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NPPR News

October 2024

Message from the Chair

by Laura Henne

NPPR Board of Directors

The election results are in! Congratulations to all our candidates!!

Matt Taylor (Region 4), Greg Geyer (At-Large), and Lissa McCracken (At-Large) have all been re-elected. Thank you for your continued service to the Board.

Meet our newest Board Members:

Joy Scrogum

Assistant Research Scientist

Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC)

Region 5 

Joy Scrogum works with clients to identify opportunities to alter, improve, or introduce processes, operations, and activities to foster sustainability. In her 22 years with ISTC, Joy has been involved in various projects focused on pollution prevention, sustainable electronics, and food waste prevention and reduction. Recent examples of her work (along with Technical Assistance Program colleagues) include revision of the Cook County Solid Waste Management Plan, providing a waste characterization and opportunity assessment for the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and collaborating with Feeding Illinois on its development of a statewide farm to food bank program to address food waste reduction and food security. Example past projects include facilitating networking and information sharing among P2 technical assistance providers for the Great Lakes Regional Pollution Prevention Roundtable (GLRPPR); developing and helping to launch a collaborative repair center for personally-owned electronics on a university campus; managing the International Sustainable Electronics Competition; developing and coordinating the Green Lunchroom Challenge, which was focused on food waste prevention and reduction in K-12 schools; and developing and teaching a continuing education course on reuse as a sustainability strategy.

Joy is a member of the Illinois Recycling Foundation, the Illinois Food Scrap & Composting Coalition, the Wasted Food Action Alliance, and the International Society of Sustainability Professionals. She serves on the board of directors for the Champaign County Environmental Stewards, a non-profit organization that advances waste reduction and improved local options for recycling, composting food scraps, and the safe and convenient disposal of household hazardous waste. Joy has an M.S. in Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, is a LEED Green Associate, and a Sustainability Excellence Professional (SEP). She was recognized as the 2022 Fred Granek Memorial P2 Ambassador by the National Pollution Prevention Roundtable (NPPR).

Kevin Philpy

Senior Engineer

Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP)

At-Large (Interim Appointment)

Kevin Philpy provides waste minimization and water conservation support for businesses and organizations in Minnesota. His experience as an environmental manager and consultant includes pollution prevention; environmental compliance, due diligence, and permitting; litigation support; and soil and groundwater investigation and remediation. Prior to joining MnTAP, he spent several years managing EHS in dairy facilities in the Midwest and on the Eastern Seaboard. His career has included on-site environmental assessments or investigation in numerous industries across twenty-six states. Kevin holds a B.S. in civil engineering and an M.S.E. in geography and environmental engineering, both from Johns Hopkins University. 

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In addition to the Board member elections, we had elections for the Executive Committee and all four Executive Committee members have been re-elected. Thank you to Ed Gonzalez (Vice Chair), Meghann Quinn (Secretary), and Joe Bolick (Treasurer) for agreeing to serve another term with me!

Laura Henne

Chair  

National Pollution Prevention Roundtable

MVP2 Award Winners

Congratulations to the 2024 Most Valuable Pollution Prevention (MVP2) award winners! These awards celebrate businesses and people who have gone the extra mile to support the reduction and/or elimination of pollution before it even happens.

Pollution Prevention Jobs Available Across the US

As announced in the last newsletter, both Colorado and Iowa have recently posted and filled their pollution prevention job opportunities. On the other hand, NYSP2I has only hired an Interim Director and reposted a search for a Director at a much higher pay rate than previously listed. Find this job posting and more at:

Workgroup Updates

About NPPR Workgroups

NPPR's workgroups bring together P2 professionals from across the country to share ideas, information, and deliverables. The topical areas coincide with EPA national emphasis areas and other areas of interest to the P2 community.

NPPR currently hosts six active workgroups. They are:

• Food & Beverage
• Leadership & Voluntary Programs
• Metal Manufacturing & Fabrication
  
• P2 Intern
• P2 Professionals
• Regulatory Improvement & Integration

Food & Beverage

Join the Food & Beverage Workgroup on Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at 1pm (ET) to hear Alicia Wind discuss Finding Energy Savings in Your Production Processes. This webinar will review root cause based integrated approaches which uncover energy conservation opportunities overlooked by conventional energy assessments. Explore opportunities to conserve energy at your facilities and profitably meet your sustainability goals.

