Slide 1 Executive Order ERRC 2005 Greening the Government Through Leadership in Environmental Management

Slide 2 SECTION ONE Executive Order (ISO EMS) Environmental Management System Past. Present, Future GENERAL INFORMATION

Slide 3 E.O Issued: April 21, 2000 Reasons: Demonstrate Federal Government environmental leadership Ensure that Federal agencies adopt lowest life-cycle cost environmental practices Ensure Federal facilities are responsible members of their communities

Slide 4 E.O Supersedes: ARS will incorporate many E.O. into the Greening of the Government initiative E.O : Procurement Requirements & Policies for Federal Agencies for Ozone-Depleting Substances E.O : Federal Compliance With Right-to-Know Laws and Pollution Prevention Requirements E.O : Federal Acquisition and Community Right-To- Know E.O : Federal Compliance With Pollution Control Standards, section 1–4 Executive Memorandum on Environmentally Beneficial Landscaping

Slide 5 Why an EMS and an ISO Executive Order requires Federal facilities to have an EMS in place no later than December ARS policy requires all ARS facilities to have an EMS in place that conforms to the ISO standard. –ISO is an internationally recognized best management practice for environmental management. The ERRC Safety Office will be developing the ISO Plan for the center.

Slide 6 Benefits of an EMS Improve environmental awareness. Achieve greater consistency in environmental programs. Support the mission by prioritizing environmental issues and focusing resources on those with the greatest significance. Remember…. Being a good environmental steward is everyone’s business. Performing your job in an environmentally safe and sound manner benefits us all by protecting the health of the surrounding ecosystem, preserving resources for future generations, being good neighbors, minimizing mission impact due to non-compliance issues, and saving money by decreasing wasted resources. As a member of the Surrounding community, you are responsible for performing your job in an environmentally safe and sound manner by knowing how your job impacts the environment, adhering to operating procedures, knowing the potential environmental impacts of departing from these operating procedures, and by knowing the requirements of your job.

Slide 7 Environmental Management Programs incorporated into EMS including: Environmental Management Programs incorporated into EMS including: Incorporate the provisions into existing goals and records Provide training to personnel Incorporate into position descriptions and performance standards Each location will develop a plan Internal Assessments Environmental management documents Monitoring procedures and data Annual reporting to the EPA

Slide 8 Responsibilities As a member of the ARS community, you are responsible for performing your job in an environmentally safe and sound manner. You should: Understand the commitments of the ARS Environmental Policy Know how your job impacts the environment Know and adhere to the procedures of your job Know the potential environmental impacts of departing from the procedures of your job Know the environmental requirements of your job

Slide 9 SECTION TWO EMS MAJOR CONCEPTS

Slide 10 An ISO EMS is a set of procedures based on a Plan-Do- Check-Act cycle and has five Major Components, Policy, Planning, Implementation and Operation, Checking and Corrective Action, and Management Review Policy Management Review Implementation and Operation Checking and Corrective Action Planning Continual Improvement Plan Do Check Act

Slide 11 ISO EMS Major Concepts An EMS has five major components which are; Policy, Planning, Implementation, Check/review Final management review For this training, we are going to review the Environmental Policy, and some planning in relation to the Environmental Aspects and Environmental Impacts.

Slide 12 Environmental Policy The Environmental Policy describes ARS’s approach to environmental management. ARS personnel should understand that the ARS Environmental Policy: Applies to all Commits to environmental compliance Commits to prevention of pollution Commits to continual improvement Is available on the ERRC and NAA Safety Website

Slide 13 Environmental Aspects Environmental aspects are elements of the location’s activities that can potentially interact with the environment. Examples are; Use of hazardous chemicals Landscaping services Energy efficiency

Slide 14 Environmental Impacts Environmental impacts are changes to the environment resulting from an environmental aspect. Examples are: Waste generation Soil, water quality degradation or improvement Resource depletion

Slide 15 Environmental Aspects and Environmental Impacts Environmental aspects and environmental impacts exist in a “Cause and Effect” relationship with each other. Aspect (Cause) Impact (Effect) use of hazardous chemicals Landscaping services Energy efficiency Waste generation Soil, water quality degradation or improvement Resource depletion

Slide 16 Significant Environmental Aspects Current significant environmental aspects are: Emissions Discharges, spills, leaks, or other releases to soil or water Energy consumption or conservation Generation of waste streams Significant environmental aspects must be managed through operational procedures and considered when setting environmental objectives and targets.

Slide 17 SECTION THREE YOUR PARTICIPATION But what do I have to do?

Slide 18 Your Participation All personnel will have roles and responsibilities at the location for EMS. Your level of participation will vary according to the work you perform. At a minimum, you are responsible for knowing: The commitments of the ARS Environmental Policy How your job impacts the environment The procedures/protocols of your job and adhering to them The potential environmental impacts of departing from the procedures of your job The legal and other environmental requirements of your job

Slide 19 Objectives and Targets Compliance with EPA regulations Reduce a hazardous waste stream Reduce consumption of energy (electricity) Green Purchase Training There are Agency targets and location targets

Slide 20 Minimizing Environmental Impacts An objective of an EMS is to reduce environmental impacts. Below are ways you can support this objective: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Reduce your use of resources such as water. Reuse resources such as office supplies Recycle all batteries, paper, electronics, toner cartridges, metal scraps, metal cans, glass and plastic containers, and fluorescent light bulbs. Purchasing Requirements – Government purchasing agents, including credit card holders, are required to follow the Affirmative (Green) Procurement Plan.

