2010 Winter Newsletter

PRESIDENT'S CORNER

by Cathryn Stewart

Cathryn Stewart

2010 greetings to members and potential members alike. Best wishes for a profitable and satisfying 2010. CO-SWANA is preparing programs to help make 2010 a great year. Here’s a sampler:

1. 1Q10 technical session on Greenhouse Gas Reporting, January 19 workshop, Denver. (Find registration form and more information in this newsletter.)

2. 2Q10 technical session – current legislative topics of interest, tentatively May 18.

3. 3Q10 technical session – topic TBD, tentatively August 17.

4. Annual meeting – mid to late September.

5. Email blasts to members regarding current legislation and upcoming events.

6. Exploring the ability to offer a SWANA National training course (such as the Manager of Landfill Operations (MOLO)) in Colorado, perhaps in conjunction with the annual meeting, possibly in 2010. (See survey in this newsletter.)

7. Offering to proctor SWANA-National certification exams, in conjunction with the annual meeting.

Add to the above list, item #8: Serving on the CO-SWANA Board of Directors, as a way to get more out your SWANA membership. Monthly board meetings are when plans and ideas get tossed on the table, sorted out, spoken for, and taken on as projects with lives of their own. The Board encourages members to forward ideas for consideration. We gather ideas during the annual meeting via the questionnaire and telephone survey of members, and we encourage communication throughout the year. Members are welcome to attend board meetings held on the third Tuesday of each month, and to be considered for positions on the Board any time during the year.

In my second year as Chapter President, I enjoy working with the current Board of Directors after I reluctantly said, “So long!” to two past directors, Susie Gordon (City of Fort Collins) and Brenna Barrett (Recycle America). Although one of these folks was on the board for several years, and the other for one year only, both volunteers were very hard working, idea generators who could be counted on to follow through. Both have stepped down from the Board primarily while they tackle current “paying” job assignments, and we look forward to their continuing SWANA membership and future consideration to rejoin the board when their work duties will allow it.

Looking ahead, expect to see some more coordination between CO-SWANA and the CDPHE – Air Pollution Control Division. While we already enjoy a good working relationship with CDPHE-Solid Waste Division, CO-SWANA has taken steps to establish a similar relationship with APCD in the coming year. Look for possible COSWANA involvement in community outreach, compliance assistance, and guidance to current and upcoming changes in air quality regulations. We are in the very early planning stages of such, and aren’t sure of the outcome yet, but are expecting that small to large landfill operators, transfer station managers, and landfill gas-to-energy plant operators will benefit from some clarification of existing APCD regulations and a ‘heads-up’ on looming regulations.

Looking even further ahead, CO-SWANA has a celebration to look forward to! The founding members of the initial organization, called "Colorado Governmental Refuse Collection and Disposal Association," saw the need for a professional organization by 1979. The Colorado Chapter was accepted into the GRCDA in 1979, and the articles of incorporation were filed with the Colorado Secretary of State on June 6, 1983. The name of the organization was changed in 1986 to the "Colorado Rocky Mountain Governmental Refuse Collection and Disposal Association" and changed in1994 to closer to our current configuration, "Colorado Rocky Mountain Chapter of the Solid Waste Association." 'The rest is history,' as Dick Sprague has researched it to this point, and summarized in an article in this newsletter.

All for now, and see you at a landfill or COSWANA training session soon,

Cathryn

SCHOLARSHIPS

by Jerry Henderson

An important part of the Chapter’s mission is education related to a solid waste management discipline. Accordingly, the Chapter has budgeted during the current year $1,000 in scholarship awards for academic expenses incurred by a degree-seeking student, and $500 in scholarships for continuing education. Members should keep in mind that the latter may be used to defer the cost of attending a Chapter technical session. Applications are currently being accepted and may be made online at CO SWANA website.

EPA’s NEW MANDATORY GREENHOUS GAS RULE

by Neil Nowak, PE - Weaver Boos Consultants, LLC

This new EPA rule likely will affect every medium to large landfill within the State of Colorado and is set to start on January 1,2010.