Feel free to contact admin@p2.org if you would like to be added to the Food and Beverage Workgroup mailing list.

From the States

Region 5

ISTC University of Illinois Places First Among Academic Sector in My Green Lab's 2024 International Laboratory Freezer Challenge

The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign placed first in the academic sector of My Green Lab's 2024 International Laboratory Freezer Challenge. Illinois saved 1,339 kWh/day by implementing energy efficiency best practices in lab cold storage.

The 239 Participants in the 2024 International Laboratory Freezer Challenge program achieved 31.8 million kWh of energy savings through their combined efforts This translates to 22,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent avoided—an over 50% increase from last year's challenge.

University of Illinois Releases Campus Waste Characterization Results

In the fall of 2023, the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center (ISTC) Technical Assistance Program’s Zero Waste Illinois team conducted a new waste audit of eight high-usage facilities.

The Campus Building Waste Characterization & Opportunity Assessment identified and measured the types of trash and recycling materials generated at these locations. With the collaboration of participating units and auxiliaries, this thorough examination at the building level sought to evaluate current waste management procedures in varied “activity zones;” see how habits have changed over time, especially following the pandemic; and gauge general awareness of programs and initiatives.

Based on this assessment, 39 recommendations were made across seven categories covering areas of education and outreach, infrastructure, programming, purchasing, policy, retail, and research. Many of the suggestions encourage colleges and departments to look upstream at the source or generation of waste as a way to proactively reduce the amount of waste that ends up landfills.

Region 8

2024 Colorado Green Business Network Recognition Event at the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance

The Colorado Green Business Network awarded Treehouse Learning, a private, locally owned early childhood education center in Louisville, Colorado, with the 24-Karat Gold Award for its commitment to sustainability through environmental literacy in early childhood education.

The network presented the award on September 27th at a recognition event at the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance that also celebrated 111 current and 68 newly certified green businesses across the state. The Colorado Green Business Network, which is sponsored by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, also distributed a series of awards to businesses that have gone above and beyond to advance sustainability and prioritize energy efficiency in their operations. You can read more about their projects in the 2024 CGBN Impact Report. The program recognizes organizations as Bronze-, Silver- or Gold-level Members, based on points accumulated in their certification application, for voluntarily going above and beyond compliance with state and federal regulations and working toward the goal of true, operational sustainability. 

Region 10

Don't Wait to Inflate - Stay Safe, Save Money, Help Salmon

For years, coho salmon have been returning to Western Washington streams only to die unexplainably before they’re able to spawn, their bodies still full of eggs. Something in the water was killing 40-90% of coho.

Then, in 2020, scientists from UW and WSU solved the decades old mystery. They discovered the culprit to be a chemical, called 6-PPD-Q, in tire dust that is toxic to coho salmon and other aquatic life. This dust rubs off our tires when we drive, then gets washed to our creeks when it rains.

In addition to driving less, one of the easiest things we can to do help is to check our car tires monthly and add air if needed.

Kirkland residents can get a free windshield reminder sticker from the City of Kirkland by taking the pledge.

WASI 2024 interns and leaders: Jenny Yoo (Ecology), Amy Leang (Ecology), Deborah Purce (Sea Grant), Reiden Emery (intern), Zainab Ahmad (intern), Casera Pinto (intern), Azalea Hermann (Sea Grant), and Bella Aguirre (intern).

2024 Pollution Prevention Interns Revolutionize Practical Sustainability

This year's interns each brought unique expertise and enthusiasm to tackle significant environmental challenges across various industries. Here's a closer look at the interns and their contributions at Taylor Farms Northwest; Valence Surface Techologies; Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater, and Thurston County (LOTT) Clean Water Action Alliance; and Toray Composite Materials America, Inc.

2024 PPRC Hosts Webinar on 2-Year Project Focused on Autobody Repair Shops

Last month, the Pollution Prevention Resource Center (PPRC) hosted a webinar on a recent two-year project, funded by the US EPA, focused on pollution prevention in auto body businesses located in environmental justice (EJ) communities.

