To Inform Los Angeles' Environmentally Regulated Community
Board of Public Works
HTM Office
City of Los Angeles
City of Los Angeles
Board of Public Works
Hazardous and Toxic Materials Office
200 N. Spring Street, Room 353
Los Angeles, California 90012
Volume 4, No. 1
By John Hinton
State of California-Environmental Protection Agency
Department of Toxic Substances Control
Region IV Administrator
The Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has successfully completed the Targeted Opportunities to Prevent Pollution in Stockton (TOPPS) project and is now preparing to launch the L.A. County Southeast Targeted Opportunities to Prevent Pollution (STOPP) project. The goal of this project is to increase the awareness of pollution prevention opportunities and to reduce the amount of waste generated in a specific geographic area.
Pollution prevention is a means for management and engineering, working together, to save material costs by reducing waste and to reduce regulatory costs by eliminating pollution. As described in other articles in this newsletter, these efforts improve business efficiency, have short payback periods and are now needed to help keep Southern California competitive with other industrial regions.
The STOPP project will be guided by a steering committee co-chaired by Tom Calderon of Calderon and Associates and Noel Kurai of ECOSA along with a representative cross-section of the public and private interests in the area. The HTM Office is one of the public agencies on the committee.
The area selected for this project is bounded by the 100 Freeway on the west, the 105 Freeway on the south, the 10 and 60 Freeways on the north, and extends eastward to between the 605 and 710 Freeways (exact boundary to be set) includes some of the most industrialized sectors in the region and is fertile ground for this kind of effort which will greatly advance the cause of pollution prevention and waste minimization.
For more information, contact DTSC at (310) 590-4864 or the HTM Office.
Figure [(see source document)]
By Bill Moston
HTM Office
For the past few years the Hazardous and Toxic Materials Office has been providing non-regulatory pollution prevention technical assistance to help small businesses reduce their hazardous waste generation. An element of this program, the Los Angeles Hazardous Waste Reduction Assistance Program (LAHWRAP), is staffed by retired engineers with working knowledge and experience in industrial operations. These staff members can visit your facility and provide free, confidential technical assistance to help your company reduce hazardous waste generation.
The recommendations provided by the LAHWRAP staff may include material changes, process changes or just simple general housekeeping changes that will simple general housekeeping changes that will reduce waste and improve operation efficiency. Two case studies will illustrate the benefit from the use of the LAHWRAP staff.
Case Study 1: A pipe cleaning tool manufacturer.
Waste of concern: Wastewater from a phosphate dip process.
This facility had instituted a phosphate dip pre-plating process 10 years prior to the LAHWRAP assessment in order to reduce the reject rate of plated parts. This pre-plate process was the main source of wastewater in the facility. At the time of the assessment the company had been looking for alternative methods for the pre-plating process as way to reduce or eliminate the amount of wastewater generated. The goal of the LAHWRAP assessment was to reduce the amount of the wastewater from the phosphate dip pre-plating process.
The initial pre-plating process involved a five step dip process:
The company used the LAHWRAP recommendation and switched to a phosphate cleaner (with replenisher) wipe process. This change eliminated one of the dip tanks which resulted in a total savings in terms of materials, labor and permit fees of $15,000 per year in addition to the reduction in water usage.
Case Study 2: Automotive radiator repair shop was about 20,000 gallons per year. There was no waste reduction program in place prior to the LAHWRAP assessment. A clarifier with pH adjustment was used for pollution control treatment. The goal of the LAHWRAP assessment was to reduce the volume of wastewater discharged by utilizing two methods
The flow rate minimization recommendations included replacing flushing booths with fiberglass basins and placing mobile drip basins under the incoming parts to catch dripping coolant to separate out highly contaminated water.
Implementation of the LAHWRAP recommendations, in conjunction with a change in the type of radiators being used and the company's efforts to reduce water usage, resulted in a 75 percent reduction in total water usage over a five year period HTM
The HTM Office has recently been proposed as the lead implementor in the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Project's Draft Bay Restoration Plan Priority Action, Pollution Prevention 2.1. The objective of the action is to implement programs that will educate and assist small businesses to implement pollution prevention.
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By Bill Moston
HTM Office
The HTM Office maintains a clearinghouse of information related to hazardous waste reduction ranging from general to operation specific fact sheets. A limited number of waste minimization documents are also available in Spanish.
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by Fred Pete Roullard, III
HTM Office
Pollution prevention is nation wide. For example, a recent out-of-state study of a pollution prevention program for small businesses shows where and how business costs can be decreased when waste is reduced. These businesses added capital equipment that made good business sense, by both improving their operations and reducing pollution. The success of these examples teaches us Angelenos to regard pollution prevention as an opportunity to remain competitive with other geographic areas, as well as to maintain the quality of our own environment.