On September 22, 2009, EPA Administrator Jackson signed the final rule for mandatory reporting of greenhouse gases (GHGs) from what they consider to be “large” emission sources. The definition of the “large” source is a source that emits more than 25,000 tons of CO2e on an annual basis. The goal of the rule is to provide a better understanding of where GHG emissions are coming from and to help develop guidance on how to implement policies to reduce GHG emissions.

The reporting requirements include 31 different sources, and landfills and waste-to energy (WTE) facilities are in that group. According to EPA, this would cover 85% of all emissions in the US. EPA estimates that 2,500 landfills and all WTE operations could be required to report. The minimum estimated volume of waste at a landfill that likely will be affected by the rule may range from 200,000 to 280,000 tons of waste…but actual emissions will be site specific and modeling will be required. What isn’t reported includes indirect emissions (electricity use), fleet emissions, emission offsets, and carbon sequestration.

Each affected site must begin monitoring and tracking their GHG emissions on January 1, 2010. During the timeframe from January 1 to March 31, 2010, a site may use “best available monitoring methods,” which are defined by the EPA (i.e. certain models accepted by EPA). A site may request an extension to use the “best available” techniques (i.e. models instead of actual monitoring), however, they must do so by January 28, 2010.

The actual GHG report for year 2010 is due to the EPA on or before March 31, 2011. EPA currently is working on a web-based electronic reporting system to ease the logistical burden on the reporters, and which will guide reporters through data entry and submission. The on-line reporting system will allow for built-in calculation and completeness checks for reporters, and self certification with EPA verification of reporting data.

Please note that Colorado SWANA will be having a technical seminar on January 19, 2010 at Geotech Environmental’s Training Room from 10am to 2pm at a cost of $20.00 for members and $30.00 to non-members. For those who can’t make the meeting in person, the session will be available via conference call; however, the graphics and presentation materials will not be viewable for remote attendees. Register on-line at http://www.coloradoswana.org/.

RULE DEVELOPMENT BACKGROUND

EPA Administrator signed the proposed rule for mandatory reporting of GHGs from large emission sources in the United States on March 10, 2009. It was published in the Federal Register on April 10, 2009.

EPA received almost 17,000 written comments on the proposal and heard from approximately 60 people at the two public hearings. The final rule reflects changes EPA made as it carefully considered and responded to significant comments.

The GHG reporting methods for this final rule were built upon existing GHG reporting programs and guidance documents including those developed by the private sector, state and regional programs, and national voluntary programs.

FINAL RULE OVERVIEW

In general, the threshold for reporting is 25,000 metric tons or more of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalent per year. Reporting is at the facility level, except that certain suppliers of fossil fuels and industrial greenhouse gases along with vehicle and engine manufacturers will report at the corporate level. Facilities and suppliers will begin collecting data on January 1, 2010. The first emissions report is due on March 31, 2011, for emissions during 2010. Manufacturers of vehicles and engines outside of the light-duty sector will begin reporting CO2 for model year 2011 and other GHGs in subsequent model years as part of existing EPA certification programs.

An estimated 85 percent of the total U.S. GHG emissions, from approximately 10,000 facilities, are covered by this final rule.

Most small businesses would fall below the 25,000 metric ton threshold and are not required to report GHG emissions to EPA.

• Reports are submitted annually unless for facilities with electric generating units that also report to the Acid Rain Program. Those reporters will continue with current practices, as well as submit annual GHG emission reports under this rule.
• EPA will verify the data submitted and will not require third party verification. Prior to EPA verification, reporters will be required to self-certify the data they submit to EPA. This is consistent with other Clean Air Act programs.
• The only emission source in the agriculture sector covered by the rule is manure management systems at livestock operations with GHG emissions that meet or exceed the threshold of 25,000 metric tons. EPA modeling estimates that just over 100 manure management systems at large livestock operations meet this threshold.
• EPA estimates the average cost of reporting for the private sector under this rule will be approximately $115 million in the first year of reporting and $72 million in subsequent years.
• Some key changes from the proposed rule to the final rule are as follows:

Applicability. Reduced the number of source and supply categories that facilities and suppliers must report under this final rule. The following source and supply categories are not required to report at this time:

• Electronics manufacturing
• Ethanol production
• Fluorinated GHG production
• Food processing
• Industrial landfills
• Magnesium production
• Oil and natural gas systems
• SF6 from electrical equipment
• Underground coal mines
• Wastewater treatment
• Suppliers of coal

Report Revision. Added provision to require submittal of revised annual GHG reports if needed to correct errors.

Records Retention. Changed the general records retention period from 5 years to 3 years.

Verification. In several subparts, required more data to be reported rather than kept as records to allow EPA to verify reported emissions.

Combustion Sources. Added exemptions for unconventional fuels, flares, hazardous wastes, and emergency equipment. Reduced the need for mass flow monitors for some units or fuels. Allowed more facilities to aggregate reporting of emissions from smaller units rather than report emissions for each individual unit.

Manure Management Systems. Added an animal population threshold to reduce the burden of determining applicability. Reduced the monitoring requirements.

PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT

Since the publication of the proposal, EPA has held more than 150 public meetings involving over 4,000 stakeholders including trade associations, industries, states, and state and regional-based groups since the proposal was issued. This is in addition to over 100 meetings that were held prior to issuing the proposed rule.

NEXT STEPS AND IMPLEMENTATION

• The preamble and final regulatory text will be published in the Federal Register shortly, and will be made available at www.regulations.gov
• A prepublication version is available.
• To assist reporters in complying with this regulation, EPA has developed a suite of information and training resources including:
  • An on-line applicability tool that will assist potential reporters to assess if they meet the threshold for reporting.
  • A series of webinars on the reporting requirements of the rule
  • A variety of guidance documents for different audiences
  • Information sheets on reporting requirements for each of the covered sectors
  • A comprehensive website with information on upcoming training opportunities along with all the available information on this website.

MORE INFORMATION

More information about the GHG reporting rule is available at the SWANA website, or at the US EPA website. Another good article was posted by SWANA.

COLORADO SWANA MEMBERS ENJOY THE 2009 ANNUAL CONFERENCE

by Jerry Henderson and Kathy Andrew

The Chapter’s Annual Conference was held October 8th and 9th at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Colorado Springs. Despite the down economy, the conference was well attended, both by participants and vendors. Many thanks to all those who made the effort to attend.

Colorado Swana Members Enjoy The 2009 Annual Conference

In addition to the karaoke shown above, there were technical sessions on topics as diverse as solid waste in the new economy, use of a landfill to generate solar power, composting, recycling, OSHA safety issues and Pay-As-You-Throw. The agenda also featured keynote speakers from the government sector, including Alice Madden with the Governor’s Energy Office speaking on the Governor’s vision for climate change, and Martha Rudolph, Director of Environmental Programs for CDPHE, on how economic issues are affecting the agency. Another highlight of the conference was the Fort Carson Tour.

Fort Carson Sustainable Sites Tour

Fort Carson, The Mountain Post, came into being during World War II. Known as Camp Carson, it housed, trained, and rehabilitated soldiers serving overseas, just as it does now. Fort Carson’s sustainability program and achievements have received significant coverage through press, awards, professional communications, conferences, and partnerships. This year, Fort Carson graciously agreed to host our tour during the annual conference. We saw demonstrations of different sustainable technologies and projects that promote resource conservation, energy independence, high quality workspaces, innovative design, historical preservation, and cultural relevance. In addition, the sustainability program supports the mission of housing military families, training, and protecting the environment. Our very comfortable and large tour bus was met at Visitor’s Gate 1 parking lot by Frank Kinder, Sustainability Project Coordinator. He provided a brief introduction to the Army organization; essentially the Garrison (Fort Carson) is a City, the Commander is a Mayor, and the Soldiers are the Citizens. Services, recreation, employment, transportation, maintenance, and environment all interact. Industrial, training, education, residential, and administration facilities all are present.

