EPA Shifts to High-Profile Compliance Enforcement Actions: Enviro.BLR.com Advises Environmental Managers
While non-industry sources might think that the EPA has become a paper tiger, it is anything but for companies with stormwater runoff, air pollution, or water pollution issues. The Agency has decided it gets the most bang for the buck with high-profile citations, according to Enviro.BLR.com.
Old Saybrook, CT (PWREB) January 20, 2005 –- If you read the general press it
would be easy to draw the conclusion that the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) is a toothless tiger.
But Steve Quilliam, editor at Enviro.BLR.com
– Making State Environmental Compliance Easier, says, “The truth is that the EPA
is very interested in enforcement, particularly in storm water runoff, and in
air and water pollution.” Quilliam notes, “the EPA is looking for high-profile
cases that give its enforcement activities the greatest bang for the buck.
Companies with hazardous waste issues should take steps to prepare now, before
an inspector arrives, and a highly publicized citation results.”
The
Agency’s enforcement strategy comes as budgets for programs like Superfund have
been cut, and the Bush administration has made other moves unpopular with
environmental groups.
EPA Enforcement Activity
Increased
Enviro.BLR.com, a website for environmental managers, reports that
EPA enforcement statistics for FY 2004 show a very busy Agency. It conducted
21,000 inspections during the year, up 11% over FY 2003. Those inspections
resulted in dramatically more penalties, with 2,248 civil administrative penalty
actions finalized — a whopping 32% increase. Criminal charges, certainly the
worst nightmare for corporate environmental executives, also jumped: 293
criminal defendants were charged with environmental crimes during the year, 46
more than in FY 2003.
State Environmental Compliance an Issue
Quilliam
points out that the federal EPA is not the only agency enforcing environmental
laws. “Most states have their own complicated environmental regulations for
business to comply with.” Fortunately, Business & Legal Reports, Inc.’s
plain-English website, Enviro.BLR.com, features plain-English interpretations of
all federal and state regulations. Arranged by topic and including hundreds of
tools like checklists and inspection forms, the website simplifies the job of
complying with complex regulations.
Enviro.BLR.com offers a free
download of its informative White Paper, “Regulatory Analysis – Inspections,”
with detailed advice on how to prepare for an EPA inspection. To get this
download go to http://www.blr.com/80502500/WBE402 , or call
800-727-5257.
About BLR
Old Saybrook, Conn.-based BLR provides
plain-English compliance and training tools for environmental, safety, HR, and
compensation managers. For information and a free catalog, call 800-727-5257 or
visit www.BLR.com.
Contacts:
BLR
Editor:
Steve Quilliam
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(860)510-0100-2148
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/1/prweb197790.htm