Case Study 1: Electroplater replaces 1,1,1=trichloroethane used in vapor degreasing with an aqueous cleaning system.
The company employs 23 people and is engaged in electroplating for the electronics industry.
After attending a solvent reduction workshop, the company evaluated solvent substitution alternatives. An ultrasonic cleaning system was purchased with a capacity of 60 feet of reel-to-reel plating line per minute. Although it has only been utilized at 30 feet per minute, to date, this is three times faster than the OSHA limited capacity of the previous trichloroethane vapor degreaser.
The cost of the new system was $22,000 with $759 in annual operation and maintenance. The yearly savings were $17,604 in trichloroethane purchases, $1,100 in disposal of the spent trichloroethane, and $780 in energy savings. The payback period was 1.2 years.
Case Study 2: Precision rifle drilling machine manufacturer recycles machine coolant with the aid of ultrafiltration.
The company employs 45 people. Their machining process uses a waste fluid is an emulsified oil/water mixture containing about 95% water.
After a pollution prevention advisement, the company began using a synthetic machining coolant and installed an ultrafiltration system.
The system cost was $4,000 with annual operation costs less than $1,000. The annual cost savings for oily waste water transportation and off-site disposal was $2,388. The payback period was 2 years.
The two case studies described above were part of a group of 23 success stories published by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Coordination, Pollution Prevention Program. The industries areas closely matched those found here in Los Angeles, ranging from coating applicators, electroplaters and textile engravers, through die casters, metal parts fabricators and jewelry manufacturers, to an electrical connector manufacturer, a fastening tool fabricator and a sail boat builder.
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by David Wada
A patented remedial option is now available through McLaren/Hart. This portable, mobile contaminant removal system is used to treat volatile and semi-volatile compounds in contaminated soil.
This new on-site remedial process features the IRV-100, a low temperature thermal desorption unit, which remediates contaminated soil by utilizing conduction/convection heating, at low temperature, a vacuum extraction through reduced pressure volatization of the soil. The unit is designed to treat volatile and semi-volatile organics, including:
The unique design offers many cost and time savings advantages. The compact unit does not utilize a rotary kiln, which makes it portable and very easy to be mobilized. It can be transported on a standard flatbed truck. The modular system design allows flexibility through the addition or removal of units to meet the needs of individual project sites. The compact design also makes the units adaptable to many site conditions, including those sites where work areas are limited. In addition, the units can be mobilized and set up at most projects sites in 24 hours.
Other advantages include the mechanical simplicity i.e. no feed conveyors, pretreatment dryers, etc. and the low operating temperature which does not change the physical characteristics of the soil and the contaminants.
The treatment costs vary from $45/ ton to $70/ton not including sampling and air treatment costs.
The IRV-100 unit offers cost-effective on-site soil remediation through flexibility and simplicity. For more information contact Dale Richards at McLaren Hart Environmental Engineering Corporation in Irvine, CA. at (714) 756-2667.
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Summary by Curt Holguin
The California Department of Toxic Substances Control ("DTSC") offers a walk-in program for voluntary cleanup by owners of contaminated sites that could offer significant benefits to businesses which own or manage such property. The program, titled "Voluntary Site Cleanups", is in essence a co-administration of site cleanup by owners and DTSC without threat of DTSC enforcement orders, fines or other penalties.
Owners contract for one or more DTSC consultation services leading to a certification that their site is clean to an agreed level. The DTSC services are: preliminary endangerment assessments ("PEAS") if not already performed; technical services such as site investigation, risk assessment, and establishment of remediation goals; and lab analysis. The DTSC fees are an $8,000 flat fee for PEAS, hourly charges for the consultation service(s) selected, and the cost of lab analysis.
Among the benefits of utilizing the program are:
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The HTM Office and the L.A. Resource Program shared one of the tow Environmental Pride Awards given out by Los Angeles Magazine in the category of Innovation. In an article describing the winners and finalists for the awards, these two agencies within the Los Angeles City Department of Public Works were cited as deserving particular attention for innovation in reducing waste.
The HTM Office's innovation was the use of displaced aerospace engineers who were being retrained for new careers in environmental engineering to provide pollution prevention consulting services free to small businesses. HTM director Donna Toy-Chen was quoted: "I noticed two or three years ago that many talented people were out of work. They had experience in business, and I thought they could bring a lot to the program." The engineers in turn accumulate the valuable experience necessary for eventually securing jobs in the new field.
