Water fountains at Fort Green Park in Brooklyn, NY.

Last summer, while walking through Fort Greene Park on a beautiful day, I noticed a sign posted next to an outdoor fountain describing how New York City had made it more water efficient. The fountain used to run continuously 24 hours a day. Now, thanks in part to the EPA’s recommendations, New York City’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has retrofitted the sprinklers with timer buttons, which, when pressed, allow the sprinkler to operate for two minute intervals. This small effort helps New York City save about 10,000 gallons of water per day!

EPA is helping NYC become more efficient.

This water conservation measure, along with others that the DEP has made over the last four years, came about through the help of Mr. Lorne LaMonica, a Senior Scientist with EPA in the Pollution Prevention and Climate Change Section. For two years, Mr. LaMonica participated in New York City’s Green Code Task Force and was instrumental in incorporating the EPA WaterSense Program specifications into the NYC Code. The retrofitting of the fountain in Fort Greene Park is just one of the many water conservation measures implemented.

This photo shows the on/off button for the sprinkler in Fort Greene Park. This one button helps NYC save 10,000 gallons of water a day.

As a result of Lorne’s efforts, New York City has become a strong proponent of using EPA WaterSense specifications in new construction and retrofits. The city reported to EPA that in 2013, with the assistance of our WaterSense recommendations, it retrofitted 13 schools with water-efficient urinals, toilets, and faucets. As a result of installing these water-saving fixtures, these schools conserved 49,000,000 gallons of water, reduced 114 metric tons of carbon equivalent (greenhouse gases) and saved $143,000 in water utility costs! In 2014, DEP retrofitted an additional 10 schools and the water saving numbers were tremendous: 92,000,000 gallons of water saved, 211 metric tons of carbon equivalent saved, and a savings of $266,800 in water utility costs. These retrofit projects are expected to continue for years through hundreds of schools throughout the city.

To find out more about the EPA’s WaterSense program and how it’s helping communities throughout the United States to save water, visit: https://www.epa.gov/watersense/.

About the Author: Alex Peck is an Environmental Protection Specialist in EPA Region 2’s Pollution Prevention and Climate Change Section.

EPA’s booth at WEFTEC 2012. Photo credit: Tara Johnson

In just five days, over 20,000 people will arrive in Chicago to participate in the Water Environment Federation’s (WEF) Annual Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC). WEFTEC is one of the largest conferences and exhibitions in North America for the water sector. I’m really looking forward to attending this year’s conference along with others from EPA. During the five-day long conference, sessions and exhibit booths will showcase water technology innovations and good work in the water arena in the U.S. and internationally. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for this year!

The events listed below are just some highlights of EPA’s involvement in WEFTEC 2015. Please see the full WEFTEC agenda or search the WEF Events App (available through Apple’s App Store or at http://app2.core-apps.com/weftec2015) under WEFTEC 2015 for a complete list of where to find us.

Keynote: Our Acting Deputy Administrator Stan Meiburg will deliver the keynote address on Monday, September 29 at 10:00 a.m. Central Time. His speech will be streamed live online at www.weftec.org.

Policy Session: EPA officials will hold a discussion at the Clean Water Policy Forum on Monday, September 28, from 1:30 – 5:00 p.m. Central Time in Room S402b.

Innovation and Technology: We will have a display at the Spotlight on Technology Innovation in the circular awards display of the Innovation Pavilion. Here you can learn about examples of technology innovation for water resource sustainability and share your own innovations.

EPA Booth: Our staff will be available to discuss agency activities and resources for the water sector in the exhibit hall at booth #4467. New this year, we will be hosting four short speaking events at our booth to address some of the hot topics surrounding water resources:

Monday, September 28

• 10:30 a.m. Innovative Water Financing with Jim Gebhardt
• 11:30 a.m. Water-Energy Nexus with Jason Turgeon
• 2:30 p.m. DOE Resources for Utilities with Scott Hutchins

Tuesday, September 29

• 2:30 p.m. Climate & Water Tools for Adaptation/Resiliency with Michael Shapiro

Social media: During the conference, keep up with EPA information and announcements by following @EPAwater on Twitter and EPA – Water is Worth It on Facebook. Join the full WEFTEC discussion by using #WEFTEC15.

