EHS Compliance Educational Seminar

forTBR Colleges and Universities

April 16, 2009

Nashville, TennesseePresented by UT CIS

EHS Jeopardy…

Answer: Fines, penalties and jail time.

Question: ?????

Did you know… EPA is holding educational institutions

to the same standards as industry Subject to the same environmental

laws/regulations and penalties for non-compliance

Colleges and Universities were a low inspection priority in the past…times are changing!

Did you know… EPA identified high rate of non-

compliance with colleges and universities Primary problem areas:

Hazardous Waste Management Water Pollution (Clean Water Act and Storm

Water Pollution Prevention) Fines and Penalties issued have ranged

from $20K to over $1M

Fines and Penalties… Administrative Civil & Criminal Fines/penalties are additive to the cost of

coming into compliance Assessed per violation -- each day of non-

compliance is separate violation Other adverse consequences

Public relations, loss of government grants, contracts, permits, etc.

Who’s Liable?

A. Corporation/College/University or Other Institution

B. Executives/Administrators/Managers

C. EHS coordinator

D. Other individuals

E. All of the above

Who’s Liable? Answer: All of the Above “Natural” persons (Individuals) and

“Juridical” persons (corporations, governmental entities and other institutions) can be held liable for violations.

Responsible Corporate Officer Doctrine

Corporate officers can be held criminally liable for acts committed by their subordinates Prosecutions allowed when statute

involves public health and welfare

Responsible Corporate Officer Doctrine

More aggressively used in environmental arena Courts have held that environmental statutes are public

health and welfare statues. Can be used when public health/safety at stake Proof of knowledge required under public welfare

legislation is minimal – only have to show that a corporate officer “had, by reason of his position, responsibility and authority either to prevent… or promptly to correct the violation…and failed to do so...”

Enforcement Actions Enforcement actions on the rise – even

with limited government resources. Increase in criminal enforcements for

environmental fractions: More charges against individuals versus

corporations. Increasingly for failure to properly comply

with procedural aspects of environmental laws.

EPA Enforcement Actions

Criminal Prosecutions Huntsman Chemical Company

Environmental Manager and Plant Manager indicted: fraudulent claims – air emissions

Koch Petroleum Group V.P., Refinery Manager, Corporate

Counsel, Plant Manager and Environmental Engineer indicted: conspiracy to conceal non-compliance

EPA Enforcement Actions

Criminal Prosecutions Intertek Testing Services

Environmental Labs 13 employees indicted – from V.P.

all the way down to laboratory employees

Fraudulent claims – sample analysis

EPA Enforcement Actions Fines and Penalties

University of Hawaii Paid $1.8 million in civil penalties for

violating federal law – poorly managing lab waste

University of New Hampshire Will pay a fine of $49,000 for RCRA

violations and will spend at least $147,000 on a Supplemental Environmental Project

EPA Enforcement Actions

Fines and Penalties Yale University

$69,000 for RCRA violations $279,000 committed to campus

environmental projects University of Georgia

$2.62 million cleanup of a hazardous waste landfill that had polluted ground water

OSHA Enforcement Actions

Fines and Penalties Imperial Sugar - $8,777,500 (initial)

13 killed and 40 injured in explosion

BP Oil Company - $21,361,500 (final) 15 killed, 107 injured - Texas Plant explosion

Safway Services Inc. - fines totaling $166,500

Construction site fatality – 3 willful citations issued by TOSHA

OSHA Enforcement Actions Criminal Prosecutions

Lemaster Steel Erectors - Employee fell to death. Safety Director and Regional Manager plead guilty to violating federal fall protection regulations – sentenced to 6 months in prison and 3 years probation, plus fines. Site foreman sentenced to 4 months in prison and 3 years probation, plus fines.

Owner of plumbing firm pled guilty to criminal charges of willfully violating OSHA trenching safety standards – two employees killed – 6 months in jail and 3 years probation, plus restitution to victims’ families.

How do you minimize the potential for fines and penalties?

Implementing an effective EHS compliance program is the best defense. Program should evaluate the daily functions,

identify problem areas and actively work to rectify problems.

Functional program and top to bottom involvement is essential for any organization operating in a regulated industry.

Compliance Program Action Items

Define campus areas with EHS aspects and impacts: Laboratories Art Departments Physical Plants/boiler rooms & emergency

generators Chemical storage rooms/storage tanks Maintenance Facilities/paint booths New Construction Automotive Fleets

Program Action Items….

Determine aspects/impacts in each area: Chemical use/storage/exposure Waste generation & disposal Wastewater discharges Refrigerant issues Asbestos, lead paint, air emissions Equipment/machinery use Noise

Program Action Items….

Evaluate compliance with each aspect/impact identified.

Identify compliance gaps and required steps to close the gaps.

Sample FormDocumenting Aspects, Gaps & Action Items

Area: Building 10 Key Contact: Jane Doe Activity/service Compliance Issues Status Action Items

Chemical storage in Lab

Expired chemicals Need to dispose of expired chemicals

-Quantity?-Hazardous waste?-Generator Status?-Notifications?-Disposal options?-New Storage SOP

HAZCOM program implementation

Program in place, training records on file

Operation of Natural gas-fired boiler

Air emissions Permit in place -Permit expires?-Records for demonstrating compliance?

Storage of #2 fuel oil

Air emissionsSPCC

No permit neededOutdated SPCC

-Documented permit exemption?-Update SPCC

Program Action Items….

Once identified, work diligently to close compliance gaps. Must make progress and get things done!

Getting things done…

Administrative involvement is crucial Must allocate resources – including $$$

Compliance is a cost center – not a profit center. However, consider the cost of non-

compliance: fines, penalties and the risk of criminal prosecution, including jail time.

Getting things done… Share the wealth

EHS coordinator can’t do it alone Form a team -- at least one person from

areas with safety/environmental aspects/impacts and other key areas/functions

Define team roles, responsibilities, goals and objectives

Provide team with information, training and follow-up

Getting things done… Create compliance roadmap

Checklist and mock audits can be used to get started -- great tools for compliance gap analysis

Benchmark with a campus that has an established program

Develop and document standard operating procedures for compliance issues

Have a good recordkeeping system

Getting things done… Prioritize

Decide on what must get done Use a “rating system” to rank items on

the “to do” list Consider compliance, risk, financial, etc.

Document list Forward to team members Include timeline and responsibilities

How to prioritize….

Eliminate the hazard Address non-compliance Fix the easy first, then target big

ticket items Be purposeful and plan ahead

Proactive versus reactive

Sample RANKING Worksheet(Typically used for EMS Systems)

Aspect RegulatedCompliance

StatusSafety Hazard

HealthHazard

Envir. Hazard

Cost Total

Significant? (aspect

considered significant if

score is > 12)

Assign Value 0 to 55 = High 1 = Low 0 = Not applicable

What’s Next…. Continue with compliance programs

Administration support is vital Additional Training

Next topic: Hazardous Waste notification/reporting - preparing and submitting the appropriate forms

Other topics to come Needs/suggestions – contact EH&S Regional

Executives

Questions?