HONOLULU - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced a settlement with Detroit Diesel Corporation (DDC) for failing to close a large-capacity cesspool (LCC) in Campbell Industrial Park Kapolei, Oahu. Detroit Diesel will pay a $129,000 fine and the cesspool was replaced with an individual wastewater treatment system in January. Detroit Diesel owns the property where Freightliner of Hawaii operates a heavy-duty truck dealership and truck service center. EPA inspectors found a large-capacity cesspool serving the bathrooms on the property. DDC is the fifth facility in the Campbell Industrial Park area where EPA has identified illegal LCCs over the past two years. Large capacity cesspools were banned under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act in 2005.   "Protecting Hawaii's marine ecosystems, including coral reefs, means improved wastewater management," said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Mike Stoker.

Cesspools are used more widely in Hawaii than in any other state, even though 95 percent of all drinking water in Hawaii comes from groundwater sources. In the 13 years since the federal LCC ban took effect, more than 3,400 large-capacity cesspools have been closed statewide, many through voluntary compliance. Cesspools collect and discharge untreated raw sewage into the ground, where disease-causing pathogens and harmful chemicals can contaminate groundwater, streams and the ocean.

The settlement is subject to a 30-day comment period. For more information and to submit comments visit epa.gov . For more information on large-capacity cesspools and the 2005 ban, click here.

The State Water Resources Control Board has adopted regulations imposing stringent new requirements for permits to discharge dredged or fill material into waters and wetlands, which it newly defines. In the face of opposition grounded on the lack of demonstrated need for such new rules (see Newsletter of February 21, 2019), the costs and delays the new rules would impose, and questions whether the new requirements would yield any better results than the already complex existing ones, the proposal of new rules had largely stalled for over a decade. Fears from some that the Trump administration will roll back federal regulation of wetlands, long the mainstay of wetland protection, refreshed efforts to develop new state rules and culminated in the Board's adoption of the new regulations on April 2, 2019.   More information here.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Pacific Southwest Region and the U.S. Department of Energy are honoring 21 ENERGY STAR partners for their outstanding contributions to public health and the environment. These enterprises have earned ENERGY STAR Awards for demonstrating national leadership in cost-saving energy efficient solutions. They are among the 183 ENERGY STAR Award Winners nationwide that will be honored in Washington, D.C., on April 11.  For more than 25 years, EPA's ENERGY STAR program has been America's resource for saving energy and protecting the environment. Since 1992, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped save American families and businesses nearly 4 trillion kilowatt-hours of electricity and associated reductions of over 3 billion metric tons of greenhouse gases. In 2017 alone, ENERGY STAR and its partners helped Americans save $30 billion in energy costs.

Learn about the award winners here.

During Earth Month, join the milestone 30th Friends of the LA River (FOLAR) CleanUp by signing up now!  Over the last three decades, this CleanUp has played a significant role in shifting the perception of the LA River and its role in politics, urban planning, homelessness and a community asset.  And last year, over 6,000 volunteers--individuals and groups from all ages and backgrounds--demonstrated their passion for the LA River by joining in. The 2019 FoLAR CleanUp will be held at 11 sites along the River, on April 13 (Upper), 20 (Middle) and 27 (Lower) from 9:00 AM to 12:00 pm with multiple locations on each date. Volunteers will receive a FoLAR reusable tote bag and t-shirt. To register for the CleanUp and get more information, visit http://folar.org/cleanup.

MGBCE is the longest-running and largest gathering of leading sustainability and green building advocates within both the public and private sectors in Southern California. With over 600 annual attendees, this conference and trade show provides cutting-edge thought leadership, education, and networking opportunities to inform local government agencies, building industry professionals, and the general public about the principles, practices, and products associated with green building. Sign up here to attend - join your colleagues and meet new ones from 88 cities across LA County, while taking away usable case studies and thought-provoking discussions.