IDEM’S TRANSITION

1. IDEM’S TRANSITION Thomas W. Easterly, P.E., DEE, QEP, Commissioner IN Department of Environmental Management

2. Personal Background • Over 30 years as an environmental professional. • About 12 years as an environmental engineer for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation in the Air and Solid and Hazardous Waste Programs with some cross media work into Wastewater Pretreatment Issues.

3. Personal Background • 7 years as Bethlehem Steel’s Corporate Air Expert—resolved long standing compliance issues and initiated “compliance management systems.” • 6 years as Superintendent of Environmental Services at Bethlehem Steel’s Burns Harbor, IN production facility. 6,000 employees, 5,000,000 tons of shipments, over $2,000,000,000 in annual sales.

4. Personal Background • Over 2 years in the regulated gas and electric utility industry. • Most recently an environmental consultant helping companies understand and meet their environmental obligations. • Many serious enforcement actions result from a lack of understanding of the requirements. • A number of companies are required to be in the regulatory system but don’t know how to come in at this time.

5. Burns Harbor Successes • Reduced environmental “incidents” from an average of about 50 per month in 1994 to an average of 2 per month in 2000 with many months of no incidents. • Clear explanations of requirements. • Monitoring of results. • Feedback on performance. • Fixing physical problems preventing compliance.

6. Burns Harbor Successes • Partnerships • Community Advisory Committee • Bethlehem Management • USWA • Environmental Groups • IDEM, EPA, DNR (2), NPS • Neighboring Community Citizens • Local Governments Streamlined our RCRA Corrective Action • NIRPC EMPC AQSC • QLC

7. Goal • Increase the personal Income of all Hoosiers from the current $0.88/$1.00 of the national average to at least $1.00/$1.00 of the national average while maintaining and improving Indiana’s Environmental Quality.

8. How is Personal Income Linked to Environmental Improvement? • Maslow’s Pyramid reminds us that people meet their basic needs for food, shelter and security before addressing other needs. • In most of Indiana, personal autos for transportation are a basic need. • People with lower incomes can often only afford older more polluting automobiles which contribute more than their share to our transportation related air quality issues.

9. Income and the Environment? • People with more income typically purchase newer cars that pollute less. • Similarly, newer industrial processes have less waste (more product per unit of input). • Waste typically becomes pollution. • Financially successful industries typically are able to purchase these newer processes that pollute less.

10. Income and the Environment? • Businesses that are struggling financially still must pay their workers and their suppliers. One of the few places to reduce is maintenance. • At some point, deferred maintenance leads to reduced equipment availability and increased pollution.

11. Income and the Environment? • People and Businesses who have met their basic needs look past their own needs to the greater good including the general quality of life. • Pursuit of improved quality of life includes support for better environmental quality.

12. How Will IDEM Help Increase Personal Income? • Clear, predictable and speedy decisions. • Clear regulations. • Assistance first, enforcement second. • Timely resolution of enforcement Actions. • Every regulated entity will have current valid permits without unnecessary requirements.

13. Actions to Date • Held Agency Wide Meeting with Governor Daniels to Announce the new direction and answer questions. • Met with all Branch Chiefs and other Agency Leaders to reiterate the message of change and answer questions. • Removed most of the existing management to both facilitate and signal change.

14. Actions to Date • Directly delegated authority and responsibility to Branch Chiefs with direction to do their jobs while considering economic development. • Asking people to first go to the staff responsible for the issue and let the staff do the right thing—let me know when there is a problem.

15. Future IDEM Structure • Less management and more empowerment of technical staff. • Eliminate the deputy commissioner layer. • Manage by objectives. • EnPPA • QMP or equivalent • Generally Implement Government Efficiency Commission Recommendations.

16. Major Strategic Issues • CSO’s/Long Term Control Plans. • PM2.5 Non-Attainment Designations. • Redevelopment of Contaminated Sites. • Brownfields • Voluntary Remediation Program • LUST • RCRA Corrective Action

17. Significant Issues • Electronic Permits and Reporting. • Administratively extended NPDES permits. • Water Quality Standards or Variances. • Not yet issued Title V permits. • Appealed Title V and NPDES permits. • Unwritten “policy” applied as regulation.

18. Enforcement/Compliance • Focus is on Compliance, not penalties or “gotcha” • Goal is for every regulated entity to understand and comply with their environmental responsibilities. • Will continue to enforce against those who do not meet their environmental responsibilities—working to speed up the enforcement process.

19. Questions? Tom Easterly 100 N. Senate Ave. IGCN 1301 Indianapolis, IN 46204 (317) 232-8611 Fax (317) 233-6647 teasterly@dem.state.in.us