April 2018                                                                    www.newmoa.org
NEWMOA's Leadership
Dave Burns NEWMOA Treasurer FY 2018
Meet Dave Burns, Maine Department of Environmental Protection

NEWMOA: Tell us about yourself and your background.

Dave: I graduated from the University of Maine with a degree in Civil Engineering. I've been at Maine DEP for almost 35 years and have been involved in numerous programs within the agency, although a lot of my time was spent in the solid waste program managing the engineering unit. In 2015, I became the Director of the Division of Technical Services within the Bureau of Remediation and Waste Management (BRWM), and then in 2016 I became the Bureau's Director. It's been a very interesting and challenging career, certainly one I never would have imagined 35 years ago!
In This Issue
NEWMOA:  What do you do at ME DEP?  

 

Dave: BRWM covers a broad range of programs (RCRA, Superfund, Brownfields, Voluntary Response Action Program (VRAP), Uncontrolled Sites, Lead and Asbestos, Leaking Underground Storage Tanks (LUST), Petroleum Management, Solid Waste, Residuals Management, Sustainability, Response Services), so there's never a dull moment. We have a staff of 135 dedicated people serving these programs. Like other state's I've spoken with, we are experiencing a loss of program knowledge due to a wave of retirements, so that has made cross-training and succession planning a higher priority during my time as Bureau Director. My job is to ensure the priorities, direction, and funding is in place to make sure things run smoothly in order to accomplish our mission. This takes on many forms, whether it's working on legislation, rulemaking, licensing, compliance assistance, state authorization packages, budgeting, or personnel functions. I enjoy that each day brings a different challenge and experience.

 

NEWMOA: What are your priorities for NEWMOA? What do you hope it will accomplish? 

 

Dave: NEWMOA has a strong history of providing timely information to states on important issues we all face. This has occurred through training, workgroups, and other forms of information centered around common issues. As a regional organization, NEWMOA provides information and the opportunity to share information with other states on topics that are important to us, while still connecting us to the larger national issues. I'd like to ensure that NEWMOA is well-positioned both administratively and financially to continue in this important and unique role for the northeast states.

 

NEWMOA: What's one thing you would like people to know about you? 

 

Dave: Since you asked me to limit it to one thing, I'll take the liberty of breaking it down to a 1a and 1b! First and foremost, my family is extremely important to me. I'm married with three children, fortunately all of whom live and work in Maine. Our two sons are engineers, and our daughter is an elementary school teacher; we're very proud of all three. Second, 32 years ago my wife and I bought a 100-plus year-old house that we've been slowly renovating, mostly by ourselves. If you've ever tried to do something like this while you live in it, you'll certainly understand that it cycles between being a satisfying labor of love and "what was I thinking?" Seriously though, I'm sure we'd do all of it all over again...

Board of Directors
NEWMOA's Board of Directors met in March to discuss state and EPA waste, toxics, and pollution prevention programs and NEWMOA's projects, funding, annual audit, and strategic priorities. They discussed many of the projects that are described below.
Pollution Prevention & Sustainability Program
Sustainable Dairy Products
NEWMOA partnered with the Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation (VT DEC) and hosted a successful Summit for processors of secondary dairy products (e.g., cheese, yogurt, butter, and ice cream) on February 12. Sessions covered:
  • A Sustainability Self-Assessment Tool
  • Profiles in Sustainability, where businesses shared stories about how they have implemented greener practices in energy, waste, wastewater, and packaging
  • Innovative Sustainability Solutions, which focused on how businesses can refine their understanding of opportunities for improvement through sustainability audits and customized research to identify promising solutions that fit specific needs
  • Ready to Grow? which focused on the importance of business planning and critical issues 
For more information, contact Rachel Smith .
Madeline Snow, Lowell Center for Sustainable Production
Rob Guillemin
EPA Region 1
Jed Davis
Cabot Creamery
Solid Waste & Sustainable Materials Management Program

How to Beat Residential Recycling Contamination Webinar

NEWMOA and the Northeast Recycling Council (NERC) hosted a successful webinar about how to avoid residential recycling contamination on March 8. 
 
Presenters:
  • Dylan de Thomas, Vice President of Industry Collaboration, The Recycling Partnership
  • Jason Hale, Vice President of Communications, The Recycling Partnership
  • Brooke Nash, Branch Chief for Municipal Waste Reduction, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection
  • Chris Coady, Technical Assistance Team, The Recycling Partnership

More than 400 individuals from around the U.S. and Canada participated in the webinar. The  PowerPoint presentations  and a recording  of the webinar are available.
 
For more information, contact: Terri Goldberg , NEWMOA and Lynn Rubinstein , NERC.

Lessons Learned from Municipalities to Reduce Contamination of Residential Recycling
NEWMOA and NERC hosted a second successful webinar about reducing contamination of residential recycling stream on April 10. The webinar provided an opportunity for participants to hear from three on-the-ground practitioners who have implemented the Recycling IQ Toolkit in a diverse set of municipalities and reduced contamination in the municipal recycling stream. The presenters described the results for the communities they have worked in and lessons learned. They provided advice for other practitioners.