During this webinar, the project team shared their experiences and the adjustments they made throughout the project to better reach, engage, and serve these businesses, successes, and results.

Key highlights included:

• Outreach Path for the Future: Initial challenges to reach businesses led to in-person cold calling, resulting in three key strategies for future outreach.
• Spray Efficiency Training: PPRC’s Spray Efficiency Training is recognized as valuable to auto body shops. It improves painter's coating efficiency and is a gateway for shops to engage with us and participate in sustainable practices.
• P2 Assessments: Two of the six Pollution Prevention (P2) assessments conducted during the project were discussed, offering a deep dive into their findings and implications.

US Federal Government News

2024 National Pollution Prevention Training and Conference

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will be holding its 2024 National Pollution Prevention Training and Conference in Washington, DC, on December 10-11, 2024. The event will convene representatives from EPA grantees, academia, industry, non-governmental organizations, and state and federal agencies. The event will be held at the Yotel Washington DC at 415 New Jersey Ave., NW, Washington, DC, 20001. Virtual attendance options are available.

Events are free to attend, but registration is required. Please register for the meeting by November 1 if you are planning to attend in-person.

The registration deadline for virtual attendance is December 2.

Registration and more information can be found at: https://projects.erg.com/conferences/epa/register-p2-grantee.asp

A draft agenda can be found at:

EPA Unveils Additional Safer Choice Label for Safer, More Sustainable Cleaning for Outdoor Use

On September 18, US EPA launched an Outdoor Use Safer Choice label. This new label expands on EPA’s existing Safer Choice label and is intended to identify outdoor use products — like pet care products, fire defense products, and car, boat, or grill cleaners — that meet additional EPA criteria to help protect the environment. 

EPA scientists examine every ingredient — no matter its concentration — to make sure Safer Choice-certified products contain only the safest possible ingredients. With thousands of certified products, the Safer Choice label is a reliable way for people to find products whose chemical ingredients have met EPA’s criteria for being safer without sacrificing performance.

For products that are typically used outdoors, EPA’s Safer Choice program further requires that every ingredient breaks down quickly and has lower aquatic toxicity. Products such as all-purpose cleaners can also meet these additional criteria, even though they are typically used indoors.

Currently, more than 50 Safer Choice-certified products meet the additional criteria for outdoor use. EPA expects the Outdoor Use Safer Choice label to be on products as early as next year. Today, people can also find products that are Safer Choice-certified for outdoor use on the Safer Choice product search page by selecting the “Products with outdoor uses” box.

EPA Announces 2024 Safer Choice Partner of the Year Award Winners

On September 24, US EPA announced 43 Safer Choice Partner of the Year award winners across 20 states and the District of Columbia, recognizing their achievements in the design, manufacture, promotion, selection, and use of cleaners, detergents, and other products with safer chemicals.

The Safer Choice program and label help consumers and purchasers at facilities find cleaning and other products with chemical ingredients that are safer for human health and the environment. Applicants for this year’s awards were encouraged to show how their work promotes environmental justice, bolsters resilience to the impacts of climate change, results in cleaner air or water, improves drinking water quality or advances innovation in packaging.

New Publications

Sustainable Laboratories: A Community-wide Movement Toward Sustainable Laboratory Practices

In the Sustainable Laboratories report from the Royal Society of Chemistry, scientists working in academia, industry and education have shared their views on minimizing the environmental impacts of research. They highlight what they are already doing, the trade-offs they need to manage, and challenges they face. They also give views about practical solutions as well as opportunities for changes in the wider research and innovation ecosystem.

Submit a story 

Do you have a new project, publication, or event you want to promote to your NPPR colleagues?

Share it in the newsletter!

Upcoming Events

NPPR Food & Beverage Workgroup Webinar - Finding Energy Savings in Your Production Processes
October 16, 2024 (1pm ET)

Metals Manufacturing Pollution Prevention Series Part 1: Best Practices and Community Resources Webinar
October 29, 2024

(10am-11am ET)

Metals Manufacturing Pollution Prevention Series Part 2: Tour of Benton Facility
November 6, 2024

(9:30am-11am ET)

NPPR Leadership & Voluntary Programs Workgroup Meeting and Webinar
December, 2024