WEF Events App: All EPA events can be found using the WEF Events App by searching “EPA” under WEFTEC 2015. We will also have select documents available download through the app under our booth. Search for “4467” or “U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.”

We look forward to seeing you in Chicago!

Planetary Boundaries: A Safe Operating Space for Humanity, Stockholm Resilience Centre, Stockholm University (http://www.stockholmresilience.org/)

Environmental sustainability is all the rage right now. Much of the focus when talking about sustainability is on the global carbon cycle and climate change, but there are other global cycles that have been disturbed to an even greater extent than the carbon cycle. Since the Industrial Revolution biogeochemical flows of nitrogen and phosphorus or the Earth’s nitrogen and phosphorus cycles have been disrupted even more than the carbon cycle.   Biogeochemical flows of nitrogen and phosphorous is a scientific way of talking about the pathways and interactions the elements nitrogen and phosphorus have with the physical and biological world.  Human beings have altered these pathways and systems dramatically to the point that we and the planet are at great risk.  You can see this represented in the figure above – we are clearly in the “red zone” when it comes to disturbance of nitrogen and phosphorous cycles!

One dramatic consequence of too much nitrogen – the Peconic River Fish Kill, Riverhead (NY) Yacht Club, June 15, 2015 Photo credit: Andrew Seal

One important source of “too much nitrogen” in the coastal areas of our Region — New York, New Jersey, and the Caribbean — are conventional onsite wastewater disposal or septic systems many of which were never designed to remove or reduce nitrogen.  We face a serious need to upgrade many of these systems to technologies that will reduce nitrogen flow to our estuaries and coastal ecosystems.

Being SepticSmart Also Means Using Appropriate and Well Designed Septic Technology To Protect Water Quality

SepticSmart Week, which kicks off this year on Sept. 21, will educate public officials and the public at large about the importance of using well designed and appropriate septic treatment technology that is protective of water quality.  Advanced onsite treatment systems can remove as much as 74 percent of nitrogen before it enters the environment.  Part of my job at EPA is to help state and local governments meet this need.  As an example Suffolk County, New York declared nitrogen public enemy #1 and launched an advanced treatment septic demonstration program to install and test nitrogen removal systems on almost 20 residential properties throughout the County.

EPA, in cooperation with states and partners, works hard during SepticSmart Week and year-round to educate local decision makers, engineers and homeowners about managing and upgrading their wastewater infrastructure in order to protect the waters they swim in, fish from, and drink. (By the way this also happens to be National Estuaries Week – take a look at all the great resources aimed at restoring estuaries like the Long Island Sound, Peconic Bay, the New York – New Jersey Harbor, Barnegat Bay, Delaware Estuary, and San Juan Bay in Puerto Rico at: https://www.estuaries.org/national-estuaries-week !)

About the Author: Kristina Heinemann is EPA Region 2’s Decentralized Wastewater Treatment Coordinator and lives on Long Island’s North Shore where she is the not-so-proud owner of two antiquated cesspools one of which often acts more like a holding tank than a wastewater disposal system!   

Here’s a couple of real world examples of how costly it can be to clean up pollution after it’s already happened:

• Effective P2 practices could have avoided hundreds of millions of dollars of PCB cleanup costs. PCBs are a hazardous chemical that can cause cancer and were banned in 1979. Cleanup of Hudson River PCB contamination alone has cost more than $500 million.
• If we can take effective action to slow down the rate of climate change, we can save not billions but trillions of dollars over the coming decades.

From these examples I know that an ounce of prevention is worth millions of dollars in clean-up activities and countless environmental hazards. What many people may not know is that sustainable practices started out as P2. In 1990, the Pollution Prevention Act tasked EPA with establishing a grant program to teach state and local governments and businesses about the benefits of P2. Over time, businesses, colleges, and even sports teams have realized that with P2 they can achieve their corporate objectives and help save the environment, all while improving their bottom lines. From clean energy initiatives, like the Clean Power Plan, to programs that promote the user of safer chemicals, like Safer Choice, sustainability is now part of the fabric of institutions around the world.

