1. Environmental Hazard Awareness:
Environmental Training Institute (ETI)
Environmental Hazard Awareness:
Environmental Release Cycle

2. Lesson Objectives Define environmental aspect and impact
Review the aspects of Land, Air, Water and Chemical/Health
Introduce the “Environmental Release Cycle”

3. Definition Environmental aspect
Source: ISO 14001
Things that we do AND interact with the environment
ANIMATION
An element of an organization’s activities or products or services that can interact with the environment.
Driving (energy, knowledge, exhaust, brake materials, condensate, oil drips, engine coolant)
Maintenance (oil, brakes, fuel, engine coolant, parts to be disposed)
Repair (oil, brakes, fuel, engine coolant, other fluids, parts to be disposed)
Refueling (fuel, knowledge, pump maintenance)
Cleaning (vacuuming and washing)

4. Definition Environmental impact
Source: ISO 14001
Changes in the environment – good or bad – that occur due to our work/activities
ANIMATION
Any change to the environment, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partially resulting from an organization's environmental aspects
Driving (Accident, Exhaust, Drips from the car)
Maintenance (Waste, Contaminants released-Drips from the car, Exhaust, Energy)
Repair (Waste, Contaminants released-Drips from the car, Exhaust, Energy)
Refueling (Air contaminants released, drips from the nozzle, energy, exhaust)
Cleaning (vacuuming and washing-water discharges)

5. Texas City: Environmental Release
Benzene
Aspect
Impact
Ask: Where does the release go?
Aspect - An element of an organization’s activities or products or services that can interact with the environment.
Impacts - Any change to the environment, whether adverse or beneficial, wholly or partially resulting from an organization's environmental aspects

6. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Disposal
ANIMATION
Ask students what they do? The things we use, produce and the activities we perform have impacts on our environment. The following occurs when we do things:
-Releases to Air
-Releases to Water
-Waste is created
The waste is disposed.
The releases to air and water end up as a waste stream.
Every thing we do can have an environmental aspect and/or impact to our Air, Water and Land. This is what we call the Environmental Release Cycle. To change the environmental aspects and impacts, the cycle must be interrupted or altered.

7. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Disposal
Waste
What are some to the things that we do?
I am an instructor. As an instructor, my job has the following environmental aspects and impacts.
Ask the students about their jobs or offer others…
The things we use, the things we produce and the activities we participate in have environmental aspects and impacts on air, water and land through air emissions, discharges to water and waste disposal. We will further look at this environmental release cycle.

8. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Disposal
Waste
Sometimes, these activities result in air emissions or releases of contaminants to the air. For example, when you drive to work, exhaust is released into the environment.
In addition, the air releases can discharge material to the ground and water in the form of particulate.

9. Particulate air contaminants in Bangkok
What are the impacts of these air releases?
Air quality
Visibility
Breathability
Health effects
Water quality
Particulate in water

10. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Disposal
Waste
Sometimes, the activities we do releases contaminants to water.
Has anyone poured old gasoline from the lawn mower into the yard? Poured chemicals down the sink?
What the potential impacts of pouring old gasoline into the yard?
Water quality for people on well water
Water quality on water used for fishing and recreation
What the potential impacts of pouring chemicals down the sink?
Drinking water quality
Eg: Mercury is a toxic material that cannot be removed during water treatment. There is no treatment!

11. As shown in this image, this is a drain outlet area where material is released. This area is considered a danger until dilution reduces the contaminant to water ratio.
What is the impact of this drain outlet on the water in the area?
-Water quality
-Recreation
-Food

12. What is the environmental impact?
These images are from a river in China that was contaminated from the release of red dye into the water treatment system.

13. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Disposal
The average person generates approx pounds of waste a day. How many people are on earth? Almost 7 billion? That is a lot of waste.
What are the environmental impacts when waste is placed into the ground?
Water quality
Drinking
Crops
Fish
Recreational
To ensure waste is disposed of properly, it must be managed. Waste is managed through classification. Classification begins with hazardous –vs- non- hazardous. Hazardous waste has long term effects because the chemicals could contaminant the land as well as the water supply. Non-hazardous waste must be disposed of properly too to avoid hazardous waste from entering the wrong landfill.

14. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Once the waste has been managed through classification, it must be disposed. Classification defines where the waste can be disposed.
For example, chemicals of concern have been classified by the EPA in groupings. These groupings are used to determine which landfill can be used for disposal. This applies to non-hazardous and hazardous waste. In addition, there are certain materials that can be disposed of as non-hazardous waste from your home while they are considered hazardous waste in certain businesses when quantities are exceeded.
Disposal

15. Looking at this image, ask the class: what are the environmental impacts of improperly disposed waste?

16. Valley of the Drums
Here is a real life example of a failed landfill called the Valley of the Drums.
In Bullitt County, Kentucky (near Louisville), there was a 13 acre site that became a collection point for toxic wastes starting in the 1960s. Waste was being dumped without much thought – until some of the drums caught fire and burned for a week in 1966.
Without laws or direction about how to contain toxic waste, the fire was extinguished and they continued with the same waste practices until In 1979, the EPA initiated emergency clean-up of the worst leaking drums. The EPA found 17,051 drums on the surface and 11,628 were empty. Workers did not have the skills to manage this issue.
Although this incident because the driver for CERCLA, CERCLA and RCRA have a direct relationship. Cleanup did not begin until 1983 and took until 1990 to clean up most of the drums. In 2003, an environmental audit found PCBs in the soil surrounding the area.
To this day, the aquifers are too contaminated. In the area, they use municipal water and cisterns.

17. Environmental Release Cycle
Use
Production
Activity
Disposal
In summary, this is the environmental release cycle. Ask the class to walk through the cycle beginning with the Use/Production/Activity area.

18. Environmental Requirements
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Land
Air
Water
Chemical/Health
To manage the potential environmental impacts, the EPA has established regulations to manage the releases to land, air and water or chemicals with the potential to impact health.

19. Lesson Objectives Defined environmental aspect and impact
Reviewed the aspects of Land, Air, Water and Chemical/Health
Introduced the “Environmental Release Cycle”