Sept. 10, 2001 Issue

Rebekah A. Hall

The Waste Age Wire is an e-mail newsletter from the Waste Age magazine staff, designed to provide you with a quick view of news, events and upcoming magazine topics. For in-depth news coverage, visit WasteAge.Com. Compiled by Rebekah A. Hall

IN THIS ISSUE:

Opinion Poll

News:

- Schregardus' EPA Job Uncertain

- Organized Labor Fights Scalia's Nomination

- Casella Reports Net Income for First Quarter 2002

- Illinois Balefill May Not Have a Future After All

- EPA Chooses Five More Brownfields Prevention Pilot Projects

- Volvo Announces Environmental Product Declaration

Newsbriefs: Alliances, Awards, Training

Events

Highlights from Waste Age's September issue

Don't miss out on this year's Waste Age 100! For details, visit: Waste Age 100

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OPINION POLL:

Interior Secretary Gale Norton recently nominated the Fresno Municipal Sanitary Landfill as a National Historic Landmark. The landfill operated from 1935 to 1987 and was the nation’s first "true" sanitary landfill. However, the nomination as rescinded due to the landfill being a Superfund site. Do you agree to rescind the nomination?

a) yes; b) no; c) other

E-mail your comments to: [email protected].

All comments are subject to publication. Please include your name, city, state and company.

OPINION POLL RESULTS:

Do you believe OSHA should implement more ergonomic regulations or should businesses try to reduce workplace injuries through a voluntary education and prevention program?

You said: 29 percent, more ergonomic regulations; 57 percent, develop voluntary programs; 14 percent, other

"We need no further grand ideas from bureaucrats. Companies do not want any pattern of injuries to occur, no matter what the job. Education and prevention are the keys."

- Ted Welsh, Welsh Disposal Service, Madison, Tenn.

"Voluntary programs, it seems to me, would have little impact on affecting positive change in businesses that currently are providing little effort to prevent injuries or provide a safe and healthy workplace. On the other hand, far too many employees already are abusing ]worker’s] compensation systems and regulations. Clear and sensible regulation, geared [with] rigid enforcement and adequate oversight, may benefit workers who are not out to abuse the system."

- Ray Hillebrand, Solid Waste Management and Services, Louisville, Ky.

NEWS:

Schregardus' EPA Job Uncertain

Washington, D.C. -- A Senate committee is investigating President George Bush's nomination of Donald Schregardus as assistant administrator for enforcement and compliance for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), following a federal report claiming that the Ohio agency he ran during 1991 to 1999 failed to implement an acid rain program. Independent James Jeffords, the Senate committee chairman, said that the investigation will take longer than originally expected and is not sure if or when Schregardus will be confirmed.

Organized Labor Fights Scalia's Nomination

Washington, D.C. -- Organized labor is urging the Senate to defeat the nomination of Eugene Scalia as the Labor Department's top lawyer, claiming that his views are extreme and hostile to workers. AFL-CIO president John Sweeney has said that Scalia is the wrong person for the job, citing Scalia's criticism of Clinton-era ergonomics regulations that Congress repealed earlier this year. If confirmed, Scalia would give guidance on department policy, legislative, regulatory and enforcement initiatives. The position is regarded as the top lieutenant to Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, who is expected to decide later this month whether to pursue a new ergonomics regulation or start over with a more voluntary approach.

Casella Reports Net Income for First Quarter 2002

Rutland, Vt. -- Casella Waste Systems Inc. has reported net income for the first quarter of 2002 ended July 31, 2001, of $2.2 million, pro forma net income of $1.8 million and revenue of $112.3 million.

Illinois Balefill May Not Have a Future After All

Chicago -- Illinois soon may expand the 527-acre Tri-County State Park, located in Cook, DuPage and Kane counties. The state has offered to buy 284 acres from the Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County (SWANCC), which includes the site of a proposed balefill. This would end a 16-year battle between SWANCC and local residents and environmentalists who oppose the balefill for health and environmental reasons.

EPA Chooses Five More Brownfields Prevention Pilot Projects

Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has selected five more pilot projects for its RCRA Brownfields Prevention Initiative. The program is designed to help state and local governments, and site owners adopt integrative approaches to cleanups and to sustain future reuse of properties subjected to cleanup obligations under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Project winners include Pharmacia &Upjohn Co., North Haven, Conn.; Union Carbide Caribe Inc., Guayanilla, Puerto Rico; Safety-Kleen, Muskegon Heights, Mich.; BP Refinery, Wood River, Ill.; and Milt Adams Inc., Denver.

Volvo Announces Environmental Product Declaration

Goteborg, Sweden -- Volvo Trucks has announced an environmental product declaration for its heavy duty Volvo FH and Volvo FM truck models to describe the environmental impact of these vehicles throughout the entire product lifecycle. Users can calculate environmental impact of their vehicles on Volvo's website at http://www.volvo.com.

NEWSBRIEFS: Alliances, Awards, Training

Alliances

- The American Plastics Council (APC), Washington, D.C., and the California Integrated Waste Management Board (CIWMB), Sacramento, have partnered to implement an eight-week statewide public education campaign stressing the importance of recycling plastic bottles.

- Russell-Stanley, Red Bank, N.J., has entered into Containers America LLC’s, Charlotte, N.C., partnership steel drum consortium.