This week is P2 Week, and this year marks the 25th anniversary of the Pollution Prevention Act. During this week, and every week, I encourage you to find things you can do in your daily life to stop pollution before it starts. Whether it’s riding your bike instead of driving or reducing the amount of garbage you generate, you’ll be making choices that are better for you, your family and the environment. What’s an ounce of prevention worth to you?

Learn more about P2 Week and how you can prevent pollution.

Do you know what pairs perfectly with that pumpkin spice latte? Reading about EPA science!

Check out what we are highlighting this week.

• Take a Bite Out of Science!
  The “Science Bite” podcasts explore research conducted by some very dedicated EPA scientists and engineers to protect air quality, prepare for climate change impacts on human health and ecosystems, and make energy decisions for a sustainable world. Researchers talk about their work and why it is important.
  Read more about the podcast series in the blog Learn about Your Environment with Science Bite Podcasts.

• Stepping it Up
  EPA’s Kathy Sykes was invited to participate in the official launch of “Step it Up!”—the Surgeon General’s call to action to promote walking and walkable communities. “Mobility can be a challenge from very early, later in life, or throughout life. It is up us to make changes to ensure that we all can enjoy the independence, health, and environmental benefits of walking,” she notes.
  Read more about the importance of walkability for sustainable and healthy communities in the blog Stepping it Up: Embracing The Surgeon General’s Call to Action for Walkable Communities.

• Teaming up to Advance Chemical Safety
  EPA and Unilever, a global consumer products company, are kicking off a research collaboration to advance chemical safety for consumer products. EPA researchers will work with Unilever partners to develop a series of case studies based on five chemicals of mutual interest. If successful, research from this collaboration will result in better ways to evaluate the potential health effects of new ingredients and chemicals we currently know little about.
  Read more about the partnership in the blog EPA and Unilever: Teaming Up to Advance Chemical Safety.

• Measuring Pollution at Street Level
  Using satellite data, mobile devices, and the Internet, environmental scientists are pinpointing when and where our environment can be toxic for our health —both indoors and out. Chet Wayland, director of EPA’s Air Quality Assessment Division, was a featured guest expert on The Kojo Nnamdi Show about these new tools.
  Listen to the The Kojo Nnamdi Show’s clip Cleaner Air: Measuring Pollution at Street Level.

Photo of the Week

Dr. Sandy Raimondo, a self-proclaimed “biology nerd,” is a research ecologist at the EPA’s Gulf Ecology Division in Florida, where she studies the effects of chemical contaminants on endangered species. Sandy is shown here in the field in an estuarine marsh on the Gulf Coast.

If you have any comments or questions about what I share or about the week’s events, please submit them below in the comments section!

About the Author: Kacey Fitzpatrick is a student contractor and writer working with the science communication team in EPA’s Office of Research and Development.

From left: Bill Lukash, Toni Gargas and Dave Williams

An eager EPA team, Toni Gargas, Dave Williams and I, came together to begin a new chapter last week in our work with communities. We’ll be working in a focused way with the cities of Omaha, Neb., and Council Bluffs, Iowa. EPA has an exciting new initiative called Making a Visible Difference in Communities. It’s a tall order but the three of us are up to the challenge.

We started our work with our Acting Regional Administrator, Mark Hague, reaching out to the two cities’ mayors and city planning administrations. Last week, between the two cities, our team met with many community service and public health providers, city planners, and neighborhood leaders.

As an initial step, we will listen to determine what is needed. Then we’ll find out where EPA Region 7 staff can best help with our current resources and technical assistance.

Our Omaha visit was initiated by an invitation from David Thomas, Assistant Director of the Omaha City Planning Department, to attend a community planning meeting at Prospect Village. There we met with over 30 community service partners who have worked with neighbors, organizations, and faith community to help move and build up this neighborhood for the past two years. The city plans on focusing their efforts on a number of established neighborhoods that are interested in enhancing their sustainability and quality of life.

Theresa Gilreath tends the urban garden

Bill Lukash, Omaha City Planner, gave us a short but informative tour of the neighborhood and the various city efforts underway in northeastern Omaha. One example of the current work supported by the city is the placement and growth of many urban gardens throughout neighborhoods, senior living complexes, and schools.