The Post will soon serve close to 30,000 troops and families, and is experiencing much construction to accommodate those needs. It serves over 100,000 people annually, to include enlisted personnel, retirees, visitors, civilians, contractors, and other groups. The urban area, known as a cantonment, is about 7,000 acres. Fort Carson’s sustainability program rests on many Federal, Department of Defense, Army, State, and local regulations, requirements, and goals. In 2002 regional stakeholders created twelve 25-year proactive sustainability goals supporting a sustainable installation through resource conservation, green building, zero waste, smart transportation, training, and education.

The Post is shaped like a banana, with 3 parallel regions going North/South. We viewed residents, schools and some recreation areas that have a new layout that places garages behind the houses with central backloaded access. This design is safer for families, provides for pedestrian and bike capabilities, improves aesthetics, and eases maintenance. Homes are built to a high efficiency standard to reduce water and energy consumption, and trails connect to promote walking. In addition, there are two new child development centers. These are built to support sidewalk access to neighborhoods and schools and are constructed in ways that reduce waste and operate efficiently. The idea is to reduce driving requirements and encourage walking. We saw Carson Middle School and Patriot Elementary. Both schools use high quality engineering to reduce water and energy consumption. Patriot uses an ice-chiller system to provide cool air by freezing water overnight when energy is cheapest. These systems save energy and use less refrigerant. The schools take advantage of day lighting, and collocation gives children safety in numbers.

Behind Carson Middle School is a man-made wetland that serves as stormwater mitigation, animal habitat, and an educational setting. This feature provides added benefits that also serve to clean, slow, and recharge groundwater, instead of older concepts that just shipped it downstream in concrete culverts. Other culverts and ditches around post attempt to provide the same benefits.

The Cheyenne Shadows Golf Course is one of the highest-use services on Post and accommodates plenty of players. The clubhouse is equivalent to a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Silver Designation, and provides a nice sanctuary for soldiers and players. The golf course just completed an irrigation overhaul that fixed leaks, waters more efficiently, and delivers soluble fertilizers which reduce watershed pollution and runoff. Cart paths were just repaved with 100% recycled asphalt. Cheyenne Shadows Golf Course is pursuing composting and Audubon Sanctuary Certification via habitat improvement and solar-powered water aeration.

One of the most interesting things on the tour was the Solar Array. This is a partnership project and is a large step toward energy independence and renewable power. The project, which encompasses 12 acres total, is built atop 6 acres of a closed landfill. It provides enough solar power to support 540 homes. By being situated on a generally unusable area and utilizing renewable solar energy, this project represents strong progress toward a more secure energy policy.

We also visited the Army’s first LEED certified building. This is a LEED Gold building, which is 120,000 square feet containing multiple green features that significantly lower energy and water consumption while providing a high quality environment for administration, education, and organizational requirements. We viewed newly completed barracks that were constructed using pre-made components. This design reduces waste, supports alternative transportation, and emphasizes efficiency in operation and housing support.

There are many stormwater basins throughout the area that address runoff by cooling and cleaning the water, allowing for recharge when possible, and offering some habitat options. The new Division Headquarters Building 1435 is a Spirit Gold (LEED Silver equivalent) facility including innovative landscaping features designed to reduce stormwater challenges in attractive, additive features. It sits across from a 1983 solar hot water heating system still serving the swimming pool. The tour was truly informative and inspiring, indicating that sustainability is possible. Many thanks to Fort Carson for providing an excellent experience to all the SWANA conference attendees; we appreciate their willingness to share with us.

SWANA Certification Exam Testing

A new offering at this year’s annual conference was SWANA Certification Exam testing. The exams were offered on a self-study basis, but given the interest expressed on the member survey, the Chapter may expand this opportunity for next year’s conference, possibly offering training together with exam testing. See related article on p. 9.

