Content about U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

LAFAYETTE, La. — A Louisiana dry cleaner pleaded guilty last week to negligently causing and allowing the discharge of hazardous waste—perchloroethylene, also known as perc—into a publicly owned treatment works or sewer system, according to U.S. Attorney Stephanie A. Finley.

Jason Prejean, 38, of Lafayette owns One Low Price Cleaners (OLPC) and entered the guilty plea on behalf of him and his Lafayette business.

At the hearing, Prejean admitted that he acted negligently in failing to ensure the proper and lawful disposal of wastewater containing perc and that he failed to train OLPC employees on the lawful disposal of perc waste. He also admitted that he had not used a disposal company since February 2007.

Investigations by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Criminal Investigation Division and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) revealed that from December 2007 through May 2009, perc was improperly stored on-site at OLPC and that employees routinely poured perc wastewater down the toilet inside the store.

CHICAGO — In February, after 14 years of study, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) named perchloroethylene a “likely” human carcinogen in its Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) database. And after more than two decades of increasingly stringent regulation on the industry’s solvent of choice, the announcement seemed like the final nail in perc’s coffin.

Ironically, the decision actually protects perc’s position in dry cleaning, at least for the time being. “Everyone has the misconception that the category perc is in has changed,” says Faye Graul, executive director of the Halogenated Solvents Industry Association (HSIA). “It has not changed at all. The report says perc is safe for use in dry cleaning.”

EPA expressed no concerns about consumers wearing clothing cleaned in perc, and the IRIS report could ease the drinking-water standard required for environmental cleanups. And with a recent, recessionary lull in regulatory activity, only co-located facilities and plants in California and a few other areas see the possibility of a full phaseout ahead.

WASHINGTON — When the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) posted the final health assessment for tetrachloroethylene—also known as perchloroethylene, or perc—to its Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) database in February, it deemed the chemical to be a “likely human carcinogen.”

The assessment replaces the 1988 IRIS assessment for perc and for the first time includes a hazard characterization for cancer effects. The assessment underwent several levels of rigorous, independent peer review including: agency review, interagency review, public comment, and external peer review by the National Research Council, according to the EPA, and all major review comments were addressed.

The Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance says 70% of U.S. commercial dry cleaners use perc; EPA estimates the total number to be 27,000. So what does this development mean for the future of the industry’s preferred solvent?

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Friday officially characterized tetrachloroethylene—also known as perchloroethylene (perc)—as a “likely human carcinogen,” but the agency does not believe that wearing clothing dry-cleaned with perc poses a health risk.

EPA issued its final health assessment to its Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) database, which describes health effects that may result from exposure to various substances. The assessment provides estimates for both cancer and non-cancer effects associated with exposure to perc over a lifetime.

The agency has already taken several significant actions to reduce exposure to perc. It has clean air standards for dry cleaners that use perc, including requirements that will phase-out the chemical’s use in residential buildings by Dec. 21, 2020.

EPA also set limits for the amount of perc allowed in drinking water, and levels for cleaning up perc at Superfund sites throughout the country, which will be updated in light of the IRIS assessment.

CHICAGO — Not so long ago, when you looked up “green” in the dictionary, there was a brief definition about color or pigment. Today, it’s difficult to read or hear the word “green” without also thinking of the environment, of conservation, of sustainability.

When writing about greening a business operation such as a drycleaner, it’s difficult to know where to start. There are so many different ways that a cleaner could boost its environmental profile, and so many different areas that are candidates for green initiatives.

And while going green could involve a decision to invest in new equipment, chemicals or supplies, there are low-cost, common sense changes that can also make a drycleaner more enviro-friendly.

OPPORTUNITIES TO GREEN

Every part of a drycleaning operation can be engineered to be “greener.” As you examine your operation for opportunities, here are just a few things to include on your checklist:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released an action plan last Wednesday to address potential health risks of nonylphenol (NP)/nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEs) used in industrial laundry detergents. The plan identifies a range of actions the agency is considering under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency proposed tougher clean-air regulations yesterday in an effort to limit smog nationwide. The move would cost heavy industry up to $90 billion, but save a comparable amount on healthcare, the agency says.

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) have given Whirlpool Corp. the 2009 ENERGY STAR Sustained Excellence award. The award recognizes the company’s leadership in offering energy- and water-efficient appliances, Whirlpool says. This is the company’s 10th ENERGY STAR award and fourth consecutive Sustained Excellence win.

WASHINGTON, D.C. —  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is moving to clarify its regulations covering airborne percholorethylene emissions from drycleaning plants. The changes will relax some of the responsibilities mandated by EPA in its NESHAP revisions of 2006.

Drycleaners are emerging as a niche for industrial laundry-equipment manufacturers and distributors, since a growing percentage of items funneled through progressive plants are now wetcleaned — often with superior results.

The industry is searching for safer cleaning alternatives, having been hammered by environmental regulations on the use of perchloroethylene, rising insurance premiums and increasing labor costs, says Mike (Stucky) Szczotka of Eagle Star Equipment in Troy, Mich.

MODESTO, Calif. – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is suing the former landlords of a Modesto drycleaning operation to recover $9 million in expenses it says was pent cleaning up perchloroethylene contamination in the city’s groundwater, according to a recent story in the Modesto Bee.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Representatives of the International Fabricare Institute (IFI) and Halogenated Solvents Industry Alliance (HSIA) met recently with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) officials to get clarifications on the revised National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) regulations for perchloroethylene drycleaning published last July.