume 3.

The purpose of this manual is to provide healthcare professionals with current consensus recommendations for treating patients with pesticide-related illnesses or injuries. The Office of Pesticide Programs of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has sponsored the series since 1973. The 5th edition of this manual was published in 1999; since then, much has changed with regard to the pesticide products on the market. Most indoor uses of organophosphates have been eliminated, and a combination of EPA risk mitigation actions has limited their use on food crops. Pyrethroids have largely replaced organophosphates for residential pest control. While this conversion is beneficial in that the risk to human health is lower with this relatively less acutely toxic class of pesticide, it introduces a new set of health issues for consideration. Many new pesticide products have been registered and are not necessarily widely known among health professionals. This 6th edition includes a chapter that explores potential association between low-level exposure to pesticides over time and chronic diseases. There is general agreement that prevention of pesticide poisoning remains a much surer path to safety and health than reliance on treatment. In addition to the inherent toxicity of pesticides, none of the medical procedures or drugs used in treating poisonings is risk free. In fact, many antidotes are toxic in their own right, and such apparently simple procedures as gastric intubation involve substantial risk. The clinician must weigh the hazards of various courses of action (including no treatment at all) against the risks of various interventions, such as gastric emptying, catharsis, administration of intravenous fluids or administration of an antidote, if available. Clinical management decisions have to be made promptly and, as often as not, on the basis of limited scientific and medical information. The complex circumstances of human poisonings rarely allow for precise comparisons of alternative management strategies. Therefore, it is important for the reader to keep in mind that the treatment recommendations in this book do not guarantee successful outcomes. They are merely consensus judgments of the best available clinical management options. Clinical toxicology is a dynamic field of medicine; new treatment methods are developed regularly, and the effectiveness of old as well as new modalities is subject to constant critical review.