Conference Sponsors

Also, we owe a debt of gratitude to our conference sponsors, without whom the conference could not have been a success. Annual Conference sponsors were:

• Level: Golder Associates, Inc. and Larimer County.
• Mount Evans Level: Central Fiber - Topcoat Division, CLI Clear Water Construction; Geotech Environmental Equipment; LifeSpan Technology Recycling; SCS Engineers; Waste Connections, Inc.; Waste Management of Colorado, Inc. and Weaver Boos Consultants, LLC.
• Pikes Peak Level: American Environmental Consulting; AquAeTer; Doty & Associates; Pace Analytical; Rotonics, Inc; Ted Miller and Associates.
• Friends of Colorado SWANA: Colorado Association for Recycling; Otto Container Management; Waste-Not Recycling

Soon it will be time to start planning the 2010 Annual Conference. If you would like to be a part of the 2010 conference planning committee, please contact Cathryn Stewart at 303-771-9150 or any board member on page 1.

INTERNATIONAL BOARD MEETING NOTES

by Dick Sprague

During WasteCon 2009 in Long Beach, SWANA’s International Board held its annual meeting. As part of the annual meeting, John Hadfield (retired, formerly Executive Director of the Southeastern Public Service Authority of Virginia) moved into the Presidency, replacing Carl Newby (Arlington, VA – is there a theme here?). Newby replaced Colorado’s own Laurie Batchelder Adams as Past President, ending Laurie’s five-year stint of “moving through the chairs.”

This annual meeting included the Puerto Rico chapter as a full voting member for the first time. In addition, a delegation from Mexico attended, and announced its intention of applying for provisional chapter status in 2010. Provisional chapter status, if granted, allows the provisional chapter a year in which it can demonstrate its viability as a chapter to the SWANA International Board. In addition, a delegation from the Virgin Islands (both US and British controlled parts) attended. They currently operate under the Puerto Rico chapter, but are exploring full chapter status. This is exciting news, since SWANA had experienced a 10-year lull in new chapter formation. Two or three new international chapters within two or three years would take SWANA from a US and Canada international organization to a truly North American organization!

At this meeting, SWANA announced that it had partnered with the New York chapter to test a program for increasing SWANA eprogram participation. This pilot program was so successful that SWANA has rolled it out to all chapters. Under the newly minted program, a chapter can commit to 50 participating stations during a year for a $2,000 fee (note: there are higher commitment levels, with attached higher costs to the chapter). Each station can have multiple participants, provided an attendance list is made available to SWANA headquarters, and each participant can earn CEUs for participation. For a small chapter like ours, the cost is high if we do not have a high demand for this type of investment. If you have interest in this service being available, contact any Colorado SWANA board member.

As a final note, SWANA announced that it would ballot expansion of the International Board to include a member from each of the Technical Divisions. These divisions have not historically participated in SWANA’s business decisions, which means that the governance of the organization does not have full buy-in from its technical leadership. SWANA had attempted to fill this gap by having a single International Board representative attempting to involve the Technical Divisions; unfortunately, this experiment did not develop the buy-in desired. The proposal to expand the International Board would temporarily add a member of each Technical Division temporarily because the proposal would sunset after three years unless the International Board votes to end the sunset. As your International Board representative, I opposed this change as first proposed because it did not have a sunset/re-evaluation clause. I have voted for the revised proposal (with a sunset provision) because we need to involve these technical experts in our organization’s governance; I will vote to sunset it if it is not working as hoped. Give me feedback whether you agree or disagree with my position.

TUTORING, TRAINING OR EXAMS–OH YES!

By Debby Barton, Montezuma Solid Waste

Many years ago the chapter hosted a Manager of Landfill Operations (MOLO) course. During the October annual meeting, the chapter administered certification exams for anyone wishing to challenge a discipline without taking a course, three members took the challenge for Collection, Transfer Stations and Recycling. Recently some members have asked if the chapter could host certification training that would help our members get the training “locally”.

