What’s New and Where is IDEM Heading? IN Chapter Air and Waste Management Association December 9,...

What’s New and Where is IDEM Heading?

IN Chapter Air and Waste Management Association December 9, 2008

Thomas W. Easterly, P.E., BCEE, QEP CommissionerIN Department of Environmental Management

IDEM’s Mission and Environmental Goal

IDEM is responsible for protecting human health and the environment while providing for safe industrial, agricultural, commercial and governmental operation vital to a prosperous economy. Our goal is to increase the personal income of all Hoosiers to the national average while maintaining and improving Indiana’s Environmental Quality.

Performance Metrics Sept 2008

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We Protect Hoosiers and Our Environment

Quality of Hoosiers' Environment Result Target Comments

% of Hoosiers in counties meeting air quality standards 84% 100% 80% 2 counties & 981,839 of

6,345,289 above standard

% of CSO Communities with approved programs to prevent the release of untreated sewage 83% 100% 20% 80+9 (89) out of 98+9 (107)

Permitting Efficiency Total calendar days accumulated in issuing environmental permits, as determined by state statute

Land 19,609 66,565 86,864 129 permits

335 permits

27 permits

Air 106,927 207,000 385,000

Water 28,805 48,000 200,000

* Places emphasis on back logged permits

Compliance Total percentage of compliance observations from regulated customers within acceptable compliance standards

Inspections 95.40% 97% 75%

Self reporting 95.81% 99% 95%

Continuous monitoring (COM) 99.73% 99.90% 98.95%

* Tracks observations and not just inspections

Organizational Transformation Budgetary agency dollars spent on key outside contracts for core agency functions.

Dollars spent on outside services per year $2,800,000 $0 $3,447,017 $1.5 OLQ + $1.3 OAQ

Performance Metrics June 2005

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New Drinking Water Metric

• Percent of Hoosiers Drinking Safe Water– Percentage of Indiana population that receives

drinking water from facilities that are in full compliance with safe drinking water regulations

– Federal (EPA) Goal is 90%

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6We Protect Hoosiers and Our Environment

New 2008 Laws• HEA 1001 Property Tax Reform was the Major Issue

in the 2008 Legislative Session

• SEA 45—The Great Lakes Water Compact with implementing legislation

• HEA 1120—Ban phosphates in residential dishwasher detergent sold after July 1, 2010


New 2008 Laws• SEA 43 addresses many environmental issues

– Clarifies mercury switch removal program requirements to:

• Allow payment for removal of mercury containing anti-lock braking switches and other mercury containing devices

• Exempt wrecked vehicles where the mercury switch is not easily accessible

– Allows IDEM to accept electronic signatures– Clarifies Requirements for Local Land Use Approvals for

Solid Waste Landfills that have not yet accepted Waste


New 2008 Laws• SEA 43 Continued

– Removes the requirement that IDEM have a laboratory division

– Removes the requirement to display operator certificates at a treatment plant

– Allows a single vehicle ID and land application permit approval for a septage hauler

– Eliminates the requirement that IDEM obtain social security numbers as part of good character approval process

– Allows IDEM to use ELTF for tank inspections


New 2008 LawsSEA 43 Continued

– Requires public notice of rules that are proposed to sunset

– Protects a community from being required to pay storm water fees to two entities

– Clarifies Environmental Criminal Language

• SEA 46 modified the marketable record title for real property to eliminate the need to renew a environmental restrictive covenant every 50 years

Agency Initiatives• Virtual File Cabinet—electronic filing system—over

30,000,000 pages now available electronically. Visits to IDEM file room down over 90% from 445/mo 1Q 2007 to 35/mo 2Q 2008.

• TEMPO—Enterprise wide electronic integration of all IDEM information—part of the process to allow us to receive and process electronic permit applications and reports.

• Applied for EPA approval for electronic submittals10


Agency Initiatives

• Returned enforcement function to the air, water and land programs and eliminated the separate office of enforcement.

• Provide consistent Statewide air quality permitting, monitoring and enforcement services by directly managing the air program functions previously contracted to: Anderson, Evansville, Gary, Hammond, Indianapolis, and Vigo County.