We also ran into Theresa Gilreath, who lives at Village East Senior Apartments. With the help of many in the community – especially her friend, Ginger Thomas, and the Omaha City Planning Department and local development organizations – Theresa, Ginger and others in the community have maintained one of the most beautiful and prolific urban gardens I have ever seen. This senior living complex and its urban garden, now in its fall harvest, feeds over 42 families with fruits, vegetables and herbs. It is also a restful meeting place for members to use for outdoor visits.

Another example of EPA’s intended efforts, and the topic of some of our meetings with Omaha and Council Bluffs, was discussing a resource EPA can bring to the table: training sessions for schools. Our grantee, Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo., will bring Healthy Schools training to those who work on school maintenance and children’s health, like school nurses and the county health departments. We hope to deliver a number of Healthy Schools training sessions to the two cities, each by 2016.

EPA will support what the two cities need most from EPA, and “connecting these dots” through information, technical assistance, and hard work will be our primary focus in Omaha and Council Bluffs. The cities have welcomed our initiative. Toni, Dave and I look forward to meeting some thoughtful and dedicated elected officials, city government staff, and citizens who are continuing to build their communities one step at a time to make a visible difference. Stay tuned for the next steps in these partnerships as we work together for the Heartland!

About the Author: Kathleen L. Fenton serves as the Environmental Education Program Coordinator and the Lead Strategic Planner in EPA Region 7’s Office of Public Affairs. She has worked with communities on environmental health issues, environmental education, and Healthy Schools projects for over 20 years.

David Doyle is a public servant’s public servant. I’ve known Dave for 24 years and if you have a “federal agency” question, Dave will either know the answer or the person to call to help you. He has mentored many of us at EPA about the intricacies of community work, and has truly “woven straw into gold” for many communities with the limited, complicated funding and layers of federal and state resources applicable to them. Dave turns over every stone and has left in his wake a sustainable legacy.

By David Doyle

Aftermath of Greensburg tornado

It’s June 2007, and I’m sitting under a large red-and-white tent in Greensburg, Kan., feeling a little disoriented and anxious. I was told a week before that I had been assigned to work with the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) on developing a long-term recovery plan for the community that was wiped out by a tornado a month earlier. Once I drove to Greensburg and located the FEMA trailer, their recovery staff directed me to a community meeting.

It must have been 100 degrees under that tent. With huge fans trying to cool the place and only adding to the noise and confusion, I suddenly heard the speaker on the platform say, “EPA’s here to help.” I wasn’t sure what kind of reaction I would get from the audience in southwestern Kansas, but as I stood up and meekly waved, I got nothing but cheers and applause. I was relieved by that reaction, but I sat down wondering what I was going to do next.

Greensburg community meeting 

What I had learned up to then in working with communities is that building trust is by far the most important thing to do. I also understood that being patient with people, listening to their concerns, and being honest and responsive to their needs are key things to keep in mind. Work I had done in Stella, a southwestern Missouri town with a population of 150, prepared me to some extent for what I was asked to do in Greensburg.

EPA had performed a “miracle” in Stella, as described by some of the residents, by demolishing an abandoned hospital that sat in the middle of their downtown, using our authority under the Superfund law. We then brought in architectural students from Kansas State University to design reuse plans for the site and later developed a master plan for the community. The local officials recognized my work, along with other EPA staff, by presenting us with award plaques hand-carved from local walnut trees during the annual Stella Days Fair.

In Greensburg, we decided to form a “Green Team” that came up with recommendations for turning it into the greenest community in the country. The team had representatives from the business community, school district, and a number of local citizens, along with representatives from several state and federal agencies. We met on a regular basis to bounce ideas off each other. Our recommendations were incorporated into FEMA’s Long-Term Community Recovery Plan, and all of them were eventually adopted by the city council and implemented.

Redevelopment in Greensburg, the greenest community in America

The most important recommendation adopted was that all new municipal buildings over a certain size had to be built to meet Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum standards, the highest certification level for new buildings. As a result, Greensburg (population 800) now has more LEED Platinum buildings than any other community in the United States.

Since my time in Greensburg, I have provided assistance to many other communities here in the Heartland. These collaborative efforts resulted in a new medical clinic surrounded by new businesses in Ogden, Iowa; plans for a new sustainable downtown in Sutherland, Neb.; redevelopment of former gas stations in south St. Louis; new, complete streetscapes in Lincoln, Neb.; plans for a mixed-use neighborhood in Iowa City, Iowa; and improvements in other communities.