The award was shared with the Bureau of Sanitation's L.A. Resource Program for their successful efforts to recycle some of the city's refuse through the use of color coded refuse containers.
The other award in the category was given out to Syndesis, a company in Santa Monica that manufactures Syndecrete, a concrete whose filler consists of ground-up chunks of rejected manufactured parts such as CD disks, watches, and razors.
Other award categories included Individual Volunteer, Corporate Leadership, and Community Partnership; each category had two winners and also three finalists. In addition, the Publisher's Award was given out to a single winner.
For more information on the other seven winners and 12 finalists for these awards, all of whom have made significant contributions to improving or maintaining our environment, please see the July issue of Los Angeles Magazines, pages 101 to 112. For additional information, call Warren Morse at (310) 557-7530.
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By Donna Toy Chen and Arthur H. Purcell
Donna Toy Chen is the Director of the City of Los Angeles's Hazardous and Toxic Materials (HTM) Office. Arthur H. Purcell is a Los Angeles-based environmental analyst.
This summer marks two years since the Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit. Rio was a time to reflect on far-ranging global issues and plot future directions for Planet Earth.
Well beneath the lofty heights of the greenhouse or ozone layer challenge, however, are questions of how to get industrial waste out of city sewers or toxic fumes out of neighborhood air. And it is here that local government has come to play an increasingly influential role. City Hall today represents an important part of the environmental protection equation. Waste reduction and pollution prevention are now integral parts of city business.
Los Angeles provides a leading example. The HTM Office was formed to help business, industry and government agencies to meet environmental regulations and save money by getting rid of pollution for good instead of trying to filter is out and contain it.
The office's innovations and successes have caught the attention of other cities around the world. Some heave expressed interest in replicating the office activities in their own government structure. Two years ago officials from Rio de Janeiro got together in Los Angeles with Mayor Tom Bradley, officials from the Los Angeles Board of Public Works, and members of the Mega-Cities Project to sign an agreement that marks the beginning of cooperation and information exchange on pollution reduction methods between the two cities.
The visit and exchange was organized by the Mega-Cities Project, a network of community organizations, private industry, government officials and academicians in the worlds' largest cities. Their mission is to identify, promote, and facilitate the transfer of innovative projects and programs which address urban problems. Currently, other cities in the network including Bangkok, Jakarta, Buenos Aires, Manila and Sao Paulo have contacted the HTM Office to set up a similar exchange agreement.
Likewise, around the United States, more and more programs designed to help business and industry are emerging from the enclaves of local government, with dedicated staff putting their experience in problem solving directly to work on environmental challenges. HTM's efforts to reduce waste and prevent pollution in Los Angeles are indicative of the kinds of cost-effective services that local government agencies can contribute to the process of the greening of our environment. the trip from Rio to City Hall has been a long one, but the wait has been worthwhile.
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On June 29, 1994 the HTM Office sponsored a hazardous waste and hazardous materials workshop at the Westchester Municipal Building. Local government and regulatory agency officials spoke at the workshop which was designed to help businesses with the environmental regulations. Fifty business representatives attended.
The HTM Office and other public and private organizations will be hosting special events to celebrate Pollution Prevention Week.
For more information about events please call the HTM Office at (213) 237-1209.
Los Angeles Pollution Prevention Newsletter, published periodically, updates Los Angeles' citizens and industry on hazardous and toxic materials management and minimization issues. The Hazardous and Toxic Materials Office distributes the newsletter primarily to Los Angeles based businesses. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of the Los Angeles City Board of Public Works, nor the commercial products mentioned are not necessarily endorsed by the City of Los Angeles. The editors welcome submissions for articles and press releases for calendar events listing. Please send all LAPP correspondences to: Los Angeles City Board of Public Works, HTM Office, 200 N. Spring Street, Room 353, Los Angeles, CA 90012.
The HTM Office also maintains an information clearing house which includes a library of hazardous waste management and minimization literature. For further information or assistance please call (213) 237-1209.
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New Technology for Contaminated Soil Cleanup: Low Temperature Thermal Desorption
HTM Office
The unit has a soil throughput of 5 to 10 cubic yards/hour/unit. An optional emissions control system can be added when operating in states which require air emissions monitoring.
DTSC "Walk-In Program": Voluntary Cleanup of Contaminated Property
City Attorney's Office
For further information about the voluntary facility cleanup program, contact DTSC Region 3 at (818) 551-2880.
Los Angeles City Department of Public Works Wins Los Angeles Magazine's Environmental Pride Award
From Rio to City Hall: Bringing Pollution Prevention Home
Local Community Events
Workshops
Pollution Prevention Week September 19-25, 1994