EPA June 27 Latest Developments 6/27/2003
From: John Millet of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 202-564-7842; e-mail: millet.john@epa.gov web: http://www.epa.gov/newsroom WASHINGTON, June 27 -- Following are the latest developments from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Please call the appropriate contact for additional information. EPA HALTS SALE OF UNREGISTERED "SARS" PESTICIDE PRODUCT Contact: John Millet 202-564-7842/[email protected] On June 25, the EPA ordered a stop to the sale of six unregistered pesticide products that two affiliated companies claim protect the public from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrom (SARS). EPA also requested a voluntary recall of these products from all locations within 30 days. The EPA orders were issued to: Phillips Technologies, LLC of Millersville, Md., for the illegal sale of the SARS Mask Set, SARS Travel Kit, Silver SARS Mask, Phillips Silver Mask, SARS Electrostatic Mask and Silver Spray and to SARS Research Labs of Tampa, Fla. for the same six products. All of these products claimed to kill pathogens, viruses -- including the SARS virus -- bacteria, and fungus. According to the Web site from which these products are offered, SARS Research Labs is an affiliate of Phillips Technologies, LLC. The order goes into effect immediately upon receipt by the company. EPA will be monitoring compliance with the orders and the companies' voluntary recall. In addition, EPA will continue to examine advertisements on the Internet and other marketing avenues to ensure that no unregistered pesticides are illegally sold to the public. The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act prohibits anyone from selling or distributing unregistered pesticides and authorizes EPA to issue orders stopping the sale of illegal products. EPA has an extensive pre-market registration process to ensure that pesticide products that claim to protect public health are effective. Products that make public health claims must be proven effective when used according to label directions. --- FIVE WINNERS RECEIVE THE 2003 PRESIDENTIAL GREEN CHEMISTRY CHALLENGE AWARDS Contact: Suzanne Ackerman 202-564-7819, e-mail: ackerman.suzanne@epa.gov In recognition of innovative technologies that prevent pollution at the source of manufacturing and industrial processes, EPA announced five winners 2003 Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. Green chemistry is the design of chemical and industrial processes that reduce or eliminate the use or release of hazardous substances. The Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 established a national policy to reduce pollution at the source, one of the most effective means of reducing costly and complicated clean-up of pollutants. An independent panel of technical experts selected the five winners after reviewing more than 70 nominations: -- Professor Richard Gross of Polytechnic University, Brooklyn N.Y., for the development of a new enzymatic method to create polyester products without using heavy metal catalysts. -- AgraQuest, Inc., Davis, Calif., for developing Serenade(r), a biologically-derived fungicide that can replace pesticides with heavy metals or chlorine. -- Sud-Chemie, Inc., Louisville, Ky., for using green chemistry to make a catalyst for the synthesis of cleaner fuels and chemicals. -- DuPont, Wilmingon, Del., for developing a process that uses renewable resources -- like corn -- instead of toxic petrochemicals to create 1,3-propanediol, the key building block for several DuPont textile apparel, carpeting and packaging products. -- Shaw Carpet, Inc., Dalton, Ga., for developing EcoWorx(tm) carpet system that makes nylon carpet tiles with carpet backing that is lighter, recyclable and free of urethane, polyvinylchlorides, and plasticizers. More information is available at: http://www.epa.gov/greenchemistry --- NATIONAL CONFERENCE OF BLACK MAYORS AND EPA SIGN MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING Contact: Bonnie Piper 202-564-7836/[email protected] On Thursday, June 26, EPA Administrator Christie Todd Whitman and National Conference of Black Mayors (NCBM) President Harvey Johnson, Mayor of Jackson, Miss., signed the first-ever Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a national state and local government association to strengthen their collaborative efforts to protect the nation's natural resources. The National Conference of Black Mayors is an organization of more than 500 Mayors in 28 states and the District of Columbia, representing more than 20 million Americans. The MOU objectives include: improving communication; facilitating NCBM members Mayors' input during the development and implementation of EPA's regulations and national environmental policies; and conducting environmental workshops and forums in their municipalities. Other NCBM participants included Mayor Marilyn Murrell (Arcadia, Okla.), immediate past president; and Mayor Marcia Glenn (Lithonia, Ga.), first vice president. --- REPORT VERIFIES DEEP REDUCTIONS IN EMISSIONS OF NITROGEN OXIDE DUE TO NORTHEASTERN PROGRAM Contact: David Deegan, 202-564-7839 EPA, along with the multi-state membership of the Ozone Transport Commission (OTC), today released a report showing the continuing success of a market-based emissions trading program for reducing nitrogen oxide emissions in the northeastern United States. Nitrogen oxides (NOx) are a key ingredient in the formation of ground level ozone (smog), which can irritate the respiratory tract, impair breathing ability and cause various other respiratory problems. This emissions trading program, called the "Nox Budget Program," is managed through a unique partnership between federal and state governments. The Ozone Transport Commission was created by Congress as part of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments to better coordinate the efforts of northeastern states in reducing nitrogen oxide emissions, such as helping implement the Nox Budget Program when it began in 1999. During 2002, the fourth year of the program, more than 1,100 sources in nine participating states and the District of Columbia reduced NOx emissions 11 percent below allowable emission levels. NOx emissions are now approximately 60 percent below 1990 levels. The "2002 OTC NOx Budget Program Compliance Report" can be found at: http://www.sso.org/otc/ or http://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/cmprpt/index.html The EPA's Acid Rain Program has been using a cap and trade emissions reduction strategy nationwide since 1995 to successfully control sulfur dioxide emissions. The OTC NOx Budget Program, however, is the first cap and trade program formed by a group of states and represents the first large-scale application of cap and trade to a problem beyond acid rain. The success of the OTC NOx Budget Program in reducing NOx in the Northeast is an important first step in efforts to reduce ambient ozone levels and supports the use of cap and trade mechanisms to control multiple pollutants over broad regions in the future. Further NOx reductions using the cap and trade mechanism have been proposed under various multi-pollutant legislative proposals, including the Administration's Clear Skies Act, which would reduce sulfur dioxide, mercury and nitrogen oxide emissions from power plants throughout the country. --- NATIONAL CORRECTIVE ACTION CONFERENCE STRESSES MARKET FORCES IN CLEANING UP HAZARDOUS WASTE Contact: Dave Ryan 202-564-7827/[email protected] On June 24-25, EPA hosted the annual National Corrective Action Conference at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in New Orleans, La. Participating companies include: BP, Chevron Texaco, ConocoPhillips, Crompton Corporation, Delphi Corporation, ExxonMobil, General Motors and Occidental Chemical Corporation. EPA's Corrective Action program holds owners or operators of treatment, storage or disposal facilities responsible for investigating and cleaning up soil, ground water, surface water or air releases from their sites, regardless of when the releases occurred. Corrective Action is authorized by the Congressional Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), which gives EPA authority to control the generation, transportation, treatment, storage and disposal of hazardous waste. RCRA can be an effective tool in preventing future Superfund sites. At this year's conference, Marianne Lamont Horinko, EPA's Assistant Administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, acknowledged companies that agreed to increase control of both contaminated groundwater migration and any unacceptable human health exposures at their facilities by 2005. Horinko also emphasized that the Corrective Action program is stressing voluntary compliance so that market forces will find the cheapest and most efficient solutions to today's environmental challenges. For more information, go to: http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/ca/index.htm | |