Salt Storage Guidelines and Permit Requirements Issued By Ohio EPA

Ohio EPA has released a guidance document on the elements of salt storage that are relevant to preventing contamination include siting, design, and operation. The document provides guidance on salt storage practices to prevent the contamination of ground water and surface water. “Salt”, as used here, includes solids such as the popular sodium chloride (NaCl), as well as potassium chloride (KCl), calcium chloride (CaCl2), and magnesium chloride (MgCl2). It also includes mixtures of the same substances with abrasives such as sand, cinder, slag, etc.

Recently, several salt storage operations have been identified by Ohio EPA as the source of high chlorides in public or private ground water supplies. While Ohio has no rules specifically governing the storage of salt, ORC 6111 prohibits unauthorized discharge of pollutants to waters of the state, including runoff from salt storage. Ohio EPA considers brine created from rainfall passing through salt piles to be an industrial wastewater that is subject to permitting requirements. For a new salt storage site, Ohio EPA’s Division of Surface Water (DSW) can require a permit-to-install (PTI) to ensure adequate protection of water quality resources. When complaint investigations or routine audits for existing facilities indicate impacts to water resources due to poor management practices, DSW can take action to address any problems identified. Storm water permitting requirements pursuant to 40 CFR 122.26 and OAC 3745-39 must be met, as well as any local zoning requirements. For salt piles in designated urban areas, best management practices can be required under a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit (MS4), although there are no specific siting or design criteria. For salt stored at an industrial site, the Industrial Multi-Sector General Storm Water Permit would apply and would require the salt to be properly covered/enclosed. Ohio EPA-DSW can require a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit for any site, regardless of location, if it is aware of pollution. Additionally, characterization and abatement of a release from a salt facility can be required under ORC 6111.04.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Ohio to obtain environmental permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.
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Brownfields Grants To Investigation and Cleanup Ohio Sites

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced $2.8 million in grants to redevelop contaminated properties, create jobs and protect public health in Ohio. These “brownfield grants” are used to assess and clean up abandoned industrial and commercial properties.
The Ohio brownfield grants were distributed as follows:

• Lockland, Site Assessment, Hazardous Substances, $200,000
• Lorain Port Authority, Site Assessment, $400,000
• Newark, Site Assessment, Hazardous Substances, $200,000
• Northeast Ohio Four County Regional Planning & Development Organization, Site Assessment, $600,000
• Ottawa County, Site Assessment, $400,000
• Toledo, Site Assessment, $800,000
• Vinton Baptist Church, Cleanup, Field of Hope Community Campus, $200,000

The Ohio grants are part of the EPA’s $69.3 million 2012 nationwide brownfields grants to clean up and redevelop contaminated properties, boost local economies, create jobs and protect public health.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Ohio to obtain environmental permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

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EPA Revokes CBI For Some TSCA Studies

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has made public the identities of more than 150 chemicals contained in 104 health and safety studies that had previously been claimed confidential by industry. For these 104 studies, the chemical identity will no longer be redacted. The chemicals involved are used in dispersant formulations and consumer products such as air fresheners, non-stick and stain resistant materials, fire resistant materials, nonylphenol compounds, perfluorinated compounds, and lead.

In 2010, EPA requested that the industry voluntarily declassify unwarranted claims of confidential business information (CBI). The agency also issued new guidance outlining plans to deny confidentiality claims for chemical identity in health and safety studies under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Based on this guidance, EPA notified a number of companies in February 2011 that the agency had determined that their CBI claim was not eligible for confidential treatment under TSCA and that EPA intended to make the information public. The health and safety studies include some declassified by the agency and other voluntary declassifications by companies in response to EPA’s 2010 request.

In addition to these actions, EPA has recently taken other steps to make chemical information more readily available. The agency has provided the public with free access to the consolidated TSCA Inventory on the EPA and Data.Gov websites. EPA also launched a new chemical data access tool gives the public the ability to electronically search EPA’s database of more than 10,000 health and safety documents on a wide range of chemicals.

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TSCA Confidential Business Information Claims Denied

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has notified five companies that the identities of 14 chemicals associated with a number of health and safety studies submitted under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and claimed as confidential are not eligible for confidential treatment. Last year, EPA put in place a plan to review confidentiality claims for the name of chemicals addressed in health and safety studies. Under these new procedures EPA is moving to declassify many chemical identities so they are no longer secret. EPA expects that more chemical names connected with health and safety studies will be released in the future. The agency plans to deny confidentiality claims for chemical identity in health and safety studies provided to the agency under TSCA unless the chemical identity contains process or mixture information that is expressly protected by the law.