Awards

- The Florida Recycling Group announced 2001 award winners at its Recycle Florida Today (RFT) annual conference in St. Petersburg Beach, Fla. Award winners were: Palm Beach County Solid Waste Authority, City of West Palm Beach and Downtown Development Authority, for Outstanding County/City Program – Urban; Gadsden County for Outstanding County/City Program – Rural; JM Family Enterprises, Deerfield Beach, for Outstanding Institutional/Business Program; and Chris Snow, Hillsborough County Solid Waste Management Department, for Sustained Commitment/Individual. The City of Tallahassee and Leon County received the Outstanding Partnership Award, and Gene Jones, Southern Waste Information Exchange (SWIX), won the Chairman’s Award.

- The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Washington, D.C., has awarded the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), Warrendale, Pa., approximately $700,000 over the next two years in cost-shared programs that will be used to facilitate the development of codes and standards for fuel cell vehicles.

Training

- Ashland Environmental Services, Dublin, Ohio, offers hazardous waste management training seminars. For more information, contact Jim Vitak at (614) 790-3715.

EVENTS:

Sept. 23-25, 2001

2001 N.Y. Solid Waste Fall Conference

Callicoon, N.Y. Contact: Eric Swenson, The New York State Association for Solid Waste Management, 150 Miller Place, Syosset, N.Y. 11791. Phone: (516) 677-5790. Fax: (516) 677-5875.

September 24-26, 2001

Brownfields 2001 Conference

Chicago. Co-sponsored by 22 organizations including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5, the Illinois EPA, the International City/County Management Association and the Engineers' Society of Western Pennsylvania. To register, visit the conference website at http://www.brownfields2001.org.

September 24-27, 2001

SAE Fall Fuels and Lubricants Meeting

San Antonio. Contact: Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) Inc., 400 Commonwealth Drive, Warrendale, Pa. 15096-0001. Phone: (724) 776-4841. Fax: (724) 772-1851. Website: http://www.sae.org.

Sept. 25-26, 2001

ASTM Training Course, Phase II Environmental Site Assessments

Baltimore, Md. Contact: Eileen Finn, ASTM, West Conshohocken, Pa. Phone: (610) 832-9686. Fax: (610) 832-9668. Website: http://www.astm.org.

September 25-27, 2001

International Construction and Utility Equipment Expo (ICUEE)

Louisville, Ky. Contact: ICUEE, 927 Main Street, Racine, Wis. 53403. Phone: (262) 633-4500. Fax: (262) 633-0249 mailto:[email protected].

Sept. 30-Oct. 3, 2001

20th Annual National Recycling Congress (NRC) and Exposition

Seattle. Register online at NRC's website: http://www.nrc-recycle.org.

October 1-5, 2001

Eighth International Waste Management and Landfill Symposium

Sardinia, Italy. Contact: EuroWaste Srl, Via Beato Pellegrino, 23, 35137, Padova, Italy. Phone: (39) 049-663860. Fax: (39) 049-8726987. mailto:[email protected].

Oct. 2-4, 2001

TASWER Third Annual Conference

Cornwall, Ontario, Canada. Contact: Nakita McNeil, Tribal Association on Solid Waste and Emergency Response (TASWER), 1001 Connecticut Avenue, Suite 400, Washington, D.C. 20036. Phone: (202) 331-8084, ext. 222. mailto:[email protected]. Website: http://www.taswer.org.

Oct. 4-6, 2001

26th Annual Deep Foundations Institute (DFI) Members Conference

St. Louis. Contact: The Deep Foundations Institute, 120 Charlotte Place, Third Floor, Englewood Cliffs, N.J. 07632. Phone: (201) 567-4232. Fax: (201) 567-4436. mailto:[email protected]. Website: http://www.dfi.org.

October 8-10, 2001

National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) Mid-Atlantic Chapter Annual Meeting

Contact: Cathy Maimon, meetings department. Phone toll-free: (800) 424-2869.

Oct. 15-18, 2001

WASTECON 2001: A Waste Odyssey, SWANA's 39th Annual Solid Waste Exposition

Baltimore. Contact: Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), P.O. Box 7219, Silver Spring, Md. 20907-7219. Phone: (301) 589-7068. Fax: (301) 585-0297. Website: http://www.swana.org

IN WASTE AGE'S SEPTEMBER ISSUE:

Features:

- Waste Age 100: Our annual ranking of private waste management companies.

- Truck &Body Report 2002: Waste Age's 22nd annual digest of the latest garbage trucks.

- Keeping It Cool: New software and management techniques can help reduce methane and minimize greenhouse gases.

Business Trends:

- Squeezing Money out of Debtors

- Landfill Rides on a Performance-Based Contract

- Companies Shuck Health Insurance Costs

Business Briefs:

- Labor Department Seeks To Improve Squashed Ergonomics Rule

- Old Process Aims To Convert Tires into New Oil

- Federal Appeals Court Upholds Flow Control in New York

Columnists:

- Profiles in Garbage: Batteries, by Chaz Miller

- Circular File: Whose Capacity?, by Chaz Miller

- EIA: DOT Upholds Medwaste Hauling, by Alice P. Jacobsohn

- Legal: Stealth Litigation Upheld, by Barry Shanoff