I still remember those hot, windy and dusty days in Greensburg when a local citizen named Jack would often come up to me with a big smile on his face, shake my hand, and say how much he appreciated EPA being there and helping out.

About the Introducer: Kathleen Fenton has worked with communities on environmental health issues, environmental education grants, and Healthy Schools projects for over 20 years.

About the Author: David Doyle serves as the Sustainable Communities Coordinator at EPA Region 7. David has a Bachelor of Science in environmental engineering from Syracuse University, and a Master of Science in environmental health engineering from the University of Kansas.

I know you’re really busy. I know that as much as you want to stay updated on the latest news, you just don’t have the time to sit down and read a newspaper. We want to make it easier for you to stay informed about some pretty cool science that is protecting your health and environment. Instead of downloading the latest Maroon 5 song, you should check out EPA’s “Science Bite” podcast. While each episode is only about three minutes long, they provide a healthy dose of research news.

“Science Bite” explores the research conducted by some very dedicated EPA scientists and engineers to protect air quality, prepare for climate change impacts on human health and ecosystems, and make energy decisions for a sustainable world. Researchers talk about their work and why it is important.  I had the privilege of meeting some of these researchers while helping write the most recent podcast, and I have never met such passionate, intelligent people.

I found out a lot about environmental issues and interesting facts by listening to these podcasts. Here’s a quick sampling of my three favorites (there are more):

• July’s episode focused on the dangers of cookstoves fueled on wood, charcoal and other traditional fuels, and how they affect the health of many, many people around the world as a result of their indoor emissions.
• In May’s “Science Bite,” EPA researchers talked about the Village Green Project, and how this state-of-the-art park bench can measure air pollution.
• The most recent podcast discusses wildfire emissions. Who knew that there are many more things to consider besides your lungs? Researcher Ian Gilmour talked a little bit about his experience with the 2008 study of a peat fire in Eastern North Carolina.

So, if you’re driving to work or eating breakfast, spare a couple of minutes to hear what’s going on in your environment. Go to www2.epa.gov/research/science-bite-podcasts for more information.

About the Author: Jocelyn Buckley was a student intern in EPA’s Air, Climate, and Energy Research Program this summer. She will graduate from high school next year, and hopes to pursue environmental policy and journalism.

I recently accompanied Regional Administrator Shawn M. Garvin on a visit to the headquarters of Renmatix, a 2015 winner of the Presidential Green Chemistry Award. You might expect that an award for innovation in green chemistry would involve an unpronounceable compound created through a complex sequence of transformations. Not this time. The solvent and catalyst for the award-winning process is…water!

Widespread adoption of plant-based chemicals to replace petrochemicals has been hampered by the high cost of the process of extracting sugars from biomass (plant material), such as wood. Current processes requiring enzymes or acids can’t compete economically with petrochemical sources. The award-winning innovation is a cheaper way to extract sugars using water. By making plant-based petrochemicals less expensive to produce, this process has the potential to be a game-changer in reducing our dependence on petroleum and other fossil fuels which contribute to climate change.

Ordinary water under the extraordinary conditions of high pressure and temperature becomes supercritical water: not quite a liquid, not quite a gas. This supercritical water can extract the sugars from biomass quickly. Then it becomes ordinary water again, ready to be cleaned up through reverse osmosis and returned to the process.

Renmatix is exploring options to extract sugars from a variety of biomass sources other than wood, including switchgrass, corn stover, the empty fruit bunches from palm oil production, and even municipal solid waste. They are also fine-tuning their product for a variety of other uses.

The scientists, engineers, and executives at Renmatix clearly appreciated our visit and EPA’s award as a validation of their innovation. I left the visit inspired by their creativity and energy. Some favorite words from anthropologist and author Loren Eiseley came to mind, “If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.”

About the Author: Mindy Lemoine is the Pollution Prevention Program Coordinator in EPA Region 3. She previously worked with local governments on protecting Chesapeake Bay and Delaware River watersheds. She lives in the Tookany Creek watershed, and is replacing her lawn with a suburban permaculture including sedges, pawpaws, and nut trees

Apples are susceptible to fungal spores that can blemish the fruit and cause economic harm to the growers.