Presenters:
  • Janice Pare, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (Mass DEP)
  • Marissa Perez-Dormitzer, City of New Bedford and Town of Dartmouth, Massachusetts
  • Julia Greene, City of Lynn, Massachusetts
More than 250 individuals from around the U.S. and Canada participated in the webinar. The PowerPoint presentations and a recording of the webinar are available.
 
For more information, contact: Terri Goldberg , NEWMOA and Lynn Rubinstein , NERC.
 
Addressing the Confusing Landscape of Compostable Products
NEWMOA-NERC's Food Waste Workgroup hosted a March webinar on compostable products and the potential impact they have on product users and compost operations. Presenters covered legislation adopted in Seattle, Washington; California; and Maryland that mandates certifications for compostable bags, foodservice ware, and other products.

Presenters:
  • Mark Williams, Vice President Market Development, BioBag
  • David M. Mrgich, Chief, Waste Diversion Division, Maryland Department of the Environment
  • Dan Goossen, General Manager, Green Mountain Compost

The NEWMOA-NERC Food Waste Workgroup consists of state officials involved in programs that address food waste issues from Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. 

For more information, contact Terri Goldberg , NEWMOA and Athena Lee Bradley , NERC. 
Food Waste Reduction
NEWMOA is conducting a food waste training and technical assistance project in rural areas of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont that is designed to help residents reduce the generation of food waste and start or expand backyard composting. This project has developed several fact sheets and will be organizing training workshops that can be offered in other parts of the region. 

Visit www.newmoa.org/solidwaste/projects/food/publications.cfm  to view recently posted materials.
 
For more information, contact Rachel Smith
Waste Site Cleanup Program
Workshop
NEWMOA held a " Developing the Conceptual Site Model (CSM) and Site Characterization Plan: What is Important, What Practitioners Often Overlook, and Other Lessons Learned" for about 140 participants in different locations from March 27 to 29. The workshop focused on developing an understanding of the nature and extent of contamination at a site. T opics included:
  • Common contaminants and businesses that used them
  • Understanding subsurface fate and transport
  • What should a CSM cover?
  • Developing a site characterization plan
  • Lessons learned
     
Presenters:
  • William Ottaway, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
  • Michael Smith, Vermont Department of Environmental Conservation
  • Ryan Wymore, CDM Smith
To view the presentations, visit:   www.newmoa.org/events/agenda.cfm?m=309 .

For more information, contact Jennifer Griffith .
Hazardous Waste Program
Hazardous Waste Training
NEWMOA recently hosted well-attended conference calls on the "Implementation of the Land Disposal Restrictions (LDRs) at Storage Facilities and Generators", "Implementing the Generator Improvement Rule in New Jersey", and "Management of Remediation Waste: Coordinating RCRA and Remediation Programs". Upcoming calls will focus on interjurisdictional issues between state solid and hazardous waste programs because of mandatory recycling requirements for businesses and municipalities and the implementation of the e-manifest system. These calls are for state officials in the northeast who are involved in the hazardous waste and other waste programs.
 
For more information , contact Terri Goldberg .
Interstate Mercury Education & Reduction Clearinghouse (IMERC)
2016 Triennial Reporting
Notification compliance is a priority for IMERC. As of April 10, 2018, more than 285 companies have submitted their 2016 triennial applications through IMERC's e-filing system . The IMERC Notification Committee estimates that 55 companies, or about 15 percent, still need to file. IMERC is following-up with these firms with instructions for how they can come into compliance.
 
Notification through the e-filing system enables companies to comply with the Mercury-added Product Notification and Labeling requirements of Connecticut, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota (labeling only), New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington (labeling only). Reporting is required for any company that sold or distributed mercury-added products into the states listed above during calendar year 2016.

For more information, contact Rachel Smith.
Interstate Chemicals Clearinghouse (IC2)
Webinar
IC2 held an April 3rd webinar for about 50 participating members so they could learn from leading organizations about their projects on the potential hazards of dry cleaning solvents and initiatives to identify and spur the adoption of safer alternatives. Joy Onasch, from the Massachusetts Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI), discussed TURI's work with dry cleaners over the past decade, including the results of a perc alternatives assessment. The Institute has awarded grants, run demonstration events, and compiled case studies related to dry cleaner conversions from perc to dedicated wet cleaning. Ashley Pedersen and Steve Whittaker, from the King County Local Hazardous Waste Management Program (LHWMP), described efforts in King County to switch perc dry cleaners to safer alternatives and presented on new information about the most common alternatives to perc: high-flashpoint hydrocarbons.
 
For more information, contact: Topher Buck .
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Share this newsletter with others in your agency or organization that might be interested. 

Newsletter contributors: 
Andy Bray, Topher Buck, Terri Goldberg, Jennifer Griffith, Lois Makina, and Rachel Smith.