Environmental changes: a sleeping giant - includes directory of environmental services consultants and firms

"Is my business a what?"

"A TSDF, of course," replies the expert.

"And what in the world is that?"

A lot of New Mexico's executives may not know -- but they'll be learning.

Their business could be a TSDF.

And they may well not know what the ramifications could be.

To the uninitiated, TSDFs are treatment, storage or disposal facilities -- to be decided by criteria established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Estimates are there are more than 25 TSDFs in New Mexico.

Release of hazardous waste or hazardous waste constituents from what environmentalists call solid waste management units at TSDFs are expected to come under the gun soon.

All eventually will be affected by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) corrective action program administered by the EPA.

The units could include landfills, surface impoundments, land treatment units, waste piles, and tank container storage areas.

And incinerators, injection wells, wastewater treatment units, waste recycling units, industrial process collecting sewers and areas subject to routine and systematic releases such as loading or parts cleaning operations.

The corrective action program under the Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments to RCRA is designed to identify and, when necessary, clean up certain types of environmental releases of chemicals.

A TSDF is any facility that treats, stores or disposes of hazardous waste, including many products in common use.

Examples of TSDFs include chemical manufacturing operations and refineries.

Oil exploration and production operations and gasoline stations are currently not subject to the RCRA corrective action program, but are affected by other environmental regulatory programs.

Once a facility comes under RCRA corrective action, owner/operators can expect on-going involvement for years.

For a single TSDF, it can cost millions of dollars to perform the environmental investigation and cleanup required under the RCRA corrective action program.

Fortunately, EPA policies and interpretations are shifting toward practical approaches and solutions to environmental problems.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is clarifying its approach to the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act enforcement with the goals of reducing the economic burden of the regulations on industry and streamlining the corrective action process.

This will be achieved, in part, by focusing corrective action efforts on real risks to human health and the environment.

The EPA has not authorized New Mexico to administer the RCRA corrective action program. The program is currently administered by EPA's Region VI office in Dallas.

Owner/operators of treatment, storage or disposal facilities in New Mexico should prepare strategies aimed at complying with the RCRA corrective action program.

Jenifer S. Heath, Ph.D., and Cathleen M. Speak are consultants with the national environmental services firm of Geraghty & Miller Inc., with offices in Albuquerque.

The Experts

MORE THAN 100 companies in New Mexico specialize in segments of the environmental market throughout the Land of Enchantment.

Each capitalizes on its own environmental niche. Some have specialties across the board.

Some of the companies are relatively large while a number may have only a handful of employees and specialists.

The firms work in asbestos abatement, environmental consulting, hazardous waste transportation and disposal, recycling, remediation and analytical services.

Here's a brief cross-section of some of the heavy-hitters, most headquartered in the Albuquerque area, and their environmental specialties.

COPYRIGHT 1992 The New Mexico Business Journal
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group