Apple growers battle pest problems on a continual basis. To pests, such as moths, mites, and fungi, an apple orchard is a place to eat or a place to reproduce. Because the ecology in every orchard is different, pest conditions and circumstances are different for every grower, so controlling pests using Integrated Pest Management (IPM) makes sense.

IPM has become more and more engrained in apple pest management in the northeast over the past 30 years because most northeastern growers live right on their farms. It is in their best interests to keep the land and water as clean as possible. Apple growers have found the most effective way to control their pests is by using scientifically-based IPM practices that have positive long-term effects on their orchards.

Growers monitor their orchards weekly from the beginning of spring through the entire growing season to determine pest pressures. The growers and crop consultants become intimate with their location, learn about past disease and pest pressures, and learn the ecology of their orchards. Admittedly, they learn something new every year.

There is also an economic impact when farmers use IPM. They stand to reduce their two highest bills – chemicals (pesticides and fertilizers) and fuel – when they follow the five components of IPM. These components are: 1) prevent pests; 2) identify the specific pests present; 3) set economic thresholds for each pest as a decision making tool; 4) monitor for pests and their damage, and; 5) use a combination of management tools.

Maintenance and sanitation are key parts of preventing pests in apple orchards. Every year, growers follow a rigorous routine in the fall by cleaning the orchard floor, cutting suckers off tree trunks and clearing weeds from under the trees. Fallen leaves, grass clippings, and winter prunings are mulched and returned to the soil. By chopping the leaves into small bits, they will decompose more quickly and neither the pests nor diseases will have anywhere to live over winter. This reduces the pest populations that will be in the orchard in the next spring. The only thing that is removed are the apples.

Just by being particular about maintaining this degree of sanitation, growers have been very successful in reducing the presence of apple scab, one of the most persistent pest problems in orchards. Apple scab comes from a fungal spore that overwinters on the ground. It normally requires a fungicide (anti-fungal pesticide) to be sprayed in order to arrest its development. Those spores go on the fruit and make leathery-brown scabs that blemish the fruit. Blemished fruit is considered to be of lower quality, so its value is reduced leading to an economic loss to the grower.

Apple scab also damages the tree because it creates lesions on the leaves that spread and interfere with photosynthesis. A bad scab infection can shut down a whole tree and spread quickly throughout the orchard. So orchard sanitation is a very important part of scab control.

Other pest prevention methods include planting pest-resistant varieties and nutrient replenishing. Just like people, apple trees need specific nutrients to keep them healthy to produce quality fruit. When hundreds of bushels of apples per acre are removed annually, it means a lot of nutrients are removed from the orchard soil. Monitoring soil nutrient levels and adding nutrients, as needed to maintain tree health, is an essential component of IPM.

Apple trees need a wide range of macro nutrients (those needed in large quantity to provide energy) including nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. Nutrients are added either directly to the soil or by spraying on the tree leaves. Many soils in the northeast have high phosphorous levels and adequate nitrogen levels. If nitrogen is needed, it is most often applied through foliar application. Potassium is the macro nutrient (those vitamins and minerals needed in small amounts for proper plant health) that needs to be replaced on a regular basis. By running soil tests and recording the number of bushels of apples that were removed, growers can calculate how much potassium must be added back to the soil. Micronutrients, such as calcium, magnesium, zinc, boron and manganese, also need to be replenished. These are all added through foliar applications.

You can see northeastern growers discuss using IPM to prevent pests in a series of three videos by the New England Apple Association.

So why should we care about pest prevention and the appropriate use of pesticides on our apples? One reason is that apples are very prevalent in the diets of our children. They’re used to make juice and sauce, as well as eaten raw. They’re good for us! Utilizing the scientifically-based best practices of IPM, northeastern apple growers are able to provide us with high quality apples at reasonable prices.

 About the Author: About the Author: Marcia is with EPA’s Center of Expertise for School IPM in Dallas, Texas. She holds a PhD in Environmental Management from Montclair State University along with degrees in Biology, Environmental Design, Landscape Architecture, and Instruction and Curriculum. Marcia was formerly with the EPA Region 2 Pesticides Program and has been a professor of Earth and Environmental Studies, Geology, and Oceanography at several universities.