Your Board of Directors is listening and wants your input as we plan the 2010 annual conference, which we hope will take place along the I-70 mountain corridor in September. Would you take a few moments to complete the survey on p. 12 and then either mail, fax, email or even call Deborah Barton, Chapter Secretary with your input? Our next Board meeting is January 19, 2010 just before the workshop on Greenhouse Gas rule implementation which is affecting all of our landfills, directly or indirectly. In advance, thank you for your input.

FINANCIAL STATEMENT

By Stephen Gillette, Larimer County Solid Waste

2008-2009 (our fiscal year in November 1 to October 31) was another great year for our Colorado Rocky Mountain SWANA Chapter. As you can see from our balance sheet our over all net worth has increased $726.95. Items of note were that we provided two $1,000 scholarships, had a great annual meeting, and provided three opportunities for training to our members.

Thanks to all of our members and our sponsors for helping to make this last year a great year in spite of the economic down turn. These financial numbers have been audited by Deborah Barton our Board Secretary. If you have any questions concerning our financials please contact me at 970-498-5762 or through my contact page.

Colorado Rocky Mountain SWANA Balance Sheet November 1, 2009
	2008	2009
ASSETS
Cash and Bank Accounts
Checking	$18,586.84	$18,833.25
Savings	$19,273.74	$19,754.28
TOTAL	$37,860.58	$38,587.53
OTHER ASSETS
E-Business Loan	$17,364.30	$17,364.30
TOTAL ASSETS	$55,224.88	$55,951.83
LIABILITIES & EQUITY
Liabilities	$0.00	$0.00
Equity	$55,224.88	$55,951.83
TOTAL Liabilities & Equity	$55,224.88	$55,951.83

Survey of Member Interest in CO-SWANA Hosting Training or Exams

I would like the Chapter to offer the following (please only mark the top three in each column). 1 is the highest priority and 3 the lowest of my top three.

Discipline or Certification	Training Session	Tutor Only	Proctored Exam
Manager of Landfill Operations (MOLO)	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Manager of Bioreactor Landfill	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Managing MSW Recycling Systems	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Managing MSW Collection Systems	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Construction & Demolition (C&D)	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Managing Transfer Station Systems	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Managing Composting Programs	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3
Principles of Management in MSW Management Systems	1 2 3	1 2 3	1 2 3

Minimum fees for training, certification registration and certification exams are set by National SWANA. What level of tuition/registration fee are you willing to pay for? Training session? Tutoring session? Certification exam?
Are you aware of the online training that SWANA has to offer?	Yes No
Have you participated in any online SWANA courses or webinars?	Yes No
Do you currently hold any certifications from SWANA? If "Yes" in what discipline(s):	Yes No
May we call you for further information?	Yes No
If "Yes" please fill out the following information: First Name: Last Name: Company: Address: City: State: Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Dist of Columbia Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Zip: Phone: Fax: E-mail:

Mail the completed form to:

Deborah Barton
Montezuma County Landfill, 26100 RD F
Cortez, CO 81321-8104

Call: 970-565-9858
Fax: 970-565-9309

Winter Technical Session Announcement - January 19, 2010

Colorado Rocky Mountain SWANA has developed a workshop for solid waste owners, operators and consultants on the impacts of the new U. S. Environmental Protection Agency Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reporting effective January 1, 2010.

Do you have the answers to the following questions?

• What are the compliance rules for small rural landfills, as well as larger landfills?
• Do you know how to calculate CO2 equivalents for your landfill?
• Do you know how much GHG your landfill is currently producing and is expected to potentially produce?
• Does the rule apply small landfills?
• What are the monitoring requirements?
• When is the deadline to implement?
• Are there exemptions or extensions? How can I apply and by when?

To get your answers to these and other related questions, attend this workshop on Tuesday, January 19, 2010 between 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM. Lunch to be provided.

Agenda:

When:

Where:

Cost:

Please send any news items you may have for the next issue to:

Jerry Henderson
CDPHE
4300 Cherry Creek Dr. South
Denver, CO 80246

(303) 692-3455
(303) 759-5355 fax
Email