EPA has begun reviewing past CBI claims for chemical identity in health and safety studies. Where EPA determines that the information is not eligible for confidential treatment under the law, the agency will notify companies of the determination and that EPA will make the information public on the 31st day after receiving the determination unless the company challenges the disclosure in federal court.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Ohio to obtain environmental permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

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Partnership To Share Technical Data On Chemical Hazards

U.S. EPA and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) have announced a partnership to promote enhanced technical cooperation on chemical management activities. ECHA implements the European Union’s chemical management program known as REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals). The partnership was formalized through a statement of intent at the Transatlantic Economic Council (TEC) meeting in Washington, D.C. The statement describes a process for cooperating on a range of issues of mutual interests including toxicity testing, the hazard and risk assessment of chemicals, risk management tools, scientific collaboration, and information exchange.

A major area of collaboration will be in the exchange of data and information between ECHA and EPA, including non-confidential information on hazards, uses, and substance identification, and data collected under REACH. The two agencies will also share criteria for managing confidential business information (CBI).

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Petition Denied To Ban Lead Fishing Tackle

EPA has denied the petition calling for a ban on the manufacture, use and processing of lead in fishing gear. EPA determined that the petitioners had not demonstrated that the requested rule is necessary to protect against an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment, as required by the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Considering the increasing number of limitations on the use of lead fishing gear on some federal and state lands, as well as various education and outreach activities, EPA questioned whether a national ban on lead in fishing gear would be the least burdensome, adequately protective approach to address the concern, as required under TSCA. EPA also notes that the prevalence of non-lead alternatives in the marketplace continues to increase.

On August 3, 2010, the American Bird Conservancy and a number of other groups petitioned EPA under Section 21 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to "prohibit the manufacture, processing, and distribution in commerce of lead for shot, bullets, and fishing sinkers." On August 27, 2010, EPA denied the portion of the petition relating to lead in ammunition because the agency does not have the legal authority to regulate this type of product under TSCA.

Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Ohio to obtain environmental permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

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Lead Renovation, Repair & Painting Rule Training Requirement

In April 2008, USEPA issued the Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule. The RRP rule requires certification of training providers and lead-safe work practice certification for individuals involved in the construction and remodeling industry. Because of concern that contractors in some areas may be having difficulty accessing training classes, EPA recently announced that it is providing renovation firms and workers additional time to obtain training and certifications to comply with the new lead rules. EPA will not take enforcement action for violations of the rule’s firm certification requirement until October 1, 2010, and will not enforce certification requirements against individual renovation workers if they apply to enroll in certified renovator classes by September 30, 2010 and complete the training by December 31, 2010.

The agency has indicated that it will continue to take enforcement actions against renovation firms and individuals who do not comply with the RRP work practices and associated recordkeeping requirements. The lead-safe work practices include dust control, site clean up and work area containment.

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Inert Pesticide Ingredient - Proposed Rulemakng

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is requesting public comment on options for disclosing inert ingredients in pesticides. In this anticipated rulemaking, EPA is seeking ideas for greater disclosure of inert ingredient identities. Inert ingredients are part of the end use product formulation and are not active ingredients. Pesticide manufacturers usually disclose their inert ingredients only to EPA. Currently, EPA evaluates the safety of all ingredients in a product’s formulation when determining whether the pesticide should be registered.

On October 1, 2009, EPA responded to two petitions to designate more than 350 inert pesticide ingredients as hazardous. The petitioners asked EPA to require that these ingredients be identified on the labels of products that include them in their formulations.

EPA is accepting comments on the advance notice of proposed rulemaking for 60 days after it has been published in the Federal Register.

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MSDS Requirements - Hazard Communication Changes

OSHA has proposed to modify its existing Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to conform with the United Nations’ (UN) Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS). The proposed modifications to the standard include:

• revised criteria for classification of chemical hazards;
• revised labeling provisions that include requirements for use of standardized signal words, pictograms, hazard statements, and precautionary statements;
• a specified format for safety data sheets; and
• related revisions to definitions of terms used in the standard, requirements for employee training on labels and safety data sheets.

OSHA is also proposing to modify provisions of a number of other standards, including standards for flammable and combustible liquids, process safety management (PSM), and most substance-specific health standards, to ensure consistency with the modified HCS requirements. Written comments are due by December 29, 2009.

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Caltha LLP provides expert environmental consultant services in Ohio to obtain environmental permits, evaluate regulatory requirements, and to develop cost effective compliance programs.

For further information contact Caltha LLP at
info@calthacompany.com
or
Caltha LLP Website