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Agency Accomplishments• All 1,269 tons of VX Agent stored at the

Newport Chemical Agent Facility since 1969 has been safely destroyed. VX destruction started in May of 2005 and was completed in August 2008

• Digital Inspector Tool is in use for solid waste inspections including CAFOs, Auto Salvage Yards and Landfills.

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Agency Accomplishments• All CSO Communities have entered legal

agreements to address their CSO issues.• Increased permit speed and virtually

eliminated permit and enforcement backlogs.• Entire State met the 0.08 ppm Ozone air

quality standard for the period 2006-2008, all but Lake and Porter Counties designated attainment. PM2.5 Air Quality looks good.

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Antidegradation Status• Stakeholder kickoff Meeting on March 7, 2008• Discussed concepts and schedule at two large

stakeholder meetings on 4/29 and 6/25• Working group of twelve members from the

environmental, business and municipal segments formed to come up with draft rule language and/or identify areas for IDEM to resolve

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Antidegradation Status• Working group has met on 7/15 and 8/12,

9/16 and 10/30—Next Meeting 12/11/08• Working group agenda items:

– Applicability (7/15) & (10/30)– Exemptions (8/12) & (10/30)– DeMinimis (9/16) & (10/30)– Water Quality Improvement Projects– Antidegradation Demonstrations (12/11/08)– Public Notice/Public Comment

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Office of Enforcement2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008*

Referrals 607 467 547 591 606 189

Violation Letters 5,222 4,980 4,268 4,024 3,958 11**

Notices of Violation 457 318 202 427 420 178

Agreed Orders 349 314 258 417 372 185

Commissioner’s Orders 15 6 41 38 39 12

Dismissals 121 44 48 46 57 20

Complies/Closed 308 312 317 577 568 214

AG Referrals 13 17 4 33 52 10

16*through 2nd quarter **Does not include Program Violation Letters


Criminal Convictions• Wabash Environmental Technologies and Derrik

Hagerman—Clean Water Act felonies. Sixty months of imprisonment and $237,000 in restitution (Terre Haute)

• Miller Environmental and Anthony MuCullough—Clean Water Act felonies. Four months imprisonment and $510,000 in penalties (Shelbyville and Rushville)

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Criminal Convictions

• Richard Reece—RCRA felonies. Six months in half way house, six months home detention and $60,000 restitution (Muncie)

• Hassan Barrel and Alan Hersh—RCRA felonies. Awaiting sentencing (Fort Wayne)

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RISC Preference for Clean-up• Only applies if facility cannot meet any of the

Risk Based Clean-up Levels (RBCLs)• Perceived by some to be a change in policy—

intended to be a clarification of existing policy to be “Clear, Consistent and Speedy”

• Concept is to require an evaluation and reasoned justification for leaving high concentrations of pollution on a “closed” site

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RISC Preference for Clean-up• Factors to be considered include:

– Is it infeasible to clean up to Risk Based Levels?– Is it too costly to clean up to Risk Based Levels?– Will the high levels of contamination be properly

contained so that human health and the environment are protected?

• This is a work in progress and other issues will likely be considered

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US Courts Overturning Rules

• 2007—Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (ICI) Boiler MACT—directly impacted about 10 sources with coal fired boilers

• May 2008—Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) impacted all Power Plants

• July 2008—Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) impacted all Power Plants and most Indiana air pollution strategies

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Forbes “America’s Greenest States” Report

• “So who’s at the bottom? Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Indiana and, at No. 50, West Virginia. All suffer from a mix of toxic waste, lots of pollution and consumption and no clear plans to do anything about it. Expect them to remain that way.”

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Forbes Report Conclusion• Does not rank States based upon government

verified environmental quality data• Appears to be a ranking based upon adherence of

States to a group of policies advocated by the NGO’s providing information used in the rankings

• The data used in the report is as old as 2003 and goes up to 2005

• We are implementing improvements and have made great progress

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Questions?

Tom EasterlyCommissioner

Indiana Department of Environmental Management317-232-8611

[email protected]

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mailto:[email protected]

What’s New and Where is IDEM Heading? IN Chapter Air and Waste Management Association December 9,...

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