The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 has given awards to four sewage treatment plants for excellence in industrial wastewater pretreatment.
“In addition to maintaining high standards in pretreatment, the winners were chosen because of demonstrated performance in areas such as environmental effectiveness or pollution prevention,” said Jo Lynn Traub, regional Water Division director.
Plants receiving awards were: the Wauseon, OH, plant; the Lapeer, MI, plant; Racine Water and Wastewater Utility, Racine, WI; and Sheboygan Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant, Sheboygan, WI. This is the fifth year that these awards have been given. All regional award winners have also been nominated for national pretreatment awards.
According to EPA, to maintain an effective pretreatment program wastewater treatment plant operators must identify industrial and nondomestic sources of pollutants, develop discharge permits and other controls to ensure these sources are meeting Federal and local water pollution standards, inspect and monitor discharges from these sources, and take enforcement action if the sources are not meeting their permit limits or other requirements.
Industrial pretreatment programs play a crucial role in protecting the environment. They prevent interference with sewage plant operations, keep toxic pollutants from entering waterways, and prevent contamination of sludge so that it can be reused as fertilizer, according to an EPA press release.
Comments Sought On Draft Guidance
EPA is seeking comments on the public review draft “Guidelines for the Certification and Recertification of the Operators of Community and Nontransient Noncommunity Public Water Systems.”7
Comments Sought On Draft Guidance
EPA was required by the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) Amendments of 1996 to publish guidelines specifying minimum standards for certification and recertification of water system operators. The final guidelines are required to be published by February 1999. States then have two years to adopt and implement an operator certification program that meets the requirements of these guidelines. After that date, if a State has not adopted and implemented an approved program, the Administrator must withhold 20 percent of the funds a State is otherwise entitled to receive in its Drinking Water State Revolving Fund (DWSRF) capitalization grants under section 1452 of SDWA.
Comments Sought On Draft Guidance
For general information and copies of the draft document, contact the Safe Drinking Water Hotline, (800) 426-4791. For technical inquiries, contact Richard Naylor, Implementation and Assistance Division, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water (4606), U.S. EPA, 401 M Street, SW, Washington, DC 20460. Or call (202) 260-5135. Naylors e-mail address is naylor.richard@epamail. epa.gov.
Water District Employees
Face Criminal Conviction
Two employees of the Ohio County, Kentucky Water District (OCWD) were convicted in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky of making false statements to federal investigators.
Water District Employees
Face Criminal Conviction
John D. White of Cromwell, Ky., a supervisor at OCWD’s Cromwell, Ky., water treatment plant, and Carolyn F. Taylor of Beaver Dam, Ky., a plant employee, both face maximum sentences of up to five years in prison and/or fines of up to $250,000.
Water District Employees
Face Criminal Conviction
Both defendants provided false information to investigators about alleged falsification of water turbidity readings at the Cromwell plant. The case was investigated by EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division and the FBI.