Slide 21 Minimizing Environmental Impacts - Continued Spill Reporting – Personnel who suspect a spill has occurred should report it through the location emergency procedures. Reporting petroleum product and hazardous material spills in a timely manner can minimize personnel and environmental damage. Carpool – ARS supports a Carpool Program to support a regional goal of decreasing vehicle emissions. Reduce – Excess Chemical usage in laboratory experiments, purchase only what you need. Substitute – Use a less toxic material if possible when newer techniques allow for them.

Slide 22 Benefits of Minimizing Environmental Impacts Minimizing environmental impacts help: Protect human health and the surrounding ecosystem Promote a good relationship with surrounding community and emergency services Save money through resource conservation Reduces and eliminates lab storage and chemical disposal issues

Slide 23 TOP TEN POLLUTION PREVENTION TECHNIQUES 1. good housekeeping and maintenance practices 2. spill prevention and preparedness 3. inventory management 4. prudent purchasing 5. exchange programs

Slide alternate cleaning processes 7. reuse/recycle process wastes 8. process modifications 9. changes in equipment/technology 10. environmentally preferable purchasing TOP TEN POLLUTION PREVENTION TECHNIQUES

Slide 25 Housekeeping and Maintenance reducing spills, overflows, leaks, ruined samples, and accidents prevents pollution-- while also reducing materials costs and stress. lab clutter contributes to knocked-over containers while also impairing efficiency and morale

Slide 26 use secondary containment where appropriate inspect and maintain equipment routinely replace seals and gaskets on a regular basis use tight-fitting lids and bungs to prevent evaporation Housekeeping and Maintenance

Slide 27 Spill prevention and preparedness Spills generate waste! By preventing spills, you can prevent hazardous releases and avoid associated disposal costs

Slide 28 For example have your waste solvent containers in secondary trays Not good Good

Slide 29 Don’t allow your waste solvent containers become a leaking waste solvent container.

Slide 30 Or let your cans leak until they are picked up

Slide 31 To avoid accidental spills... train new employees in proper use of chemicals, apparatus, instruments, and tools use pipetting aids, spigots and pumps instead of pouring liquids store materials securely and away from traffic

Slide 32 Inventory Management Proper management ensures that your inventory is an asset, not a pollution prevention liability.

Slide 33 Inventory Management Tips Continue to update the Chem Master inventory tracking system, not only with incoming materials but to remove finished materials that are no longer in the system. label all containers with contents and date to avoid costly and hazardous “unknowns” store material carefully to prevent spills and leaks rotate inventory so older material is used first

Slide 34 Prudent Purchasing buy only the amount of chemicals that you will use within a reasonable time period buy durable apparatus and equipment that can be repaired and maintained coordinate or centralize purchasing to avoid unnecessary purchases

Slide 35 Buy “right size” NOT“economy size”

Slide 36 Exchange programs Exchange is a “matchmaking” process based on the premise that one party’s excess may be a usable material for another party The goal of exchange is to minimize waste disposal expenses while maximizing the value of reusable byproducts These programs work with the use of Chem Master to find out who may have a needed chemical

Slide 37 Many times the cost of disposal of a chemical far exceeds the cost of the chemical For example

Slide 38 Cost of new cylinder of Trimethylamine

Slide 39 Cost to disposal of un-used cylinder of Trimethylamine

Slide 40 Recycling of process wastes Recycling may involve reusing a material in the same process or in a different process A common example in laboratories is recycling organic solvents by distillation

Slide 41 Materials Substitution In some cases, labs are unable to make substitutions due to required protocols Opportunities exist beyond chemical substitution such as alternatives to mercury thermometers, such as alcohol or electronic devices. Ask your vendors to keep you informed when new, less-hazardous products become available

Slide 42 Excess Chemicals Excess Solvents Let the safety office know if you have any excess, unwanted chemicals to get rid of. As long as the chemical is identified then it may be removed from your lab. Try not to keep excess chemicals too long, don’t wait for the renovation of your lab area to dispose of unwanted materials. Use the appropriate container to store excess solvents, there are both metal and plastic (Teflon type) storage containers.

Slide 43 What happens to waste chemicals from ERRC Our chemical waste hauler disposes of used chemicals by recycling inorganic chemicals for re-manufacture Flammable solvents are used as fuel additives Highly regulated items as Mercury and PCB’s are sent recyclers who specialize in that product reuse or disposal.

Slide 44 Environmentally Preferable Purchasing aka: Affirmative Procurement Definition: Products or services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment when compared with competing products or services that serve the same purpose

Slide 45 Affirmative procurement means examining the pollution prevention practices of your vendors and subcontractors Affirmative Procurement Affirmative Procurement

Slide 46 Summary All personnel should understand the commitments of the ARS Environmental Policy and are responsible for performing work in an environmentally safe and sound manner. Remember that you are responsible for knowing: How your job impacts the environment The procedures of your job and adhering to them The potential environmental impacts of departing from the procedures of your job The legal and other environmental requirements of your job

Slide 47

Slide 48 CONGRATULATIONS and THANK YOU !!! You have completed EMS Annual Awareness Training. A record of your participation is electronically recorded. To get more involved in the Environmental Programs here at ERRC contact the Safety Office or Area Safety Office ERRC Environmental Management System